Meteor Crater in Silicon Valley?

12 responses to “Meteor Crater in Silicon Valley?”

1. 

   Vanita

   Oct 31, 2004 at 3:58 am

   That is some divot.

   Reply
2. 

   angry shock

   Oct 31, 2004 at 4:42 am

   Now… explain to me what is this recursive thing about you and meteors.

   A cosmic magnet perhaps?

   Can we say that we should better start keeping a catious distance from you?

   Just in case, you know, meteors cannot be foreseen…

   :——///

   Reply
3. 

   sweet thing

   Nov 13, 2004 at 7:26 pm

   Only very small part of that mine is viewable from the De Anza / Cupertino side. I never new it was that enourmous

   Reply
4. 

   jurvetson

   Dec 19, 2004 at 7:34 pm

   I met a neighbor who has been collecting great photos of this site and the impact it is having on downstream flooding. Check it out if you are interested in this.

   1/3 of the cement used in Western California comes from this quarry. It has the right elements because it used to be an offshore atoll (coral reef ringing a volcano) that has been uplifted into the hills by continental drift.

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5. 

   Jef Poskanzer

   Jan 1, 2006 at 2:54 am

   I’ve got an aerial view of this hole too.

   Reply
6. 

   boring fact

   Jan 17, 2006 at 12:55 am

   This is what was done with another quarry a little north of y’all:)
   http://www.butchartgardens.com/history/
   just a big garden waiting to be planeted 🙂

   Reply
7. 

   jurvetson

   Jan 17, 2006 at 3:44 am

   Very nice… an extreme makeover… Now when I see this, I think of a big Devo planter pot hat waiting for some love and care…

   Reply
8. 

   Marjorie Lipan

   Apr 23, 2006 at 7:37 am

   Google Hybrid Map
   Thanks Steve for the photos of your neighbor. Anything as big as your photo had to be seen from the satillite. The location in the Google Map seemed right because of the roads on the lower right of your photo, but I was not totally convinced until I looked at your neighbor’s photo. I learned from Jef that it is called Kaiser Quarry.

   Reply
9. 

   Chris Anderson Photos

   Dec 14, 2006 at 8:05 pm

   I think I got a shot of a similar mine in Arizona during a flight to Phoenix in 2005. Many would say it’s a scar on the landscape, but it is oddly beautiful from 35,000 feet.

   Reply
10. 

    Michael Layefsky

    Dec 30, 2009 at 7:16 am

    I’ve been wanting to photograph this quarry from my kitecam for more than a year. I’ve been down that way twice, both trips unsuccessful due to lack of wind and lack of access.

    My last trip down there, I hiked out into the Rancho San Antonio Park. While out there, the Airship Ventures dirigible flew right overhead. I thought of you and the exchange we had some time ago about doing photography from the zeppelin. Outstanding coincidence that it’s you that has the finest image I’ve found of this site.

    Looks like access from the Montebello Open Space Preserve is my best bet. It requires a special permit for parking. If you have any other ideas on access to the quarry for kite photography, please let me know.

    Happy Holidays!

    Reply
11. 

    etgeek (Eric)

    Mar 24, 2010 at 12:32 am

    Excellent shot Steve!! We once owned property up around where you shot this picture, and watched the Permanente pit grow from the mid 60’s to the mid 70’s. It’s amazing how large it’s become. The majority of residence in the valley have no idea that the back side of that ridge is gone..

    Reply
12. 

    Pete Tillman

    Feb 11, 2014 at 6:31 am

    Wow. Photo now illustrates
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permanente_Quarry
    As always, thanks for posting as Creative Commons!

    Reply