linear referencing and hatch marks

Linear referencing: point location along the line as an alternative to expressing the location using an xy coordinate. Useful, for example, for measuring distance along a stream.

An Overview of Linear Referencing

Here are steps outlining a way to put hatch marks (with distance labels) on a polyline (e.g. following a stream).

1. When you create the polyline shapefile in arc catalog, you need to check the box for "Coordinates will contain M values. Used to store route data."

2. Make the polyline (start edit session, click click click, double click to end, stop edit session)

3. In the arc toolbox -> linear referencing tools -> create routes  [routes?]

a. Input line features: the polyline layer
b. Route identifier field: (you can use id or if you created another field like "route." If there's only one line, that's ok.)
c.  Output route feature class (it fills in a default)
d.  Coordinate Priority: where is the start of the polyline? In my case, lower_left.
e.  click OK - this will create another later eg. channel_CreateRoutes

4. I'm still fuzzy on why you need an entirely new layer, but anyway... it is on this new layer that you can specify hatch marks.

This page nicely outlines the 19 (!!!) steps necessary to display hatch marks on that layer:

Displaying hatches

1. Right-click the layer in the table of contents that you want to hatch and click Properties.
2. Click the Hatches tab.
3. Check Hatch features in this layer.
4. Type an appropriate hatch interval.
5. Click Hatch Def(1).
6. The Hatch Definition view becomes active.
7. Type an appropriate line length.
8. Right-click the hatch class and click Add Hatch Definition.
9. The Hatch Definition view becomes available.
10. Type an appropriate multiple of the hatch interval.
11. Type an appropriate line length.
12. Check Label these hatches.
13. Right-click the hatch class and click Add End Hatch Definition.
14. The End Hatch Definition view becomes active.
15. Type an appropriate end hatch tolerance if necessary.
16. Type an appropriate line length.
17. Check Label these hatches.
18. Click OK.
19. Poke your eye out with a pen.

5. Peripherally related: It may also be useful to you to divide a line into segments: Splitting line features

6. Next up: putting something useful along the route: Event Tables