SAMS POINT RESET

After almost eight years since our last visit to Sam's Point, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to look for SAMS POINT AZ MK! Only one geocacher has mentioned having found it, and it is not mentioned in any NGS recovery notes. Last week, Rich and I used Google Maps and the box score data to plot estimated coordinates along the ridge. Of course, we had no idea how accessible those coordinates would be.

Before hiking toward the azimuth mark, we had hoped to confirm that the station mark was in place because the most recent recovery on the NGS datasheet states "Mark not found" (but gives no further details). However, the entire area around the coordinates was covered with a thick layer of dried mud that would have required a trowel to dig through, and possibly a metal detector to find the mark itself. We also noticed when we got home that RM 1 doesn’t seem to be pointing directly toward the station. Next visit we will have to confirm the condition of the station and will know better, from our previous photos, exactly where to search. Both RMs were in good condition.

We discovered that there is a relatively easy path to walk all the way along the ledges from a point very near the observation platform to the ledge that holds the azimuth mark. From at least a hundred yards away, Rich spotted a high ledge that he thought would be the perfect spot for an azimuth mark. I suspected he was right; we just had to get there. Getting there involved mostly easy ledge walking, plus a small amount of bushwhacking and more crevice-hopping. But he was right! I skipped ahead and spotted the azimuth mark easily. We aren’t the only ones who have discovered this ledge lately, though. The rock very near the mark is scrawled with graffiti in black paint. What is wrong with people?! All this beauty, and they can’t resist making their pathetic ugly mark upon it.

We noticed that the azimuth mark disk is stamped SAM POINT instead of SAMS POINT, as are the other disks.