finding some things on google earth about our property

https://maps.google.com/maps/myplaces?ll=44.4414,-85.334469&spn=0.001176,0.001781&ctz=240&t=h&z=19

above is a link to my playing around with some google and flash earth maps to our property. I was very very surprised when I got a good close look at the maps that the roads that were built back in the woods 40 years ago when they pulped off the land, are still visible (tried to mark them on the map, but couldn't get it to work for me).

If you go to the maps..our house is the one in the center (and garage)..the one on the right is our sons and his garage and the one on the left is the neighbors and their pole barn..

you can scroll north and see our pond, there is a line running from our son's east of his pole barn, that goes north..well that is an old drainage ditch that goes east of our pond and then back into the woods..well our property line is just east of that ditch about 70'.

if you follow that line into the woods..there is a break that is mostly tree area..and then you can see a road pick up..we weren't aware that road was still there..we though it had overgrown many years ago, and may have some small trees growing in it..but it is very obviously still there. Even looks as though the neighbors may have continued to use at after it was pulped 40 yeras ago..but we haven't been back there ..we haven't used it..we weren't aware it was still there.

Joel has been wanting to build a road to give us access to the back of the property..and he has the road built past the end of the drain ditch (but since the photo was taken so it doesn't show on here)..so NOW we know that the road is still there and we should be able to access it if we map it with the gps..I'm so tickled..as now we can quite easily find the road using gps ..map it..get to it with the tractor, open it back up and use it..

We had kinda run into a dead end with the road we were buildling as we hit a wet spot..well no wonder..as we also found that the neighbors obviously have built some kind of ditch that drains water off their land ONTO our property..which shows up on the maps between the two houses to the east of our woods..going east and west and stopping right by where that road is..duh..so they flooded the end of the road by running their water onto our land.

so..looks like if we build a pond where that water runs onto the land..and use the fill to get to the road on higher ground around the pond..we might actually be able to dry that area and also get to that road..but..we may have to find out why the neighbors felt they could drain their land onto our property as well..so looks like a lot of investigating is going to be happening back in our woods with our gps..this summer.

Really interesting to see your place from the air, Brenda.

Our neighbors also dug a ditch to drain water from their place onto ours, and it's causing a big problem! Neighbors, you gotta love them!

Tyler Ludens wrote:Really interesting to see your place from the air, Brenda.

Our neighbors also dug a ditch to drain water from their place onto ours, and it's causing a big problem! Neighbors, you gotta love them!

If they would only ask first! I probably would split the cost of equipment rental and build a pond or swales to catch all that water they give me. Assuming it isn't roundup-laced of course....

https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200475937592902205844.0004c451e4d77a2cd4221&msa=0&ll=44.440014,-85.334743&spn=0.00042,0.0012

the link above I have added some labels / points onto the google map to identify things...also noticed that this one had some baby leaves on the trees so it was likelly taken in late april or early march.

my son and I went over the photos from google earth. Joel says that the road is basically deep trenches that the loggers left when they tried to get to the BIG TREE..but the northern part of it and the curve was more "road" that they used over and over to haul out the pulp wood..but that was a very long time ago. You can see the photos were taken from a westerly view (you can see some of the west sides of the houses and tree trunks, the photos were also done in the evening as the shadows are pointing toward the east..which I found interesting. No leaves on any trees other than the evergreens either, so it is difficult to see the areas with foliage..and the huge tree in our front that died from emeral ash borers and 3 or 4 other smaller ones that had to be removed are still in those photos so it was taken before the trees were removed in April and May, 2012.

I would LOVE to see one with the foliage on, but these with the foliage off revealed the bones of the property. A lot has changed since the photos also. we have put several roads through the woods, we have removed some of the bright clay piles from around the pond now and will plant those areas if we don't enlarge the pond. The trees in the food forests are not visible as they were just trunks in these photos..so it would be nice to see those with foliage. You can't see any of the gardens really..either.

Yes, it would have been nice for them to ask. Joel says he will discuss with one of the neighbors going back on the road where it comes out by his house and clearing it, in the future, if he has time. He would love to start from that end as it is more visible and on higher ground..and then he can see how far he can go before he hits the wet area..and from there he can do planning for more ponds and drainage to continue the two ditches back to the creeks..there is a creek far west along neighbors property and also one that goes east to west from the side road to the creek just mentioned on the west.

There are some underground creeks also in the cedar trees on our property..that flow probably from that ditch now..which we must be careful of..but that would likely be a good place ..near there..to locate the pond so it is "spring fed" as well as creek fed.

likely the pond will be just east of the clearing that holds the big tree..as it is wet there and was torn up by the skidders attempting to take down the monster tree..but they couldn't get to it..too wet.
It would be a good place for a pond, a wetland area for the geese and ducks and deer and bear..lots of deer and bear back there.

You can also see how close the houses are..my in laws owned the house to our west and we sold it..and we gave our son 100 x 200 section to build his house on east of our garage, and then my MIL gave him the land along the road ..where his radio control car track is (the wiggly lines) and he is allowing that field area he owns to revert back to woods and food forests..we keep putting fruit and berries in there (pears, plums, apples, etc.)..we are maintaining some trails in that area too so when it does grow up to woods..it wil have level access to it.