OK. I'm new and my question may prove this out but why oh why do you folks hunt cell towers? Are they elusive? What's the purpose and what makes this so interesting to all of you? thanks, George
I guess it is a hobby and interesting to know what they are like from states to states Me, personally, I have seen a couple of towers (especially the ones that beeps my radar detector in the car) but found it a little bit too dangerous to take a picture while driving on the highway.. but looking forward to snapping some soon
I can tell you, they can sometimes be very elusive... They can be disguised as flagpoles, trees, boulders, church steeples, clocktowers, bell towers, etc. It can be very challenging to find them at times.
Guess cell tower hunting is kind of like geocaching or rock collecting or any other hobby. If it is enjoyable to you and you can enjoy the hobby with others and you are having fun, go for it. I know I have my own "goofy" hobbies. For instance - astronomy. What person in their right mind would stay up all night to look at little fuzzy patches of light in the night sky with a 6" telescope? Stupid? yes, maybe. How about ham radio? Have you talked with somebody in all 50 states or in 100 countries? Oh yeah, I can do that with my cell phone but with the radio I don't have to worry about long distance charges or peak or night minutes etc. Go ahead - lets get out there and find that next cell tower.
There are all different designs in each province and state. As Jay mentioned they can be disguised to look like many things or look like an ordinary tower, (guyed, latticed, monopole, or located on a building or water tower). I just think it's interesting to see what you can find.
I started doing this back in 1997 before the whole disguised towers/cell sites started happening. It was just something that interested me.
George, in my case I an a wireless planner and telecom attorney working for local governments. I know from 17+ years of wireless planning that planners are very visual people. That why I started hunting sites and taking photos. It's far better to show a picture to say 'this is like what's being proposed...and why its a [insert: good|bad|stupid] project design. My photos have appeared in countless planners' presentations, and in magazines (including the National Geographic!). j
Yes, Jay, that's the fun part... looking at something and thinking, 'Hummmm, I wonder if....' I've developed a decent 'eye' for spotting sites, but of course I also have a leg-up on most everyone because as a wireless planner, I see all sorts of new designs and know where to look for them. Perhaps our motto should be "They hide; we seek!" :browani: j
Hunting cellphone towers is humane as it helps to control the population. There's an overabundance of them, and many would starve to death alone in the woods if they weren't hunted... ....besides, there's no better feeling than driving home with one strapped to the front bumper after a weekend of drinking in the woods with your buds :cheers2:
RR, that's too funny! I think we hunt cell towers because we are all geeks here & unless you are one, you would likely find most of our behavior rather weird. One benefit for me is the challenge of explaining to my SO, why I am complaining about the gorgeous 6000 year old Luxor Temple partially obscuring the cell tower behind it (that picture is in the gallery). Also why am I standing at the edge of a cliff aiming my camera at the cell tower right next to a defense radar spying on the neighboring country, with clearly posted signs of "Absolutely no photographs allowed", just because the arrangement on the tower was so unique. Palm850/v0100 Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows CE; IEMobile 7.11)
I'm not quite sure why I do it. I just find it fun. You find these things in the most unassuming places; like church steeples and on the roof of one building, pointing UP at another building because another carrier won't let them inside that building. I've posted the most pics on the site, party because I have lived in 3 places since I started taking pictures of sites, and also just because I like doing it. And sure, winning an ipod and a cellular repeater have been fun too.
I'll admit, my friends gave me some strange looks when on vacation in El Salvador, I was taking pics of the towers...ha ha.
I guess the reason I hunt is because i want to add to the photo gallery on here. That and its just awesome to see a tall structure anywhere (well to me at least).
