18_20 SF-SL Derby Dam

Location / Airway

Location / Name

NEVADA:  Washoe County
Commonly called Derby Dam Beacon #20
AKA 18_20 SF-SL Derby Dam; Tracy Clark #20 (the arrow for this beacon is below on this hill approx. .22 miles and is known as Tracy Clark #20)
"20 SF-SL"

GPS: 39.580821, -119.487390

Transcontinental Airway

Route established September 8, 1920

Pilots Log February 21, 1921, Between SLC + 388. Hazen, Nev. segment and SLC + 437. Reno, Nev.
U. S. Post Office pilots

Night Airmail

Flights started on July 1, 1924

Contract Air Mail

CAM #18 San Francisco CA-Chicago IL
Route established July 1, 1927
San Francisco-Salt Lake airway
Reno-Elko section
Boeing Air Transport awarded CAM #18 on January 28, 1927

Observations and Notes

The Derby Dam Beacon site is located on the north side of I-80 east of Sparks, Nevada.  To get to it though, you have to becoming westbound, going towards Sparks.  If you ‘blink’ you will miss the dirt road leading to the arrow.  You have to pull onto the shoulder and then pull behind the guard rail.  At this point you will see a dirt road along with a closed gate.  There were no signs saying ‘Keep Out’ on the gate.  All the property beyond is owned by the Bureau of Land Management.  We just made sure the gate was secure after going thru. 

Using four-wheel drive, we went approximately 3 miles before deciding to hike the rest of the way to the beacon site.  Someone with a ‘serious’ four-wheel drive can make it all the way to the site.  Not sure of which way the dirt roads went out here, I decided to hike up the hill.  It was a slow and somewhat of an arduous hike up to the top.  The hill was covered with small and loose rocks. 

From the top of the hill where the site is located, I was able to see the Tracy Clark arrow at the bottom of the hill on the other side from where I hiked up.

Contributors Photos

Links

National Geodetic Survey Data Sheet PID-KR1596

DESIGNATION: AIRWAY BCN 20 2 MI N OF CLARK
PID: KR1596
STATE/COUNTY: NV/WASHOE
COUNTRY: US
USGS QUAD: DERBY DAM (1985)

Geocaching:  Who Turned Out The Lights? #6 - Beacon 20

Has 4 photos and description of the site.

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