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natural resources that would have been attractive to the aboriginal inhabitants. The heavy <br />vegetation cover and significant deposition in the area make the locating of prehistoric sites on <br />the surface difficult. Buried prehistoric sites are often found where the disturbances have <br />removed the vegetation cover and exposed the underlying deposits on the surface. <br />CULTURE HISTORY AND PREVIOUS WORK <br />A variety of site types are present in the general project area representing most of the <br />thematic periods outlined in the RP3 documents for Northwest Colorado (Grady 1984; Mehls <br />1984). Prehistoric sites in the area include lithic scatters, open campsites, quarry sites, <br />rockshelters, and rock art panels. Evidence of Paleoindian inhabitants in the azea consists of a <br />few isolated projectile points. A few Archaic age lithic scatters and open camps have been <br />recorded in the area as well as some rock art panels believed to be Archaic in age. Recently, <br />excavations at the Red Army Rockshelter (SRT345) discovered evidence of multiple occupations <br />spanning the Eazly Archaic through Protohistoric including a house structure within a rockshelter <br />in a Twentymile sandstone outcrop (Pool 1995). More numerous Late Prehistoric age lithic <br />scatters and open camps have been recorded in the azea, including some in the current project <br />area. Protohistoric and historic Ute or Shoshone rock art sites have also been identified in the <br />area. Historic Euroamerican sites that have been recorded include homesteads, ranches, mines, <br />trails, and roads. Further information on the culture history of the area can be found in Grady <br />(1984), Mehls (1984) and LaPoint (1987) as well as several other sources written on the <br />settlement of Northwest Colorado. <br />Files searches were conducted through the Office of Archaeology and Historic <br />Preservation (OAHP) in Denver and at the BLM, Craig Field Office in Craig. Several large <br />block areas and numerous linear projects have been conducted in the project area. Small portions <br />of seismic lines 9901 and 9902 as well as core holes PDS-9903, 9904 and 9905 and their <br />associated accesses Ge within previous block inventory areas. <br />Two large block surveys were conducted at the east end of Twentymile Park in 1979 by <br />the BLM and Grand River Institute. The large block area survey conducted by Grand River <br />Institute covered three of the planned core hole locations and their associated access roads. <br />Several linear inventory projects Criss-cross Twentymile Park including the inventory for the <br />Hayden Gore Pass Transmission Line by Grand River Institute in 1985 and 1986, a seismic line <br />by Grand River Institute in 1985, and a seismic line inventory by Metcalf Archaeological <br />Consultants in 1995. Various sized block areas were also inventoried along Trout Creek east and <br />south of the proposed PDS-9901 and 9902 core holes in 1980 by Grand River Institute, and by <br />the Laboratory of Public Archaeology (LOPA) in 1977 and 1978. Two small irregular block <br />areas were inventoried by Goodson and Associates in 1986 at the mouths of two drainages along <br />the west edge of Twentymile Park. Numerous small inventories for core hole locations, access <br />roads, and staging areas have been conducted in the area as well. Metcalf Archaeological <br />Consultants conducted several core hole and access road inventories along Middle Creek in <br />3 <br />