"Where in North America is this?" Section XII

This is the 12th section of a popular mind puzzle first brought to the membership by member Quebec Gen.

General Rules of the "Where in North America is this?" Game
1) Anyone can play -- just follow along and test your mettle about places found in North America.
2) You'll need to be a registered member of this Forum if you want to contribute your own photographs and/or participate in the discussion for each place.
3) You will need to have the ownership or usage rights to any photo that you post on this forum, as per the terms & conditions of Federal copyright law. If you post a photo that you do not own the rights to, Forum Management reserves the right to remove it. As a matter of practical use, we would expect that you would be posting only those photos that you or a close family member have taken.
4) Every photo of a mystery place needs to be unique in some way -- And there should be "visual clues" in the photo to enable us to solve where the mystery location is...

(Inactive -- you can look, but not enter new posts!)
Section I = 33 pages of places you might know
Section II = 28 more pages of places and some REALLY gorgeous photographs!
Section III = 28 more pages of places that might really stump you!
Section IV -- 15 more pages, with some very tricky clues
Section V -- 15 more pages of some very pretty and engaging places....
Section VI -- 15 more pages with more of those "very creative" clues that are nearly as vexing as the images....
Section VII -- Marked by some very clever clues and some VERY challenging puzzles spread over another 15 pages of places you might have seen in your travels in North America.
Section VIII, started on September 22nd with mystery puzzles from a dozen or more states and some new players have joined the merry band of geo-wizards...working on another fifteen pages of puzzles.
Section IX-- Some really beautiful and challenging puzzle mystery locations from all over North America found on another 15 pages.
Section X -- Spanning nearly four months of puzzles of North American locations on 16 more pages.
Section XI-- Started March 14, 2010 with 14 pages of new geo-puzzles from around North America
Section XII-- Started June 11, 2010 with 20 pages of new geo-puzzles from around North America

Section XIII-- Started July 29, 2014 is currently the Active Part of this Game/Contest

Here are two photos taken from roughly the same spot....
http://www.roadtripamerica.com/blog/...rk-June-01.jpg
(photo by Mark Sedenquist)

and...

http://www.roadtripamerica.com/blog/...rk-june-2a.jpg
(Photo by Mark Sedenquist)

1) Where was I standing?
2) What the explanation for why this looks so different?

Mark

This is a spot west of the Mississippi River... I bet you could tell that! OK, OK, it's on the Colorado River...but where?

This spot is less than a day's paddle from the location of the last geo-puzzle....

Mark

Well, it must be somewhere on Lake Mead - normal and drought conditions.

It's not on Lake Mead, technically it's not on any lake....

And, in this case, it has nothing to do with drought conditions....

Mark

Is it the Willow Beach Area down stream from the Dam? - It was lowered to renovate the Katherine Landing launch ramp in 1999.

The view was taken from the picnic area and looking downstream -- but the change in water level is simply the difference between peak demand periods (water and electricity). The "fuller" shot was taken in the summer months (May, 2007) when the amount of water being run through the turbines at Hoover Dam is highest. The "leaner" shot was taken during the fall months (October, 2009) when demand for both electricity and downstream water is at it's lowest.

Here's another view -- also taken during the summer months:
http://living-las-vegas.com/wp-conte...ach-sunset.jpg
(Photo by Mark Sedenquist)

Good work on the puzzle!

Mark

A bunch of the RoadTrip Enthusiast's Group have stood in this very spot over the last couple of years...

Where is this:
http://www.roadtripamerica.com/blog/...oto-062310.jpg
(Photo by Mark Sedenquist)

How about Logan Pass, Glacier National Park? Soil and rocks look right.

Foy

Yep, those are the meadows found just outside the rear door of the visitor center at Logan Pass.

Good job!

Mark

......but the last time I was there, it was 1980 and I was there with my bride of < 2 years, on a RoadTrip from Starkville, Mississippi, aboard a 1977 Honda Civic, 4cylinder, 4speed, Pirelli radials, and an 8-track tape player! We ran slap out of cash in Colorado on the way back, on a Friday night, so we had to plan our fuel and food stops where our Master Card could be used on Sat and Sun (because no cash advance was available with banks being closed).

Those were the days!
Foy

We never let the lack of funding keep us from doing road trips (in the early days, at least....)

Mark

You gotta admit, the view is a little unusual...

http://www.roadtripamerica.com/blog/...-mystery-1.jpg
(Photo by Tom Herbertson)

1) Where is this?
2) Who installed it?
3) How long has it been here?

Hints?

Are those palm trees?

My understanding is there are 25 street lamps, of various shapes, sizes and age – some going back to the twenties and were a novel idea to promote a new shopping centre. Temporary but were kept because they became part of the scene and liked.

Shopping center at Vermont Avenue, Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood. Creator Sheila Klein and started in 1992.

A hint to start - 1953.

http://i571.photobucket.com/albums/s...hoto/bison.jpg

I'll take a stab at it:
Parker Ranch, Big Island of Hawai'i. The gravel road, fencing, and thick vegetation look right. Trees could be eucalyptus, very common on the Big Island.

But, the mountains in the distance don't look quite right, and although there appears to be some snow on them (and it of course does snow atop both Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island), the overall shape of those two shield volcanoes is not like the shape of the slope in the picture.

Foy

You are right in saying the mountains don’t look right for the Big Island.

Within the lower 48.

Another hint – Kelly.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Eris

My understanding is there are 25 street lamps, of various shapes, sizes and age – some going back to the twenties and were a novel idea to promote a new shopping centre. Temporary but were kept because they became part of the scene and liked.

