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Backcountry Pilot • Giant Concrete Arrows

Giant Concrete Arrows

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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

I enjoyed reading this thread. Incidentally, this thread is how I found this community!! I was searching for information on it since we were discussing on another pilot forum.

Would really love to fly this route one day from NY to CA, and looks like one of those markers is right here in Richmond, VA!!
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David

Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Thought I'd bump this Thread, 'cause I found an article on our Concrete Arrows that was written recently:

http://www.core77.com/blog/transportati ... _25236.asp


Some Diagrams were posted before, but some new photos and more Diagrams are in this article.

Now, if one of the previous posters just happens to be the author of this article, well... very cool!

:wink:
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

That would be a nice bucket list trip in a J-3 or Aeronca...
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Magnet/Arnold-I never saw the light beacon just west of Albuquerque but the one on the mountain (9256) west of Grants was still working in the 70s and 80s when i was flying between Albuquerque and Gallup frequently.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

The core77 article got one thing wrong. While the towers may no longer be attached to the arrows, many of the original beacon towers are still in use as airport beacons. I posted about this previously.

Plus the great state of Montana still has some of the original beacons still in operation. A very nice gentleman from the Montana Div of Aeronautics sent me a huge packet of information on the beacons including newspaper articles, maps, etc. I'm still going through everything they sent me.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

svanarts wrote:The core77 article got one thing wrong. While the towers may no longer be attached to the arrows, many of the original beacon towers are still in use as airport beacons. I posted about this previously.

Plus the great state of Montana still has some of the original beacons still in operation. A very nice gentleman from the Montana Div of Aeronautics sent me a huge packet of information on the beacons including newspaper articles, maps, etc. I'm still going through everything they sent me.

Is Forsyth, MT on that list? The beacon is visible along I-94 and looks very old.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Image
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

One of our local Utah tv stations, KUTV2, did a story on these last night. Here is a link to their page: http://www.kutv.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_7133.shtml
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

I received an interesting letter from a gentleman who works for the FAA. Seems documenting these old airways is a hobby of his. He sent me a Google Earth KML file with all the beacon locations across the country. He is asking for anyone who would like to help him document them to please help out. He is looking for pictures and write ups of the beacons sites as they are today. If you'd like to help out let me know and I'll put you in touch with him. If anyone has a good location for me to put the beacon KML file let me know and I'll upload it. It's a pretty cool file.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Went for a scenic flight today and followed the route from Reno east toward Battle Mountain. Below are a few photos of the beacons/emergency airfields along the way.

Beacon 28, just east of Lovelock, NV. Concrete arrow is still there. Visible on google earth if you know where to look.

Image

Beacon 28 emergency airfield, a short bit east of the arrow.

Image

Beacon 30 hilltop site. No obvious evidence of the arrow or beacon.

Image

Beacon 32 hilltop site. Looks like there are a few pieces of wood scattered around below the hilltop, but otherwise no structures.

Image

Beacon 33 emergency airfield, Buffalo Valley, NV. Arrow is in the corner on the right side of the photo. You can see this on google earth if you look hard enough.

Image

Beacon 33 concrete arrow. Looks like some sort of structure built on the tail of the arrow. Did not land to check it out.

Image

BLM firefighter graffiti :lol:

Image

Beacon 34 near Golconda Summit, NV (center of photo). By this time my photographer was not feeling too well, what with the bumpy air and trying to take photos with a telephoto lens, so we didn't really get a good photo. Very visible on google earth, however.

Image

Scott, if you want to have the fellow contact me, please feel free.

Cheers,
Greg
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Great photos! I'll go ahead and post his contact info here so folks can get in touch with him if so desired. His name is Ray Hawkins. He can be reached at :

ray (at) soaringhawk (dot) com

or

ray (dot) hawkins (at) faa.gov

Here is the KML file he sent me with all the beacon locations in Google Earth:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B8-a0KPpwvh6WDc0TTdGUHdqSTQ/edit?usp=sharing

And here is the data gathering methodology he recommended. However, if you're flying, most of it is unnecessary. :-)


Site Inspection Methodology
CAUTION: Make sure you have the permission of the landowner before entering their property.
CAUTION: Do not move any artifacts found unless the landowner approves and is present.

