I had several links to news articles in my email the last few days concerning this. The fines and imprisonment sentences are not high enough. Occasionally thieves like this do get caught but it takes a solid case and diligent work. It also takes us speaking out that this stuff actually matters to us.
Yep, as Sky notes, in all the years I spent chasing the bad guys (above this thread) , we only really sent one guy (in NECaNWNevada) to the slammer, and it was because he was stupid and was on probation when we got him again. He actually kept maps of the sites he was potting and we actually used his maps to tie him to sites that had been potted over the years-but again, in his own mind, he was not destroying sites like those that vandalize rock art, he really liked archaeology and artifacts, but believed it was his "right" to collect things and that the feds/state had no right to tell him what to do. Over the years we (the feds/state-sometimes) learned to work with with those who called themselves "amateur Arks" to both protect and identify ark sites and usually it was (or could be) a productive relationship. People like to look at rock art and ark sites and most would not knowingly destroy or damage them, but many sites have been "loved" to death! Again the public lands belong to you and without your help, they will be be destroyed! Sound like I'm still working!
Good example, using chalk to outline Painted Rock art so they can get a better picture-overtime it destroys the pictographs chemically-really. I don't know how many times I stopped arrow head hunters( including people I worked with) out and about collecting neat points and chips, but they don't realize that by "collecting" those things they destroy that picture of what took place at that area over time-and I come along and don't see anything and put the road in, and we put a road right through a major village site because the surface picture is gone. Look there is only so much stuff out there and once it is gone its gone! Take a picture, feel it but leave it-I know some one else will come along and take it, but sometimes we catch them-and warn them and sometimes put them away! It's hard to be a good steward of our public lands (when there are so many a-holes out there) and most of us on this site would not "knowingly" destroy our past, but it's so easy to do! Like mud driving in sensitive areas-fun, but it don't fix itself, unless we help.
Sorry, I'm preaching again, but was was so lucky to work where i did for so long, and now let's all enjoy our FWC's and this wonderful public land we have to play in!
Smoke!
Did not see any vandalism at Sky Rock.
