Runway 35 Overlook ::::: NASA Crows Landing ::::: March 2013
No, I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to climb my first abandoned airport Control Tower. Getting up here was easy, but nasty. The stairwell was scattered with nesting birds and the bodies of their grandfathers: one of those ‘hold your breath and climb 3 flights of stairs as fast as you can’ situations. The last steep ladder to this room was covered in guano and broken glass. Finally appearing in this tiny room, seeing the 360° panoramic view, feeling the stormy wind again, taking a deep breath in its freshness, it was a great, singular moment. I spent over an hour up here, shooting in every direction, taking it all in. That’s the international-airport-sized, 8,000′ runway in the near distance, now used by local farmers as a shortcut to their fields, and impromptu late-night teenage drag racers. In the far distance, the endless night traffic streams along Interstate 5. If you know what to look for, you can even see this tower from the freeway. I’ve driven by this about 10,000 times since 5 was finished in the early ’70s, and I never knew this base was here. There’s even a ‘Crows Landing’ exit. This building was sealed with plywood, padlocked and barbarically fenced a month after this visit.
275-second exposure, full moon, red and warm white-set Protomachine flashlight.