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My source is not 100% confirmed, but the story I've heard is that this arose because of a friendship between a DWP (Los Angeles Department of Water and Power) supervisor and the owner of the property. The lamp posts represents most of the collection of light poles used by the City of Los Angeles and legend has it that the DWP continues to manage and maintain the collection -- although I doubt one will ever be able to find the budget line item that confirms this.

But the location is confirmed!

Thanks,

Mark

The mountains look correct for the Bison Preserve in Montana, but I've never seen it that green before.

Still cogitating.

Using the following keywords: kelly, bison, 1953, I've been reading the most diverse set of articles you might imagine.. but no keepers yet.

Mark

Didn’t want to make the hints too obvious for a google answer - but they will fall in place.

Another view makes all the difference.



http://i571.photobucket.com/albums/s.../mountains.jpg

A wild guess, but it looks familiar as I research possibilities for our next road trip. Is it part of "Mormon row" from Jackson Hole ?

Yeah, there does seem to be a logic to your clues. Well done!

I think this is the area where the 1953 Hollywood blockbuster "Shane" was filmed perchance?

Mark

You are correct Dave, well done. And Mark, the film Shane was behind my clues – as a lad the film backdrop of the Tetons stuck in my mind and inspired me to visit the USA and Jackson Hole. It is a top place for me.

The location is the rangeland at Jackson Hole on the east of route 26 which is overlooked by the Grand Teton mountains.

The area between Kelly and Moose was the film location of the 1953 film Shane starring Alan Ladd. To the best of my knowledge there are no buildings left from the filming days.

I was fortunate enough to spend several hours in a truck roaming this area – the bison wander all over the place and don’t seem subject to husbandry. Think the authorities periodically cull them to keep the numbers in check.

The picture of the barn I took from Mormon Row and the other one of the bison on another part of the range.

The blend of the mountains, rangeland together with the Snake River creates absolutely gorgeous scenery.

Thanks for sharing these views and great puzzle!

Mark

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4075/...c7e9803b76.jpg (Photo by: Me)

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/...8f95708812.jpg(Photo by: Me)

I'm always impressed when you guys are able to decipher locations based on vegetation and other environmental clues... So have a go at this one :)

High desert chapparal -- looks like manzanita -- and the evergreens would suggest an elevation of about 3400 feet or so. Those rock formations are puzzling....I've seen something like that... hmmmm

bluish-gray lichen, I'm guessing Utah or the western slope of the Rockies.

Back later... A good challenge is this one!

Mark

I was fire lookout in the Chiricahuas back in the last century -- I think I've seen something like this in the Sierra Blanca mountains, but this could also be any one of the Sky Islands found in the greater Catalina range. So, is a general locale of SE Arizona getting closer?

Mark

Other than it is in the south :)

Hint: 1901

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4075/...7870320c28.jpg {photo by: Me}

This is a better picture of the surrounding horizon line than the first pic

Dan Sedenquist weighed in, (former Geologist):

Quote:

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"...The second photo looks like a volcanic welded tuff (Chiricahuas is a good guess). Bandolier Natl Monument?.."

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Quote:

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Pfemm: Other than it is in the south :)

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South of what? Or do you mean The South? Plants don't look right for anywhere in the South.

Quote:

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1901 eh?

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It still doesn't look right to me and the "South" reference would seem to nix this article I found...The Disappearance of Mount Mazama published in 1901 about the mountain that used to exist where Crater Lake is found today.

Mark

the "South" meaning in the southern half of the lower 48 :)

So to be clear it's not in Arizona or Utah or Oregon. Not the Chiricahuas or Bandolier.

and I do believe that lava was an important part of forming these mountains.

There are a few places where volcanic welded tuff can be found in Oklahoma....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mark Sedenquist

There are a few places where volcanic welded tuff can be found in Oklahoma....

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NOW! you're really close! :)

OK, given that clues, I thought, of course, of the Texas Hill Country, but then remember that there's a lot of volcanic evidence in Arkansas -- so, of course, I thought of the Crater of Diamonds State Park, but there's no tuft there I could find...

I need either AZ Buck or one of the other geologists to jump in here.

Mark

OH no! i meant "really close" as in now you have to figure out Where in OK it is :) lol

http://www.lauraerickson.com/bird/Pl...1/DSC04251.jpg
(photo by Laura Erickson)

Well, there are some precambrian-era volcanic rocks found in the Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma, making them some of the oldest mountains in the United States... Any warmer yet?

Mark

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mark Sedenquist

Well, there are some precambrian-era volcanic rocks found in the Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma, making them some of the oldest mountains in the United States... Any warmer yet?
Mark

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You got It! The best part of Southwest Oklahoma!

These pictures were taken atop Elk Mountain in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge (est. 1901). It's about a 45 minute hike from bottom to top. one of my favorite hiking spots, it'll wind you going up but the views are amazing!

Plus there's always the excitement of how to avoid the buffalo that is standing right on the trail to get back down!

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4076/...6a6c77e10e.jpg

Lol at the Buffalo !

This game is great for learning and making new discoveries, I actually got to Oklahoma using your 1901 clue before Mark, but it was for the wrong reasons and I drew a blank. It was also the year of the Oklahoma land lottery giving the people a chance to make a homestead by luck of the draw, but also a way to try and "civilise" the Indians and quite notable in history of the US.

An easy one, what is this building and where is it ?

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...tos/usa919.jpg