Riverbend Update

Logging is continuing on Dave Watt’s property near the main road. The trucks and commercial logging vehicles have taken a toll on our roadway. In addition to Dave’s property, commercial cutting has occurred on Michael Greene’s and Steve Lanning’s property. These activities may be completely OK based on their property development plans, arborist advice or other issues. The logging truck driver informed me that these pines would be sent to the Albemarle mill which is currently receiving 100 trucks per day which he says relates to the high price of pine and the cash needs of property owners.
On October 7th, Dave’s brother Rick, was there loading his Jeep. His jeep and other vehicles were damaged last year with all windows smashed and riddled with bullet holes. There was similar damage to my Bronco. Rick tells me that this vandalism occurred when he called the sheriff on a 23 year old male, Mike Teal, living nearby with the Hineken family. He is the boyfriend of their daughter, both of whom are foul mouthed when attempting to reason with them. Mike Teal hunts and traverses Riverbend on his four wheel drive vehicle without any inhibition. The Hineken son (early teens) accompanies him in his escapades into Riverbend. Rick saw Teal on the Riverbend main road on the morning of October 7 driving his 4-wheeler. Rick indicated that there are several pathways of entry into Riverbend used by many trespassers.

The Riverbend dream of a community in harmony with nature is clearly at risk. We purchased property there as a respite from busy city life and a quiet connection with Nature. Now, 8 years later, it has become something else and mostly used by non-property owners. Securing the property is a high priority.

Logging Continues

Logging continues at Riverbend. In the aerial photo, the areas circled in red have had mostly pine timber harvested. Some of this work has been approved by individual property owners and may be related to future building plans and may have been approved by the arborist or others as required. It is a surprising development and I plan to monitor any new harvesting.

Dry Weather impact

There has been very little rain at Riverbend over the past month. Nearby Logan farm has begun pumping water from one of their ponds to shape the soil into mounds for strawberry planting. This dryness has produced a surprising effect ... the soil as dust has become the consistency of flour. It is very light. Just as with fresh fallen snow, it shows animal tracks in high contrast. This track is a raccoon fore paw.

Deer Season starts Saturday

A makeshift dispenser for deer corn.


This Posted sign tells an important story. It shows the contempt by illegal hunters for our efforts to keep them out. My next posted signs will be metal.


Deer season begins this Saturday (bow season). Be careful when hiking and wear bright colors.

Timber Theft

Timber theft in NC has become big business. The amount of money involved is surprisingly high with cherry and walnut fetching several thousand dollars for good specimens. In 2009 penalties were increased to a class 1 felony because of increased thefts (G.S. 14-135).

Riverbend is unusually vulnerable because of a large gravel road, unprotected entry and absent landowners. Risk factors are identified in this article; timber theft.
"Prime targets for timber thieves are the trees of older landowners who do not see all of their property on a regular basis and absentee owners who may not live in the same state as their trees."

http://www.swvatoday.com/news/article/forest_owners_losing_to_timber_thefts/1861

A case from last week shows the extent of the problem; Increased timber theft.

http://rrspin.com/News-from-Roanoke-Rapids-Weldon-and-Halifax-County/Man-faces-timber-theft-counts.html

Organized timber thieves do careful research to limit their risks. One year ago I received a call from someone offering to cut some trees for me. He described several trees on my property in detail suggesting that he had actually visited the property.

Many property owners at Riverbend feel very strongly that the entrance must be secured soon.

JR Moore & Son Store

The JRMoore and son store in nearby Gulf is a wonderful resource for ... everything. It is a classic country store that is part museum, part source of supplies and great source of information. Lisa or Billy are almost always there and usually have their finger on the pulse of the region.

Logging Underway

I visited RiverBend today and heard the distinctive sound of chain saws. As I made my way through the woods to the source, the signs of commercial vehicles with their "collateral damage" became evident. This image is a commercial logging vehicle owned by American Timber Company. I asked them to stop and speak with me. Mr. McNeil told me that his company has been contracted to harvest timber on two tracts in RiverBend. He could not name or give a description of the persons he spoke with. The site pictured here is on property owned by Dave Watts. Mr. McNeil told me that there is one additional tract that he will be working on next week.

Along plank road, several tracts have been clear cut recently. I stopped at JR Moore store in route home and spoke with Billy and Lisa. This company has been very active in the area recently.

When I returned home I reviewed our sales documents. No timber harvesting. Permission to cut trees over 4" diameter must be obtained in advance.

There are many deer stands on the property. Opening day for deer hunting season will be crowded if the number of new deer stands is any indication.

Deer Season 2010

This is just a brief reminder that the deer hunting season in the Central Region of NC will begin in September. The stands that I have seen suggest that the builders intend to hunt with bow and arrow. I expect muzzleloader hunters also. As with prior years, the Gun season will probably attract many hunters to Riverbend, most of whom are unknown to the owners. Please wear "hunter orange" hats or vests if you are visiting your property. I personally recommend that you do not confront hunters about their permission to be on the property, but use your judgement.

