NV Hot Spring and Airplane Hunt

[PHXtaco]

I research and look for old aircraft crash sites. As I had been traveling most of the summer, my wife & I have not had a chance to go out camping. So the weekend before last we took 3 days to look for some old plane crashes and explore some hot springs in Nevada. Hope you enjoy the photos, some teasers here:

The rest of the photos can be found at:

http://aair.smugmug.com/Wreck-Chasing/NV-Hot-Spring-and-Pane-Crash/9353032_xssTn/1/625880957_DZRk7


-Craig

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Very cool

This is an absolutely awesome photo!

Where is that located?

 

[kellymoe]

Wow, what is that hole in the ground besides being a hole in the ground? Is it natural? A hot spring? How deep? Very cool TR.

 

[jcbrandon]

It's called Diana's Punchbowl. One of my favorite hidden Nevada treasures. But I'll let PHXtaco tell you about it.

 

[PHXtaco]

Diana's Punchbowl it is! :victory: A tuffa mound that rises about 50 to 100 feet above the valley floor. The center is hollow like a volcano and has very hot water about 30 feet below the top. Just incredible. I first learned about it on the web and it was immediately on my places to visit.

Here is a picture from a distance

Hey, I am going to be ending up putting all my photos from the album (http://aair.smugmug.com/Wreck-Chasin...25880957_DZRk7 ) if I keep this up :sombrero:

One guide book highly advises not driving up it at night as you might drive right over the edge into the steaming water. With the approach angle I can see why!

 

[kellymoe]

Love your Smugmug site.
Nevada has to be one of the most under appreciated states, maybe thats a good thing. I seem to spend most of my time in eastern California, it's time to keep going.

 

[bomar]

Awesome pictures and it looked like a great weekend.

 

[jcbrandon]

Fantastic pictures, PHXtaco. I think you are an honorary Nevadan.

 

[Lars70]

Nice photos. I recognize the springs and the cabin. My wife and I will be heading that way in October intending to visit those springs and a couple of others. I also want to check out some of the passes between the Reese River valley, Smokey Valley, Monitor Valley and Stone Cabin Valley.

I've seen your wrecks page, I can get lost looking at those- I'm a pilot myself though these days I'm building rather than flying.

Not as exciting as a military wreck, but here's a wreck I stumbled on in the Fall of 2005, south of Elko. I was surprised to say the least when we rounded a bend and spotted it in a field.

 

[proto]

Awww! Now that's a sad sight: nice little Beech (looks like a Musketeer + retractable gear = Sundowner?) flat on the ground.

Any idea what happened? Looks like the gear was down and he just hit really hard. Engine failure?

(Awesome body of pictures, BTW. Thanks for sharing!)

 

[PHXtaco]

I was surprised to say the least when we rounded a bend and spotted it in a field.

Yea, it is not something one expects to see in the middle of nowhere!

Any idea what happened?

According to the NTSB website:

The airplane collided with obstructions while performing a forced landing in a field. The pilot reported he experienced a severe downdraft with a descent rate in excess of 1,500 feet per minute at best rate of climb airspeed that made continued flight impossible. The pilot was forced to make an emergency landing in a field. After touchdown and during the rollout phase the left wing impacted a steel livestock gate. The pilot reported that the airplane and engine had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight.

No injuries for any of the 3 onboard. Accident occurred September 05, 2005.

 

[Lars70]

3 people in that plane plus probably a full load of fuel when they departed. Terrrain at the accident location is around 5600 feet. Probably a high density altitude day. Not a lot of performance to spare, probably. The report says he got caught in a 1500 fpm downdraft. Rotor? He was just west of the ridgeline. I'd expect prevailing winds out of the west, so maybe that wasn't a factor. Still, having been slammed around in that part of the world more than a few times, it wouldn't surprise me. It must have been butt-puckering, and he did manage to get it down without anyone getting hurt.

It was creepy to see it there. I've flown enough marginally performing airplanes around the western states that I could visualize the situation all too well. We encountered it on October 17, so it had been there for several weeks. Not exactly a convenient location for salvage.

Oh yeah, the NTSB report says Beech C23, so yep, a Sundowner.

PHXtaco, I looked at your smugmug pix. Very interesting, what a nice outing! My office mate has a Taco like yours, same year, etc. Also nicely modded. Very nice trucks. Were it not for my beloved Bronco I'd probably have one myself.

 

[Lars70]

If anyone is interested here are a couple of pix of where we came from before we spotted the Beech.

Nevada is amazing. I'm grateful that it's still somewhat overlooked.

 

[HMR]

Great pics everyone!

PHXtaco- What resources are you using to locate the wrecks? NTSB reports? Word of mouth? Just going out and searching random areas? I can't imagine how many aircraft are scattered around that area. Thanks for sharing your adventure!

FWIW- I used to fly a Cessna 210 in that area. The conditions can be brutal for small aircraft. Some of the worst turbulence in the country is found there. I also used to fly a King Air 200 in and out of small strips on that side of the Sierras and it was always interesting flying through downdrafts that matched/exceeded the 200's climb capabilities. A loaded Sundowner+hot weather+downdrafts= Ugh!

 

[FortyMileDesert]

Ahh - the old abandoned ranch house photo on the first page......I thought I recognized it:

The Potts Ranch in Monitor Valley.

I passed it on my trek #157 in July:

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=29420