There’s a lot of weird history from World War II. One strange chapter relates to the Air Warning Service (AWS). It was staffed by civilians, most of them female, who observed the skies of our country and warned of any approaching enemy aircraft. Of which there were none. No, the 48 contiguous states were never invaded by air, land, or sea, during World War II. At least not that I’m aware of.
About 750,000 strong searched our skies from 1942 to 1944. They were stationed along our west and east coasts. Each member of the AWS received about six weeks of training in aircraft recognition, so that they could detect the difference between friendly planes and enemy planes.
Their training proved very popular, and became a fad among those who were not in the AWS. Clubs sprang up all over the country, where members dedicated themselves to learning how to recognize aircraft. Well, they didn’t have TV in those days, so they had to do something for entertainment.
Supposedly, Crown Prince Lookout, in what was then Joshua Tree National Monument (now a National Park), was one of the many aircraft observation posts of the AWS. I say supposedly, because the information on this is sketchy.
I’ve hiked to Crown Prince Lookout several times, to search for any evidence of this post. The trail is unmarked and unmaintained, but with a little diligence, and guidance from a book, the site can be located.
It’s a hill full of piled up granite boulders. The only way up is through a chimney-like acclivity, requiring a little bit of cragsmanship to negotiate. Atop Crown Prince Lookout is a square, cement foundation about 4 feet by 4 feet, that appears to be the remnant of a communication tower. Surrounding this foundation are a number of small, cement footings level to the ground, that appear to be the attachment points for stabilizing guy wires that kept the tower from being blown over.
Transporting the material to build this tower, up the treacherous route to the summit of Crown Prince Lookout, must have required some ingenuity and perseverance. And then manning (or womanning, as was more likely the case) this point, with binoculars scanning the sky, looking for Zeros and bombers that never materialized, must have required tremendous patience.
Or maybe it was fun. For those who love to haunt high, lonely places, the solitude offered by Crown Prince Lookout may have been spiritually transformative. I can only imagine how peaceful it felt in that isolated location, in the time of the world’s largest war. It’s a great place to meditate.
Categories: History
Chasing Unicorns 
In my experience, some women are really good at picking out the zeros, so this may been a good idea.
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That’s true. Also, items priced with lots of zeroes are the ones they like the most, and they buy nary anything else.
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That sounds like a broad generalization. I’d be careful with that.
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Dame right, I’ll be careful.
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It may be best to skirt the issue from now on.
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Yes, but sometimes I cunt help myself.
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You may be on your own with this one.
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I know. I may have to do some pussyfooting around.
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Just say what you mean. No need to beat around the bush. (I couldn’t help myself).
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😶🤚!
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I think we’re both going to end up in a hole.
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😶🤚!
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Haha!
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You may want to be careful, you did already have spilled coffee!
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“No comment!”
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No need. I’m sure your credit card bill says enough.
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Smartass! 😛
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Good photos. I would probably seek solitude somewhere not as high though.
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I understand. With your stature, I’m sure you’re accustomed to laying low.
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You may want to duck down low!
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Ducking.
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Yeah, throw stuff at him. I am trying to drink my coffee.
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Well I do have 2 hands. I can throw one thing his way and one thing your way at the same time!
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This is really neat! I’ll bet you’re right but also wonder how someone built a structure and traveled up there to look out so frequently.
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I’m sure they were very physically fit. I’ll bet they had to pack a lot of cement and water on their backs.
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That’s a crazy thought but you’re right
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This reminded me of this (usual broken link):
luminousaether.wordpress[DOT]com/2016/08/24/insulation/
While much of the cabin had been brought up via a long-gone logging road in an old pickup truck, improvements had since been carried-in by pack-animal or human labor… windows, water-system, toilet… I recall that on the trail up Mount San Jacinto from the Palm Springs side, there was an abandoned boiler at the side of the trail with a marker that explained that it had been left where the pack-animal carrying it had collapsed and died from exhaustion.
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It must take a lot of effort and dedication to pack a cabin up a mountain trail. But where there’s determination and time, I guess it can be done.
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