1954 Map of Mt. Waas 1 SE

About this map

The Dolores River cuts through this high-altitude borderland where the state line divides the high mesas of eastern Utah and western Colorado. Surveyed in the mid-1950s, the terrain is defined by dramatic elevation shifts between the flat summits of Piñon Mesa and Steamboat Mesa. The landscape reflects a mid-century period of remote land use, characterized by a Landing Strip and a network of Jeep Trails rather than established towns. Natural catchment areas and livestock grazing locations like Ryan Park and Lost Horse Basin are interspersed among steep drainages such as Buckskin Gulch. This preliminary survey highlights the survey markers of the era, including high-point monuments like Granite VABM 8336 and Steamboat VABM 6258, which served as critical points for the first multiplex aerial photogrammetry of this canyon country.