In Search of the Stone Chamber- Episode Three

 I have to think that people who investigate things for a living, whether it be crimes, causes of pandemics, or possible CSL’s start the process by learning all they can about the subject of the investigation. This way, when they arrive at a crime scene, a laboratory, or a place in the woods, they have some idea of what they’re looking for. Then there are those of us who just dive right into the deep end with very little, if any, information. 

After my second trip, I returned home to spend some quality time with my computer. I started by looking through websites that were full of information and pictures of cairns, stone walls, stone prayers, and stone chambers. After this, I was convinced that I had found a CSL.

I then went to the NEARA database and looked for any additional information they might have. After searching, I found some more information. Not much, but more than I had. I came across two pictures.

NEARA Transit

One was a picture of the chamber, the second was a picture of a possible Native American marker tree. I also came across an article in an old issue of the “Transit”. This article featured the same two pictures, along with a brief description of the location. 

NEARA Transit

Looking at the pictures, I thought, “How hard can it be to find these things?” I had some doubts about the tree, since I had no information on the date they were taken. There was a good possibility the tree had fallen or been cut down. I also am not a strong believer in marker trees. If this stone chamber was pre-colonial or even post-contact, the Native Americans would have had to have groomed this tree centuries ago. Would it really be possible for a tree to survive that long? 

NEARA Report

I couldn’t gather much information from the tree picture, other than I could see a paved road in the background. That was more than I could get from the picture of the stone chamber. It appeared to have been dug into the side of a hill. The area around it was bare of any trees or ground cover; however, there wasn’t much area to see. It also appeared to be on the smaller side. 

Stone Prayer

From information I had gathered about stone chambers I was able to make some assumptions as to where this one might be. Although not always, many chambers seem to be orientated to either the east or the west. This is because it is believed they may have been aligned with the solstices. They are also mainly on slopes. I would begin my search by hiking along the slopes facing east and west. 

Enclosure?

Of course, if I found the marker tree, I would then draw a line from it to the direction it was pointing. (I thought that was a stroke of genius) I have recently acquired an app on my phone called CalTopo that has all kinds of useful information, especially for some one who has lived under a rock most of my life. This app will allow me to mark the location of the tree and then draw a line along the axis it was pointing to. Using the lidar feature will also allow me to see interesting structures on the ground I might not otherwise see.

Armed with this information, and a plan, it was time to head back to the location.