Geocaching - The Official Global GPS Cache Hunt Site

You are not logged in. Log in.

Geocaching > Benchmark Hunting > Benchmark Details

Details for Benchmark: QF0683

Start a New Search


Learn More About Waypoint Downloads

N 45° 07.496 W 067° 04.991 (NAD 83)

Altitude: 625.1

Coordinates may not be exact. Altitude is VERTCON and location is ADJUSTED. (more info)

Location:
In WASHINGTON county, ME View Original Datasheet
Designation:
CHAMCOOK
Marker Type:
bolt
Setting:
in rock outcrop
Stability:
Most reliable and expected to hold position/elevation well.

Reference Points

Nearest

Navigation

Must Read!

Benchmarks may be on private property or in dangerous locations. Obey local laws. By using the services on Geocaching.com you agree to this disclaimer.

Found it 9/22/2007 Papa-Bear-NYC found QF0683 (NGS Benchmark)   Visit Log
My wife and I took a 10 day vacation to Down East Maine and to the Bay of Fundy. With the myriad of stations in that area I had to be selective in what I went to look for (after all this was a vacation, not a benchmarking trip). I decided to go after two sorts of marks: boundary markers of various sorts, and triangulation stations which where part of the survey for the Eastern Oblique Arc, done in this area in the 1850s. A surprising number of these marks have survived in this area.

This mark especially intrigued me since 1) it was a primary station of the Eastern Oblique Arc, 2) it was in Canada and therefore 3) it is seldom visited by US benchmark hunters. It was just by luck that the Deer Island Ferry was not running which necessitated us driving up to the Calais border crossing and spending the night at Saint Andrews by the Sea. A lovely little town in a beautiful spot at the head of Passamaquoddy Bay.

There is an old road the leaves from behind the Rossmount Inn, a very expensive restaurant and Inn, and leads right to the summit. So there was no trouble whatsoever in getting to the location of Chamcook.

Finding the mark was something else. After reaching the summit clearing, I checked the rock ledge at the highest point, and immediately found a drill hole. This is RM1 (there used to be a disk set in the hole). This is an important starting point. The next thing I did was to inspect the ledge around the high point. I soon found a copper plug NW of RM1 (towards the picnic table). I checked carefully and it was stamped 091006, which according to the 1985 recovery was RM5 (more on this below).

Now with two marks and some bearings from the NGS log I went in search of the station. There was a distance for RM1 but not for RM5 so it took a few false starts to get the right area. I used both compass and GPS to get bearings to the station. After a bit of digging and checking bearings, I realized the station was behind a couple of small trees in another small clearing.

Everything in this spot was covered by moss and dirt so it took quite a while to scrape it away and search. Finally I found one drill hole, and then a second one. The log said the station had 4 drill holes around the copper plug, so with an assumption as to which side I was on, I zeroed in on the station. Finally I found it, cleverly hidden in a square depression about 3 inches deep covered by dirt and moss. The depression was probably carved out for the mark. Eventually I found a third drill hole, but not the 4th.

Now about RM5. Why was it stamped 091006 and not 091005? After all the station was stamped 09100. Furthermore, the 1857 log said RM6 was on line with the westerly drill hole at the station, which to the best I could tell was where this supposed "RM5" was. In 1985, only RM1 and "RM5" were reported found, and I could also not find any other marks. But maybe an error or bad assumption was made by the 1985 person and this was really RM6, not RM5. And when were they stamped? I would guess they were stamped in the 1930s by the GSC, but there was no record of that. It's fun when there are still some unanswered questions, don't you think?

This find was one of the most rewarding for me, especially since it was so far from the beaten path, and that it was the original 1857 mark from the primary scheme of the EOA.


Photos:
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The Rossmount Inn, on Route 127, north of the village of Saint Andrews by the Sea in New Brunswick, Canada.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
A sign behind the Inn marks the path up the hill.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The view upon arriving at the summit. RM1 (a drill hole) is at the high point right in front of you.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
View from RM1 towards the picnic table. "RM5" is on the ledge in front of the table.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
View from RM1 towards the station. It is in the clearing behind the two small birch trees.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The station and two of the drill holes after clearing away much of the moss and dirt. Nothing was visible in the area prior to scraping and clearing. Most of the dark wet portion of the ledge was covered by moss and dirt.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The station. I would guess the square depression was carved out in 1859 when the mark was set.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
Closeup of the station mark. I would guess the stamping was done later, possibly in the 1930s by the GSC.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK W. Hole, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The westerly hole was the first one I found.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK S. Hole, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The south hole was found next.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK E. Hole, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The east drill hole was found last, after the station. I never found the north drill hole.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK RM1, St. Andrews NB, Canada
RM1 was the first thing I found after reaching the summit. A disk was mounted in this hole at one time.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK RM5, St. Andrews NB, Canada
Next I found RM5. Note in my log I speculated that this is really RM6 misidentified as RM5 in 1985.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK RM5, St. Andrews NB, Canada
Closeup of "RM5". Note the stamping is 091006.
photoQF0683 - CHAMCOOK, St. Andrews NB, Canada
The station area after I finished. I put a rock over the station and put back some of the moss I had cleared away.

