Lost Mountain lives up to its name. Not only is it hidden away from view, but it's forgotten by history and a total stranger to Google and Wikipedia. Just try finding any information about it online. You'll find a few perfunctory mentions here and there, but very little.
I'm amazed that the fire tower at the summit stands open, but there's no evidence that anyone ever goes there. I mean, it doesn't exactly "stand open." There's an old fence around it, but the gate is broken, and someone has also cut a large hole in the chain links. By the way, the official 1941 plate which marks the summit of Lost Mountain quaintly threatens a $250 fine to anyone who disturbs it.
Apparently the murder that took place on the road leading up to the fire tower was a drug-related robbery gone awry. The killer shot a dealer three times with a .22 caliber gun. Of course, a .22 isn't likely to kill a human being, so when he didn't die, the murderer and his two accomplices set him on fire. The murderer himself, a guy from Philadelphia, was later killed by authorities in the Cambria County Jail when he took a guard hostage. His two accomplices might still be in prison.
Here's a view from the third landing--on my second attempt to climb the tower. It was just too wobbly to go all the way to the top, and the wooden stairs felt like driftwood--papery and brittle. Even the railings--onto which I tried to distribute a lot of my bodyweight--felt a little too shaky in places.
And yet...a part of me will forever regret that I didn't go all the way to the top. Note to the reader, if ever there be one: Please do not climb this tower! It's very dangerous, and I'm a fool.
No comments:
Post a Comment