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Cuftura(Survei~ /or Five Core Ho1es,(or the Wes! E!k Mine Dm Fork Exploration Area Core hole FFF will be located in the NE/NE/NW of Section 12, T14S, R90W. Access will be via FS 711. An irregular block of about 6.7 acres was surveyed. The core hole location is adjacent to an ATV trail on a gently sloping bench on the slopes west of Coal Creek Mesa. There is a deep drainage immediately to the southwest. The pad location is an open brush area within well-established aspen and awaist-high, moderately open understory of woody brush, fetus, and forbs. A few spruce are scattered through the area, especially near the deep drainage. Large deadfall made regular transect difficult. Core hole 00 will be located in the NE/SE of Section 1, T14S, R90W, approximately 1,500 feet east- southeast of core hole EEE. The staked location is in a small grassy area on the west side of FS 71 I-3B. Access will be via FS 711-3B. The grassy area is within alarger bmshmeadow on aneast-sloping bench. The brushy area is surrounded bywell-established aspen. An irregular block of about 6.5 acres was surveyed in the meadow and a short distance into the aspen. Weather conditions at the time of survey were warm with occasions] overcast. Roads to the survey area were muddy in places from recent rains, but conditions for survey were good. Undergrowth was dense from recent rains, and some portions of the survey areas were nearly impassible. Surface visibility ranged from very poor in areas of high, dense brush to very good along trails and drainages. In general, surface visibility was poor to fair. Discovered cultural materials would be classified as sites or isolated finds and documented on appropriate Colorado Cultural Resource Survey forms. Food and beverage containers along roadways that were not identifiably more than 50 years old, isolated scraps of sheet metal, and collapsed fence remnants that were not identifiably old were not documented. If a discovery consisted of one to four items within approximately 50 meters (164 feet) of one another, or a larger number of fragments conjoinable as four or fewer items, it would be recorded as an isolated fmd (IF). Any larger grouping of artifacts, or any artifacts associated with non- portable cultural features, would be recorded as a site. A sketch plan would be drawn of each site using a combination of compass bearings, pacing, and global positioning system (GPS) readings. Prehistoric sites would be recorded in metric units and historical sites would be recorded in the English system. The site setting and any distinctive features within the site would be photographed. All sites would be plotted on US Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5-minute topogrnphic maps. No artifacts would be collected during survey. Any distinctive or diagnostic artifacts would be described, sketched, and photographed m the field. RESULTS A total of approximately 35.4 acres was surveyed for cultural resources. This included five irregular block areas for the proposed core hole locations and approximately 1,400 feet of improved or temporary access. FS 711 and 711-3B, which have been improved and maintained by Mountain Coal Company, were not surveyed for the present project. The existing access road south from FS 711 to core hole CCC and the proposed temporary access from FS 711-3B to core hole EEE were surveyed. Approximately 100 feet to each side of the existing road or flagged centerline was inspected. For each of the core hole locations, the gently to moderntely sloping area azound each of the staked core hole locations was inspected to the extent feasible. At a minimum, this included-the flagged pad area and a small buffer. Transects stopped at dense trees and brush, slopes in excess of 50 percent grade, or existing maintained roads. Areas surveyed were approximately 3.8 acres for CCC, 6.1 acres for DDD, 5.$ acres for EEE, 6.7 acres for FFF, and 6.5 acres for 00. The proposed core hole locations are all in gently to moderately sloping settings on the west edge of Coal Creek Mesa or near tributaries of Minnesota Creek. None of the locations are in aeeas of rich or unique resources, and none of them are near perennial natural water sources. One of the small drainages through the survey block for core hole FFF was flowing at the time of survey, but it appeared that this flow came from the Deep Creek Ditch. The modem ditch rider's cabin near core hole CCC was not 210-Dry Fork Core Holes Rpt_(8.11.04)