Random photos: Got anything interesting, unique, strange?

Wildman · 2026-09-17T06:54:28-0600

KennethS said:
Are you trolling us Arizona folks with this picture of so much water?

Nope, Grand Coulee is pretty cool to see in person.... Went when I was a little kid & then about 25 years ago when I was a mixer truck driver... So learning about all the concrete that went into it was cool but interesting too... Spent almost all day in the interpretive center.

bbaldwin237 · 2026-09-17T07:24:55-0600

Wildman said:
Nope, Grand Coulee is pretty cool to see in person.... Went when I was a little kid & then about 25 years ago when I was a mixer truck driver... So learning about all the concrete that went into it was cool but interesting too... Spent almost all day in the interpretive center.

I used to go to Grand Coulee quite a bit when I worked out of Moses Lake. My area went all the way up to Grand Coulee. I think my father-in-law's dad worked on Grand Coulee and they both worked on Chief Joseph. He said the aggregate they used in the dams was like 12"! He's worked on a lot of cool concrete projects over the years. He worked on sky scrapers in Seattle, steam plant tunnels and towers, dams in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon, huge warehouses, and more I'm sure I'm forgetting. The man knows concrete!

Wildman · 2026-09-17T07:35:19-0600

bbaldwin237 said:
I used to go to Grand Coulee quite a bit when I worked out of Moses Lake. My area went all the way up to Grand Coulee. I think my father-in-law's dad worked on Grand Coulee and they both worked on Chief Joseph. He said the aggregate they used in the dams was like 12"! He's worked on a lot of cool concrete projects over the years. He worked on sky scrapers in Seattle, steam plant tunnels and towers, dams in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon, huge warehouses, and more I'm sure I'm forgetting. The man knows concrete!

One of the really cool things is that the concrete in the center is not cured even now. I forget the # of folks killed in the project but they couldn't stop the pours so their bodies are entombed inside the damn....

In the old days they used to open the spillways and let water over the dam face for the light show at night.. But now it's a Lazer light show so they don't need the water.... IMO it's not as impressive as it used to be.

My only really interesting project was the windmills in eastern OR. I was the plant manager for them.

NashvilleTJ · 2026-09-17T07:41:40-0600

Wildman said:
.. I forget the # of folks killed in the project but they couldn't stop the pours so their bodies are entombed inside the damn....

..

I think that's probably a myth, Rick. Although, I'm not personally positive about Grand Cooley, it is definitely a myth for the Hoover dam.

The reason is that if you left a body in the pour, it would result is a structural weak point in the concrete, which they could not allow.

At Hoover, there was one documented case of a worker falling into the pour and dying. They stopped construction for something like 15 or 20 hours to remove the body.

Wildman · 2026-09-17T07:46:46-0600

NashvilleTJ said:
I think that's probably a myth, Rick. Although, I'm not personally positive about Grand Cooley, it is definitely a myth for the Hoover dam.

The reason is that if you left a body in the pour, it would result is a structural weak point in the concrete, which they could not allow.

At Hoover, there was one documented case of a worker falling into the pour and dying. They stopped construction for something like 15 or 20 hours to remove the body.

I'd have to go back and watch some of the documentaries on it that was what I remembered them saying... Of course like I said it was 25-30 years ago the last time I was there..

And yep you're correct:

No, workers killed during the construction of the Grand Coulee Dam were not left or buried inside the concrete pours. [1, 2]

Why the Myth is False

Block Construction: The dam was built in interlocking 50-foot by 50-foot blocks that were only five feet high at a time, meaning forms were not deep enough to hide a body or go unnoticed. [1]

Structural Integrity: A decomposing body or large foreign object would compromise the massive structural integrity and strength of the concrete, leaving a defective void that inspectors and engineers would have had to excavate and repair. [1]

Official Records: The Bureau of Reclamation confirms that no human remains are inside the dam. While 77 to 82 worker fatalities unfortunately occurred during construction due to falls, equipment accidents, slides, and drowning, the victims' remains were recovered and buried elsewhere or lost in the river. [1, 2, 3]

Apparition · 2026-09-17T07:51:09-0600

NashvilleTJ said:
At Hoover, there was one documented case of a worker falling into the pour and dying.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFkcAH-m9W0

Zorba · 2026-09-17T09:18:53-0600

bbaldwin237 said:
...I worked out of Moses Lake.

I used to live in a little town about 30 miles out of Moses Lake. Of course, I was a babe in arms so don't remember it.

bbaldwin237 · 2026-09-17T09:28:09-0600

Zorba said:
I used to live in a little town about 30 miles out of Moses Lake. Of course, I was a babe in arms so don't remember it.

Depending on the direction, that could be a lot of little towns! Moses Lake is 100 miles from everywhere. It's the only moderate sized town and then it's 1hr 15 to Wenatchee, 1hr 30 to Tri-Cities, ~2hrs to Spokane, and 1hr to Ellensburg

Apparition · 2026-09-17T09:35:46-0600

bbaldwin237 said:
Depending on the direction, that could be a lot of little towns! Moses Lake is 100 miles from everywhere. It's the only moderate sized town and then it's 1hr 15 to Wenatchee, 1hr 30 to Tri-Cities, ~2hrs to Spokane, and 1hr to Ellensburg

Look for the one with the best skirt shop.

Zorba · 2026-09-17T09:50:58-0600

bbaldwin237 said:
Depending on the direction, that could be a lot of little towns! Moses Lake is 100 miles from everywhere. It's the only moderate sized town and then it's 1hr 15 to Wenatchee, 1hr 30 to Tri-Cities, ~2hrs to Spokane, and 1hr to Ellensburg

Apparition said:
Look for the one with the best skirt shop.

I was waaaay too young to be shopping for anything - it was a wide spot in the road called "Royal City". Its about doubled in size since I lived there! My father worked on the missile bases near there.

bbaldwin237 · 2026-09-17T09:52:50-0600

Zorba said:
I was waaaay too young to be shopping for anything - it was a wide spot in the road called "Royal City". Its about doubled in size since I lived there! My father worked on the missile bases near there.

I think I remember now that you've mentioned that before. I was actually over there a couple weeks ago and drove right through Royal City.

Zorba · 2026-09-17T09:54:29-0600

bbaldwin237 said:
I think I remember now that you've mentioned that before. I was actually over there a couple weeks ago and drove right through Royal City.

Last time I looked, there were two trailer parks, one small housing division, a service station and a general store/bar. When we lived there, it was one trailer park, a service station and a general store/bar IIRC.

KennethS · 2026-09-17T22:33:02-0600

Zorba said:
Last time I looked, there were two trailer parks, one small housing division, a service station and a general store/bar. When we lived there, it was one trailer park, a service station and a general store/bar IIRC.

F’n metropolis now.

Search

Search

Random photos: Got anything interesting, unique, strange?

Wildman

Over Analyzer Extraordinaire & Attention Whore

bbaldwin237

Get out and wheel

Wildman

Over Analyzer Extraordinaire & Attention Whore

NashvilleTJ

I miss the snow...

Wildman

Over Analyzer Extraordinaire & Attention Whore

Apparition

Sand Hollow '26 beginner trails in the books

Zorba

"The Veiled Male"

bbaldwin237

Get out and wheel

Apparition

Sand Hollow '26 beginner trails in the books

Zorba

"The Veiled Male"

bbaldwin237

Get out and wheel

Zorba

"The Veiled Male"

KennethS

TJ Expert

Similar threads