Documented History (by the NGS)

1/1/1857 by NGS (MONUMENTED)
DESCRIBED BY NATIONAL GEODETIC SURVEY 1857 (ADB) ON CHAMCOOK MOUNTAIN, ABOUT 3-1/2 MILES NORTH OF ST ANDREWS. THE STATION IS ABOUT 30 FEET SOUTH OF THE SUMMIT, IN A SLIGHT DEPRESSION IN THE BARE ROCKY LEDGE, NEAR THE NORTHERN CORNER OF A GROWTH OF TIMBER ON THE SOUTH SLOPE OF THE MOUNTAIN. A GOOD ROAD LEADS TO THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN. STATION MARK IS A COPPER BOLT SET IN A DRILL HOLE IN THE ROCK, WITH DRILL HOLES, EACH 3 FEET FROM THE STATION, FORMING A SQUARE WHOSE DIAGONALS INTERSECT ON THE STATION MARK. THE WESTERLY DRILL HOLE IS PARTLY OBLITERATED. REFERENCE MARK 1 IS A GS OF C BRONZE REFERENCE DISK SET IN A DRILL HOLE IN THE BARE ROCKY LEDGE, ON THE HIGHEST POINT ON THE MOUNTAIN NORTHWEST OF THE STATION, WITH THE ARROW POINTING TO THE STATION. SHANK ONLY IN 1955. REFERENCE MARK 2 IS A COPPER BOLT LEADED IN A DRILL HOLE IN THE LEDGE SW OF THE STATION, WITH AN ARROW CUT IN THE ROCK POINTING TO REFERENCE MARK 4 AND DISTANT 23.10 FEET FROM IT. REFERENCE MARK 3 IS THE TIP OF AN ARROW CHISELLED IN THE LEDGE SOUTHWEST OF THE STATION, POINTING TO THE STATION. REFERENCE MARK 4 IS A COPPER BOLT LEADED IN A DRILL HOLE IN THE LEDGE, INSIDE A TRIANGLE CUT IN THE ROCK WSW OF THE STATION ON LINE TO STATION COOPER. A DRILL HOLE IS FARTHER OUT ON THIS SAME LINE. REFERENCE MARK 5 IS A COPPER BOLT LEADED IN A DRILL HOLE IN THE LEDGE WEST OF THE STATION. AN ARROW POINTS TO REFERENCE MARK 4. REFERENCE MARK 6 IS A COPPER BOLT LEADED IN A DRILL HOLE IN THE LEDGE WNW OF THE STATION, APPROXIMATELY IN LINE WITH THE WESTERLY OF THE 4 DRILL HOLES AROUND THE STATION. AN ARROW POINTS TO REFERENCE MARK 4. AN IRON RINGBOLT IS WNW OF THE STATION 9.2 FEET.
1/1/1955 by IBC (GOOD)
RECOVERY NOTE BY INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARY COMMISSION 1955 (NWS) STATION AND REFERENCES RECOVERED OK EXCEPT THAT SHANK ONLY OF REFERENCE MARK 1 WAS RECOVERED.
1/1/1985 by NOS (GOOD)
RECOVERY NOTE BY NATIONAL OCEAN SERVICE 1985 (WVH) THE STATION WAS RECOVERED AT THIS DATE. IT WAS FOUND IN GOOD CONDITION. TO REACH THE STATION FROM THE POST OFFICE AT THE FOOT OF THE PIER IN DOWNTOWN ST ANDREWS, GO NORTHWEST ON WATER STREET FOR 0.5 MILE TO A SIDE ROAD RIGHT. TURN RIGHT AND GO 0.2 MILE TO AN INTERSECTION AT ARENA. TURN LEFT AND FOLLOW ROUTE 127 NORTHWESTERLY FOR 0.3 MILE TO A FORK. TAKE RIGHT FORK AND GO NORTHWESTERLY FOR 2.1 MILES TO A FORK. BEAR RIGHT AND GO 0.7 MILE TO THE ROSSMONT INN. OBTAIN PERMISSION FROM PROPRIETOR MR. G. BREWIN TO PACK UP GRASS ROAD TO STATION. THE STATION HAS A VERY LIMITED VIEW ALTHOUGH REFERENCE MARK 1 IS PARTIALLY CLEAR TO THE WEST. THE STATION IS A COPPER BOLT STAMPED---09100---, AND IS SORROUNDED BY FOUR DRILL HOLES ABOUT THREE FEET DISTANT. THESE WERE ALSO RECOVERED. REFERENCE MARK 1 TAPED DISTANCE AGREED WITHIN 0.01 FOOT, ONLY THE DRILL HOLE REMAINS. THE MAGNETIC BEARING FROM THE STATION TO RM 1 IS 340 DEGREES. REFERENCE MARK 5 TAPED DISTANCE AGREED WITHIN 0.01 FOOT. THE BOLT IS STAMPED--- 091006---. THE MAGNETIC BEARING FROM THE STATION TO RM 5 IS 300.5 DEGREES. THE HORIZONTAL TAPED DISTANCE RM 1 TO RM 5 IS 7.244 METERS. DESCRIBED BY G.E.L.

Control Text

  • The horizontal coordinates were established by classical geodetic methods and adjusted by the National Geodetic Survey in March 1998.
  • The NAVD 88 height was computed by applying the VERTCON shift value to the NGVD 29 height (displayed under SUPERSEDED SURVEY CONTROL.) The vertical order pertains to the superseded datum.
  • The Laplace correction was computed from DEFLEC99 derived deflections.
  • The geoid height was determined by GEOID99.

Geocaching, a Groundspeak Project.

Copyright © 2000-2010 Groundspeak, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
About Groundspeak | Contact Us
Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners.
Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of the Groundspeak Terms of Use.
Read our Geocaching Logo Usage Guidelines.
Hotels | Altrec Gear | GPS Reviews