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WWII B18 Wreck Site
A couple hours north of where I live is the site of a WW2 plane wreck in the White Mountains. I've been wanting to visit for years, but since the trail is unmarked and the plane is pretty high up, I never thought I'd be able to talk anyone into going with me - and the prospect of hiking an unmarked trail alone didn't sound too safe either.
Well, as fate would have it, I was visiting Waterville Valley this weekend and I ran into a local hiking club planning to bushwhack up Mt. Waternomee to the site of this wreck. I couldn't pass up the opportunity! It was a hell of a steep hike (my legs are still aching), but we found it, and it was really impressive!
The story goes that on January 14, 1942 a B18 bomber - a pre-war aircraft being phased out for newer models - was coming back from an anti-submarine mission over the Atlantic. Strong winds shifted it waaay off course from Massachusetts into New Hampshire's White Mountains, and between the murky night and heavy snowstorm it crashed into the slope. Residents of little Lincoln and Woodstock saw the fireball and mounted a rescue by snowshoe on the snow-covered slope. Miraculously 5 of the 7 crew survived.
If you're interested, you can read the full story here.
It was amazing that the wreckage was still in such pristine condition after 70 years of sitting in the open. Well worth the visit if you're an experienced hiker and a history buff!
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That is cool, creepy and sad at the same time. As a former aircrewman, any plane crash, however old, makes me think of the crew's last moments.
In 1944, a B-24 crashed on a mountain that's 1/2 hour from my house (I'd say WHICH mountain but, I'm trying to stay anonymous . I haven't gone there yet. An F-15 slammed into Barometer Mountain in the fog when I was stationed on Kodiak. There was not much left larger than a few inches across...
In 1944, a B-24 crashed on a mountain that's 1/2 hour from my house (I'd say WHICH mountain but, I'm trying to stay anonymous . I haven't gone there yet. An F-15 slammed into Barometer Mountain in the fog when I was stationed on Kodiak. There was not much left larger than a few inches across...
How far away is this location in NH from the Adirondacks? I just came from a hike today with my older brother and his family up Mount Poke-O-Moonshine which is a fairly decent challenge if you take the trail that just goes straight up. We took the more "relaxed" trail today but boy did it still have some tiring grades up it and it was a 4 mile hike there and back. Didn't help it that was 92 out today and really muggy in the mountains. x.x
Still fun none the less. :3
Still fun none the less. :3
Alaska has literally dozens of crash sites, many of WWII-vintage planes whose crews fell victim to bad weather, poor navaid service, high terrain and just bad luck. There's a B-29 perfectly preserved in a lake off the end of the runway at Eielson AFB (I think it's a B-29...been years since I flew out of there). They are so numerous we used them as low-level nav waypoints for training. You'd think they'd disappear over time but the extremely dry climate, long winters and the materials that make up them preserve them almost indefinitely. Don't find many military jets, though...the impact speeds pretty much obliterate the airframe. But if you hire someone out of Fairbanks to take you around the area you could spend days looking at airplane parts that aren't parked at airports.
Alas, Anchorage International was renamed Ted Stevens IAP after the Senator's prop plane (DeHavilland Beaver?) hit upsloping terrain as they were trying to stay VMC in rapidly deteriorating weather. Fortunately, not everyone bought it. It was a CLASSIC Alaska mishap...private plane, cruddy weather and rocks in the way.
Alas, Anchorage International was renamed Ted Stevens IAP after the Senator's prop plane (DeHavilland Beaver?) hit upsloping terrain as they were trying to stay VMC in rapidly deteriorating weather. Fortunately, not everyone bought it. It was a CLASSIC Alaska mishap...private plane, cruddy weather and rocks in the way.
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