Welcome SinCalRyder

[phantomphan1974]

Thanks for joining, tell us a bit about yourself.  This use to be an auto message but......its not generating any more.

[SinCalRyder]

hehehe Now I feel like part of the team ;-) J/K

Hey everyone. My name is Curtis and I am from Bakersfield. I grew up hanging around Minter Field in Shafter, and have never lost my love of planes. My photography background is in Urban Exploration. Basically my fiance and I go and find abandoned or forgotten places to explore and photograph. A major focus is in Abandoned Military Bases and Bunkers and that sort of thing, noting like finding an old bunker or fire control room that is buried in a hill side someone where completely taken back by nature. Anyways we do travel a lot either up to the Frisco Bay area, or down to the So Cal area. When the temperatures cool down a little bit we will be spending a lot of time back out in the desert as well chasing wreck sites and replacing flags. Look forward to meeting some new faces and learning some new skills at the up coming shows!

[phantomphan1974]

Was just up in Frisco and went to the old batteries on the cliffs of the Presidio and we also have Fort MacArthur down here in San Pedro.  Not abondoned but it would be very cool to go inside the tunnels to see what they look like.  Probably all messed up from years of teens ruining it....  Please post those shot too.

[SinCalRyder]

Yeah the Bay area has really became a second home to us as far as Urban Exploration Photography. A few weeks ago I was up there and did some shooting on Alemeda in an Abandoned Officers Club, several barracks, and the old jail. Also went to Treasure Island and did a little snooping, but being the 4th security was too tight on the island. Lastly ended up on Mare Island, and before we got to the good stuff we had a run in with the PD and a K-9 unit. Oh well.

Here is an album of some shots from Fort Mac. A few of the areas are off limits, but in comparison to other places fairly easy to get into. The second album is actually some fire control stations further north. They are interesting themselves, but if you plan to try and get to them, plan to be picking lots of cactus needles out of yourself.

http://sinsualimages.smugmug.com/Military/Ft-McArthur-Batteries/19853637_2vjtsZ#!i=1510546309&k=BMC9bv2

http://sinsualimages.smugmug.com/Military/Coastal-Fire-Control-Stations/20581499_SC9wXJ#!i=1630936849&k=9M7RTnS

The first link here is actually a bunker featured on Cities of the underworld. The entrance involved a 15 foot crawl laying flat on your back under a cement slab, followed by 2 separate 40 foot ladders down an old ventilation shaft. Due to some recent activities this entrance is no longer accessible, and they place has been sealed off... for now.   The second link is various Batteries and Bunkers in that area, some of them wide open and pretty touristy, but the ones where you still see relics and stuff in are actually off limits or buried in hillside that take some work to be able to get into. And before anyone ask, No we do not break into any locations. If we can not find a way in without causeing damage, then we do not get in. And when inside the strict moto is that you "Take only photos, leave only footprints"

http://sinsualimages.smugmug.com/Military/Bunker-Of-The-Under-World/19854034_2VZm9K#!i=1432223464&k=7bFRMXf

http://sinsualimages.smugmug.com/Military/Misc-Frisco-Bunkers/19854166_kJHjTv#!i=1431984381&k=dsvzXth

[phantomphan1974]

I have been up there so many times and have not seen this.  Where the hell is it!!  I have seen pics and thought they were miss labeled.

[SinCalRyder]

That Battery is probably in my eyes one of the most significant in the area. The historical photos show all of the massive guns that used to be placed there. Most recently it was used for the filming of the movie "Priest". It was the shanty town that the vampire keeping people lived in. Fortunately the location has been labeled historical and so it can not be torn down. Unfortunately the local school district there owns the property, and after being told they could not demo it, they have basically decided that they will let it sit and fall apart on its own. Getting to it is fairly easy, but my first attempt resulted in a security escort away before I even got there. It is actually in a construction zone now, which makes access even harder. PM me if you like and I can give you more details.

With all the military sites we get into and photograph, half the fun is learning the history before going, then after seeing the place coming home and digging up the full history! =)   Most recent I actually spent a night in some historical hangers near El Toro, but I have not posted those pics on my site yet, only some on FaceBook.


EDIT*    Here is a link you might like....  http://fortwiki.com/Battery_Barlow-Saxton

[phantomphan1974]

Mini golf structures were torn down recently but homeless encampment still there.

[SinCalRyder]

If you ever get a chance between Monterey and Frisco this fire control station is AMAZING to photograph. Especially if you time it right for the lighting. I still want to go back since upgrading all my gear. But this shot was one of those accidental favorites lol