Chapter 597

9/30/2021

Lark Dove Project

aerial rediscovery

Wanted to show the magnificence of my 1971-72 highway project while gaining experience with the drone.  Did video in chapter 178.

It was more than a job. An equipment operator was back hoe digging for this foreground abutment one day when he asked me if I was dating Kathy Kanches from Fort Johnson. Bob Curtiss and his wife Anita were life long friends of the family and we also became friends after that day. They have both since passed, but not Lillian at 101 yrs. 

The best launch site was from Northern Boulevard (third pier from right) which was part of the overall project that extended a few miles. This is not "just a bridge", however. I feel the spirt angels there because a survey crew partner jumped to his death from there after retirement. Met him on this job after he came out of the Air Force and we became good friends. He had suffered from bipolar disorder, but I never suspected that or knew it till afterwards.

Looking back at my photo from the construction days, I can just never forget how scary it was to walk across the girders with no safety nets or wearing no safety harnesses. On Northern Boulevard we had the creek flowing underneath with occasional D&H freight cars or AMTRAK trains passing underneath. Not everyone would do it. We carried transits, level, and survey rods out there to shoot elevations ensuring the road was going in the correct alignment.

I included some nice still shots in chapter 372 after I reconnected with a survey partner. Since then tried to visit another but he is in advanced stage of dimentia so we missed our reunion. 

Did not get back far enough to capture the whole work site which stretches for many miles but this view shows the interconnection to my first highway construction job in the distance.

While in the area I went to the connecting project the Patroon Island Interchange that I worked in 1968 before going into the Army. It's the cross connection between I-90 and I-787. Launched from Huck Finn's Warehouse (where Hoffman's Playland has relocated). You might notice the DOT yellow trucks on some shots. Maintenance is a never ending phase in the highway business and I showed some rehab here in chapter 340.

Risk is ever present. Just flying a drone down town there is a risk of being colateral damage in criminal activity. The week prior there was a gang banger shootout during rush hour on the very I-787 interconnection a short distance away.  The convenient parking spot I picked was at the Red Carpet Inn site of another drug related murder the prior week (same night I shot the Albany night shots). Looked to be gang type people hanging out there smoking weed as I returned to my car. Nevertheless, the Albany environs have been my stomping grounds for most of my life. Returning to Clifton Park ALWAYS feels like a breath of fresh air though.

And now for the first time I bring you inside the DOT project trailer. The EIC (Engineer in Charge) Jim White (Bob Cummings from Patroon deceased) was most always in there trouble shooting. He's probably at the end discussing situations with John O'Sullivan and John Martino (deceased). John Baldwin on right is making notes of station locations he's assigned to for the day or completing the daily itemization progress so the contractor gets paid timely for his completions. Mucho maps on the left, overall project cutout on the wall. Coffee machine. We were only in there infrequently. Morning plan of action. Sometimes lunch, bathroom break, rainy days. Fridge, heater. August calendar.

others- Gary Graham, Dennis Flannery, Pete Marini, Jim McDonald, Walt, John Bosherini, Gerd Remmers, Ralph Coons, Ed Kulesa, John O'Sullivan, Eddie Ellsworth, Dennis Spanky Surpaszky, Art Barringer, Bob Johnson