MARY

NGS PID: HW3268
Coordinates: N 38.650017° W 78.317582°
Location: Virginia
   Page County
      Thornton Gap Quad
Elevation: 3515 ft.
Type: Triangulation Station Disk
Setting: Boulder
Monumented: 1965
Monumented By: NGS
Status: Recovered
Condition: Good as of September 30, 2006
Google Map
A report on the condition of this survey mark has been submitted to NGS, along with the following recovery note:

The triangulation station, both reference marks, the azimuth mark, and R 17 were recovered in good condition.

Handheld GPS coordinates for RM 1 are 38 39 00.4(N) 078 19 03.1(W).

Handheld GPS coordinates for RM 2 are 38 38 59.6(N) 078 19 03.5(W).

We began our hike from the Buck Hollow Trail parking area, hiking WNW along the Meadow Spring Trail up to the Appalachian Trail. We finally reached an outcropping, (what we thought was) Mary’s Rock on the Mary’s Rock Trail off the A-T. However, we were very surprised to see that the GPSr was still pointing some 200 feet away! We followed it only to discover that the mark was actually on an impossibly high “finger” of rock sticking up into the wind with hundreds of feet of sheer dropoff below!

We spotted both RMs and were able to climb high enough to see the station disk and R 17, the USGS disk in the same location, but we just couldn’t bring ourselves to climb all the way up with our equipment and stand in that wind. A trio of hardy German hikers lunching atop the rock was all too eager to help us out, and they took a few very nice closeups of the marks for us. We then took photos ourselves of the reference marks; Rich did RM 1 and I did RM 2. These were much less intimidating than the main station.

All marks are in reasonably good condition. MARY is worn, scratched and slightly bent but it seems solidly set.

Reference Objects
Designation Status Condition Image
MARY AZ MK Recovered Good
MARY RM 1 Recovered Good
MARY RM 2 Recovered Good