1) Site Entry
a) Attempt to locate the landowner. DO NOT enter any private property without the landowners permission. Public properties may be entered at your own risk.
b) If the landowner does not allow entry and the site is visible from a public accessable area obtain photos as able.
c) When you enter any property, treat the property with respect, closing gates and not damaging the site. In most cases walk do not use a vehicle.

2) Landowner
a) Determine if the landowner would be willing to preserve/restore the site.
b) Determine if the landowner is willing to donate the artifacts to a local/National museum.

3) Photographs:
a) General area - whether or not there are any visible artifacts take a minimum of 4 photos, one each from N, S, E, and W.
b) If artifacts are present:
i) Photograph any structures as needed to provide a "3D" view of the site. (minimum one photo)
ii) Photograph artifacts "as found". DO NOT move them without landowner permission. If they can be moved, obtain photos with as much detail as possible.
iii) Photograph any data plates. If they are not readable in the photo, write the data shown in a short message and describe the artifact to which the data plate is attached.

4) Local Area Knowledge
a) Attempt to locate a local person that has first-hand knowledge of the site.
i) Provide a short write-up of the details discussed.
ii) These people will be 70 to 100 years old.Their memories may not be clear.
iii) Determine if a local newspaper archive is available to support details discussed.

5) Documentation
a) Provide a short write-up of the site, provide:
i) Landowners Name
ii) Coordinates if different than those provided in Google Earth
iii) Names of people providing any witnesses
iv) A general "picture" of the site including condition, access, and layout.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

So I'm happily finding out that many of the old airmail airway beacons have been repurposed as airport beacons. Many more than I had expected. Corning, California for one. So when you stop at an airport, take a look at the beacon. If it looks like the one below, you're looking at a little bit of aviation history.

Image


Also, I've located one of the concrete arrows in California. It is the former MX1095 beacon. It is right next to Yreka Montague Field on the top of a small hill just to the east of runway 33. If anyone is in the area take a look, see if you can spot it. It looks like there is a trail that goes from the airport to the top of the hill. I might take a trip up there next spring and check it out.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

The old beacon tower at Idaho Falls looks like that. I'll try to get a picture of it.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Saw this on facebook:

http://www.messynessychic.com/2013/11/15/the-forgotten-giant-arrows-that-guide-you-across-america/

I find this intriguing as well. I would like to find some!
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Diana

Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

pokette wrote:Saw this on facebook:

http://www.messynessychic.com/2013/11/15/the-forgotten-giant-arrows-that-guide-you-across-america/

I find this intriguing as well. I would like to find some!


Thanks for the link Diana! This the place the blog talked about. I would love to visit this place. I'll stop by next time I'm in New Mexico I guess.

http://www.cibolahistory.org/aviation-h ... useum.html
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Props to Pat for posting this article on Facebook...

http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/Airmail ... =video&c=y
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

There was a large article in Reno's newspaper the Reno Gazette Journal.


http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/rgj/doc/149 ... ail+arrows

This link is from their archives
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Straydog wrote:Here are three more for sure and one maybe.
Meacham, Or.  45 29.6434 , -118 24.1111
Locomotive Springs, Ut 41 42.4969, -112 55.1850
Buffalo Valley, Nv 40 20.7205, -117 20.8610
Promontory Point, Ut (maybe) 41 12.7445, -112 25.7576

Is there a way for others to update the google map or only through your login?
SD



The Meacham one appears to have an old airstrip there, probably the "emergency strip" associated with the beacon? Looks like the strip might even see some use still?
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

I don't know how I missed this thread but this is very cool! And now I have another reason to go visit Locomotive Springs, UT! I was already planning on visiting it after flying over it last December and checking it out. I had no idea this was there until I saw it listed here and, sure enough, there it is!m as soon as things dry out a bit, I plan on running out there and will post pics when I do.

On a side note, this reminds me of the arrows showing the departure drainage at Cold Meadows.
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Re: Giant Concrete Arrows

Wow! There are actually several around here! During college I worked as a wildland firefighter for the BLM and I had seen an airstrip marked on the map in southern Idaho, Strevel Airstrip. I stopped there and tried to find it, but couldn't see anything that resembled a runway (this was before Google Earth of course). I just saw that I was only a few hundred of feet from this arrow. Still kind of hard to make out the strip, but now I think I see it possibly. I think a local flight is in order to check them all out!
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