There used to be a cartoon TV show, King of the Hill. One of the characters, Dale Gribble, saw a government conspiracy behind every bush...but could never figure out that a neighbor was in bed with his wife every day. I found it funny.
Similarly, as you pointed out, the government has very accurate sat cameras, high flying surveillance aircraft, etc at their disposal. And, if the government wants to monitor comings and goings on a road, they probably could do a better job concealing a camera somewhere along it.
Its possible this group of Dale Gribbles was in fact being spied on, as they were taking apart their ‘spy camera’ find.
"Dale Gribbles" is a very appropriate description of how they were behaving. It's a shame they aren't more clever because I do believe they have a valid grievance regarding the government's intrusion and coercion regarding western lands.