Photos

Kennedy Space Center

  • Vehicle Assembly Plant

    This building is where every NASA space vehicle is assembled. Again, the picture does no justice to the height of this building.

  • Saturn 5, second stage
  • Facility Panorama (Click the full-size image for a better view)

    A panorma with a view of several facilities. The location this was shot from was formerly a public viewing area for space launches, but has been deemed too dangerous since then.

  • Motor Closeup

    The business end of this rocket looks more like a tangled mess of tubes and wires, but its a very advanced and complicated machine.

  • Lightning Towers

    3 lightning towers designed to direct bolts away from the launch pad that they surround.

Last November, I had the opportunity to visit the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, while visiting relatives living in the area.

Oktoberfest 2013

  • Cloudsplitter Gondola

    The quickest way to the top of Little Whiteface! 

  • Locking horns
  • Trails

    Facing north, a good view of the ski trails connecting the two mountains.

  • Looking down

    Halfway up the mountain, looking down.

  • Whiteface

    Facing the opposite direction as the previous photo, the view of Whiteface from Little Whiteface.

Every October, the ski resort at Whiteface Mountain has a small Oktoberfest. Traditional German music, food, beer, and demonstrations are featured, and many local vendors come to show off their homemade crafts.

This is the first time I've gone in many years, and the first time I went being older than 21! It's a ton of fun and is definitely worth checking out if you're in the area during the skiing offseason.

Exploring Benson Mines

  • Burned Steps

    Even older looking stairs - the mine has history back to the 1800s, but this is probably not that old. The building on top of it appears to have burned, leaving behind electric wires and boxes.

  • Abandoned Excavator

    ...With no bucket. Likely a Massey Ferguson 450.

  • Entrance

    Entrance to the facility - and my car!

  • Ore Silos

    Rusting silo between concrete silos for holding iron ore. It looked like there was more machinery on top of the silos that had rusted away and collapsed.

  • Outside

    The office/bathroom is inside this building, and the first building in the album is visible through the trees in the background.

Benson Mines is a long-abandoned iron mine near Watertown, NY. The mine was shut down in 1978 and the buildings and have been completely abandoned ever since. Abandoned man-made structures are my favorite to take pictures of, so I couldn't resist exploring!