You can find information about hunting at the following website:
http://www.ncwildlife.org/hunting/H_Season_Dates.htm


CENTRAL DEER SEASON
Bow and arrow: Sept. 12 to Nov. 6
Muzzleloader: Nov. 7 to Nov. 13
Gun: Nov. 14 to Jan. 1

RB Flower

This remarkable flower is quite abundant this year throughout the property. It is large, about 4-5 inches across an on bushes about 4-5 feet high. Any ideas about the name?

McIver Landing

One of the reasons our area is special is the Triangle Land Conservancy and their focus on preserving properties nearby. Riverbend is bordered by TLC land. Nearby is the McIver Landing to promote public river access, a project of the TLC. It is worth a visit, even if you do not have a canoe. Reading the display is reward enough.








The natural history panel is worth trying to display here.

July 18

I took a quick early morning trip to Riverbend to see the roadway after a big rain. RB remains a beautiful and unique property. The makeshift gates at the front are now removed. It is just as well, they were never very effective. There is a new sign about 15 yards into the property. It is a good sign with the right message.I see only one property for sale now. It is owned by Ryan Rose burg. Ryan informed me that one of the owners was planning to harvest timber. I informed him that this is not approved by the HOA.

The roadway is best inspected after a rain. You know the old saying about inspecting a roof in a rainstorm. This photo shows the continued deterioration in some areas. These are still easily passable, but repair will be needed. Note that some spraying of roudup has been done recently.

While hiking I came across a remarkable flower. It was on high ground and present in a small clump in a shaded area. Does anyone know what it is? Truly beautiful.

Take care and have a great week! dgremill@gmail.com

dg

New Developments

Hello fellow RiverBend owners. Several new developments deserve mention in a new post. I encourage you to post comments, and these will be uploaded quickly.

1. Deer hunters are scouting the property in anticipation of the fall season. These have been seen by several individuals on 4 wheelers with baiting devices and corn. Mr. Dave Watts has leased property to several NC State Students for hunting this fall on a one year trial basis. In some ways this is favorable because it will draw a line between the poachers and the legal hunters with contracts and insurance. They may be able to actually monitor the property more effectively than we can at a distance. It is possible that some of the others seen on the property are not part of this group. This leasing raises several important questions. Do the hunters understand that they have leased only the portion of the property owned by Dave? Are they aware of the individual property boundaries? What are the rules they are working under related to construction of stands? Have they been informed that some other property owners do not want hunting on their land and that these owners may be on the property exploring, hiking or working?

2. Timber and Mineral rights mailings have been received by RB owners as well as many others in the vicinity. If you attended the meeting on June 16th on this please report back to the owners. As we all know, no RB owners have timber or mineral rights with their land. It is important to stay informed on these developments however, because poaching of both timber and mineral resources is a well known phenomenon.

3. Vandalism has been experienced by several owners including Mr. Watts. Some of these acts have been relatively minor and some have been expensive. Some have been violent and destructive. It is important to report your experiences to determine if a pattern of acts is occurring that needs more attention. Local police may not be interested in responding to reports from unoccupied and unmonitored property far from the city limits. I have not heard of any threats or acts of personal injury.

4. Roadway deterioration is progressing. As you all know, we are required to pay $400 per year for roadway maintenance. However, this has not been collected or used for several years. We need to develop a consensus on road maintenance and documentation of use of those funds for the peace of mind of the RB owners. Also, it is difficult to pay a road fee if road repairs mostly benefit persons using the property illegally. Two property owners are considering construction soon and construction vehicle traffic will increase.

5. Property security seems to be a high priority in view of the issues that we are experiencing. We should consider our needs for personal safety, security of our small pieces of this unique land, safety of construction materials etc. I personally feel that a secure entrance is critical. This should be done before any road improvement or building construction. It should be completed before September to limit hunting traffic. All owners and individuals with a legal right to be on the property should have a key or pass code.

Please post your ideas on these or other issues. If you are not a "poster" because of privacy or other concerns please email me individually at dgremill@gmail.com.

DG

Update from Riverbend

I enjoyed a Sunday hike at Riverbend during the wonderful recent weather. The snow has mostly melted and the small creek beds mostly dry. As with previous visits, I am always surprised by the lack of activity and visitors.

While hiking, I had the startling experience of being surrounded by 6 large dogs. Within 10 minutes, their owner, Debbie came by and introduced herself. Debbie is one of our neighbors. She lives in the white house across from Logan's place. Over the 8 years that she has lived there she has taken on the mission of adopting stray dogs. People drive from nearby cities and "dump" the dogs. Some have been in pitiful shape when she finds them. Dave Watts gave her permission to run the dogs at Riverbend. I believe that she is a good resource for us as an observer and monitor of activities. She tells me that she saw no deer hunters this year but that recently, other game hunters have been active on the property.

Our main roadway continues to deteriorate but remains passable. Small cars must drive with care to avoid potholes. We will eventually need to repair these.

I must sadly report some significant vandalism to a vehicle that we left on the property. Someone smashed all of the windows and removed tools and books that we have kept there. The damage went beyond simple breaking and entering and showed a lot of anger. We have removed the vehicle to a local auto salvage yard.

My current feeling is that we will need to definitively secure the property to prevent use of the property by others.