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1968 Map of Ankle Creek

Name: 1968 Topographic Map of Ankle Creek
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1972
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1972

About this map

Steens Mountain dominates this portion of the Harney County high desert, where steep escarpments fall away toward the Donner und Blitzen River. The 1968 field check reveals a landscape defined by seasonal water sources and the infrastructure of remote ranching life. Names like the Riley Huff Place, Madarieta Cabin, and Bill Taber Cabin mark specific human footprints in a vast terrain of canyons and ridges.

A network of drainage systems, including Ankle Creek and its tributary South Ankle Creek, cut through the elevations of Eusabio Ridge. Local hydrology is critical here, evidenced by the meticulous labeling of isolated water points such as Joe Huff Spring, Newton Spring, and a designated Public Waterhole. The map illustrates the survival of early 20th-century land use patterns, where access to Springs and natural Fords dictated the routes of the numerous Jeep Trails that crisscross the sagebrush and rock.