Some Marker Piles

I promised a post on the marker pile site in the area I've been exploring. I'm quite certain these are marker piles, not only because of the way they are constructed, but also because of where they are located.

As you walk from XXX road, past the foundation (in the last post), across the first stone wall, and then through a flat area in the woods (with the high elevation to your right), you will then cross a second stone wall. In front of you, the land forms somewhat of a half 'bowl'. The low, long stone pile is just over that stone wall, at the bottom of the 'bowl'.

This is a view looking at the stone wall with the 'bowl' to my back. The stone pile is in the foreground, barely visible under the ferns (you can see my 4 ft long walking stick lying on the pile):



This is a close up of part of the pile. I estimate it to be about 10 feet long and 3 feet wide. It is only about 2 feet high, at the highest point.




If you walk up the 'bowl', heading Northeast to YYY road, where the cairn/stone pile (from my 10/2 'Exploring' post) is located, this boulder is right at the top, the horizon, of the 'bowl':



Walking further to the Northeast, you will pass through the marker pile site. The marker piles are located in an area that has slightly higher elevations to the right and the left (the one to the right is the elevation to the north of the boulder site. I have not yet explored the area to the left). I would describe the land where the marker piles are located as a 'saddle'.

This is the first marker pile I found in the saddle...



I followed the pointer rock on that pile, since no other piles were visible through the ferns, and I stumbled on this pile next...





Then I followed the general direction of the 'point' in that pile and found the third pile:



After that, I started finding piles all around. I was either right in the middle of the saddle or slightly further to the northeast side of the saddle when I found the majority of the piles all around. But my instinct was telling me that something was up with one of the piles.

There is one pile there that is low and circular, like a fire pit. It did not have the same characteristics as the circular piles that I have seen in other areas nearby (that being stacked on one side - usually to the north). This one seemed 'round all around':



There were also two trees nearby that aroused my suspicion. This is State Land, and you are not allowed to cut trees unless you've been hired for logging a specific area. I don't believe the state would condone a logger leaving a job like this (plus it looks like these were cut a long time ago):





So, with a large plantation of pines ahead of me and 2 Civil Corp cisterns within less than a mile of this site, I can't help but think this area also has some recent (1930's or so) influence on it. Just another piece of the puzzle around here that I can't put together.

All together, I found 7 marker piles, plus the boulder at the edge of the bowl, the circular pile, and the long, low stone pile.

Now, I have to walk the area between the YYY road and the marker piles to see what lies in that direction!