Walking Eastward

This is the view while standing on the Southern end of the lane looking to the East.  The truck is ours while the opposite field belongs to others.  Here again the exact location of the property line is hidden.  The neighbor's land was part of the original farm and was cultivated.  That activity placed stones at the edge of the field that obscure the new property line.  Our land here is on the location of the disappearing bedrock ridge.  That stone composition prevented farm activity leaving this area untouched by human activity and home to very old trees.

 

This is a view looking to the North.  Everything seen here is ours.  The distant patch of snow cover shows part of the level kame terrace deposited by the retreating glacier.  The huge piece of stone to the right is a broken chunk of the bedrock dropped here by the melting ice.  We find walking in this area tremendously peaceful but our path has established a trail.  Wildlife also use our trail.

This area marks the location of a minor change in the direction of the property line.  When the last man to farm this land was selling off pieces of it, he used sections of iron pipe driven into the ground to mark the location of new property lines.  In the foreground a piece of pipe can be seen.  When the recent sale of this land happened, the surveyor could not find the pipe as a huge growth of ferns kept it hidden from view.  The small tree near the left edge of the photo is where he put his metal pipe.  He also used a taller wooden stake to make it possible to find the property line.  That placement gave me more land but it really makes no difference since all here prefer this land to remain wild.

This photo shows the view from the original pipe looking to the East.  The property line drops downhill  as it heads toward an area filled with smaller glacial deposits.  The farmer ran a single strand of barbed wire across the ground to mark the location of the property line.  A hiker must pay close attention to avoid tripping on this wire.

Looking back toward the West, this post marks the location of a change of direction for the property line.  Next we will be moving to the North along a barbed wire fence line.  The lower level of this ground covers the remains of the stone ridge.  Water seeps from the ridge into the filled area.  Large chunks of stone provide a dangerous but dry path when walking here.  The fill is shallow providing little room for tree roots to form a firm anchorage.  Wind thrown trees are common. Walking this part of the perimeter is not for the short-winded or the faint-hearted.
 

Walk The Property Line

As one ages the certainty of a tomorrow becomes less sure.  The borders of our land are clearly described in the deed but difficult to find when walking about.  This first photo was taken with my back close to River Road.  The neatly mowed grass belongs to our neighbor and the edge of the dry stone wall is very close to the property line.  The deed describes this beginning as next to a telephone pole.  That pole has been replaced but part of it is still here underground.  The exact location of the property line remains undescribed since no part of the pole is identified as being the point of separation.  This neighbor is more than reasonable and we cannot imagine a problem here.  This is the Western edge of our land.  Moving South 150 feet toward the top of the photo brings us to a change of direction.

 

This lane's center line is the border between our land and two of our neighbors and defines the location of a right of way.  The short fence post to the right is in line with the missing telephone pole.  At one time a piece of steel pipe was driven into the ground to mark the location of the center of the right of way.  A now gone property owner removed that piece of pipe.  The view here is generally to the West.

As previously mentioned this right of way separates the land.  Ours is on the uphill side.  Walking here usually brings to mind a poem written by Robert Frost.  This winding path covers 1,468 feet.

 

This stone wall was placed at the edge of the right of way to protect transplanted Arbutus plants.  One likely does not see the need for protection but a former property owner believed that the fence line separated our land not the center line of the lane as described in his deed.  He bulldozed away nearly twenty feet wide section of my land.  His religious beliefs made this acceptable since he saw a use for that land.  My wall continues to protect my plants and a later battle with me caused that land owner to sell both his business and home and move West.

 

This stone wall marks the Southern edge of our property.  The actual property line is in the center of the lane.  The stone wall marks the limit of the right of way.  I knew that the white dog named Luca was in the picture but remained unaware of his raised leg.  Tomorrow we will look to the right of the stone wall and follow the property line Eastward into the woods.