Geolocation Exercises

[Trailblazer]

lol "jiggaling and wiggaling"..what the heck is he listening too!?

That's Gorillaz.

 

[Giddierone]

This blue sign with it's distinctive curved shape on top is probably the key to the to location. It's an historic route marker, or could mark a scenic route, tourist attraction or landmark (maybe even a lake).

Other older examples.

 

[Calter]

I'll narrow down near which town/city it happened in three days, which should basically give it away.

It happened near Milton, Ontario

 

[deirdre]

It happened near Milton, Ontario

theres a missing speed sign in google street view.

 

[Giddierone]

I can't tell if they changed the sign or whether the motion blur plus compression makes it look like it has different text/shape.

Spoiler

So this is the 1 min drive taken in the video. Solution was quite easy once (@Calter the-worst-kidnapper-in-the-world) gave up the nearby town. Looked for airtraffic routes over Milton, Ontario that crossed a 4 lane roads left to right. Then just visually looked on Google Maps for Pylons on right, wide spaced double yellow line, with no dashes and a slight right hand bend.

 

[deirdre]

I can't tell if they changed the sign or whether the motion blur plus compression makes it look like it has different text.

the space after club looks the same, i think the white letters are just (besides blur) xtra fat like the road lines.
this frame looks like a little golpher dude.

 

[Giddierone]

the space after club looks the same, i think the white letters are just (besides blur) xtra fat like the road lines.
this frame looks like a little golpher dude.
View attachment 78395

Yeah, it's the same. This one is from 2016, before they added the Pipers Health part.

 

[deirdre]

Yeah, it's the same.

i think its bigger.. but that's me. (not that it matters)

 

[Giddierone]

i think its bigger.. but that's me. (not that it matters)
View attachment 78397

I can't tell either. Definitely the wrong thing to try and use to geolocate the video though. I live & learn.

 

[deirdre]

I can't tell either. Definitely the wrong thing to try and use to geolocate the video though. I live & learn.

well its a big blue sign. theres also a big blue sign like that one on rt 7, but the other small signs didnt line up.
( i thought it was a car on top the sign, but then you showd the blue signs and i trusted your judgement more

hey the rt 7 one says jade gardens too

 

[Trailblazer]

I thought this might make a good exercise. It may be too easy so I will start with the basics.

I took this photo yesterday in a pub garden. Which pub?

 

[flarkey]

Spoiler: I think the pub is ....

The Wellington Arms? edit, I'll change this to the Jekyll and Hyde pub due to the much nicer beer-garden out the back.

51.330338503935714, -1.0007898251292153 , 1936 BST

https://www.metabunk.org/sitrec/?cu...aws.com/15857/trailblazer1/20250411_163958.js

 

[Scaramanga]

This is a very well known ( by climbers ) landscape feature. You wont find it on Street View.

 

[Scaramanga]

This might be very easy or quite challenging...
Where exactly did I take this photo today?View attachment 67438

Google image search can't find a close match...but gives lots of images of Yorkshire and Durham.

 

[psikiwi]

This is a very well known ( by climbers ) landscape feature. You wont find it on Street View.

View attachment 79167

Spoiler: I think it's...

Guessing the fact you are UK based, and the background looks rather Highlandish, I'm going for InPin (Inaccessible Pinnacle) on Cuillin Ridge, Isle of Skye.

Not yet had the pleasure of ticking this set of Munro's ... Certainly helped given my own interests and length of time in the same nation...

 

[Trailblazer]

This is a very well known ( by climbers ) landscape feature. You wont find it on Street View.

View attachment 79167

I think it is the

Spoiler

Inaccessible Pinnacle on Skye? The only Munro you can't walk to the top of.

 

[jarlrmai]

I think it's Sgùrr Dearg on Skye

 

[Trailblazer]

Spoiler: I think the pub is ....

The Wellington Arms? edit, I'll change this to the Jekyll and Hyde pub due to the much nicer beer-garden out the back.

51.330338503935714, -1.0007898251292153 , 1936 BST

Your time is spot on but your location is not right. It is within 10 miles though.

Maybe finding the exact pub was an ask too far. Even with the number closing across Britain there are still a lot of them around!

Here is another view from quite a few years ago. Same trees, same moon, different plane…

 

[Scaramanga]

I'm going for InPin (Inaccessible Pinnacle) on Cuillin Ridge, Isle of Skye.

Indeed...with the top of the pinnacle being the summit and thus essential for anyone who wants to do all the Munros.

 

[Giddierone]

Where did I take this today?

 

[psikiwi]

Where did I take this today?

View attachment 79477

at work, so no real time to dig, but going to make a stab...

Spoiler: Somewhere in ...

Spring, lambs in the field, so northern hemisphere and feels like UK: house style appropriate. Profile of the hill is I think from the east, which puts the sun a bit south, around midday. That would fit well with my local landmark, Bennachie, Aberdeenshire.
But it's only a rapid scan, and would be crazy convenient. I don't want to spoil anyone else's fun.

 

[Trailblazer]

Where did I take this today?

View attachment 79477

I am pretty sure I have identified the hill. I just need to narrow down the photo location.

 

[Trailblazer]

OK I am narrowing it down. Similar view of the hill, but your photo was taken from a bit further left...

Looking to the left I think this is the same house in your photo but viewed from the side.

Which means, I think, that you took the photo from the edge of this field:

Google Earth view:

I would guess approximately 55.5217, -2.5689. Link.

 

[Giddierone]

Here's the uncropped image.

Spoiler

 

[Trailblazer]

Here's the uncropped image.

Spoiler

View attachment 79511

Taken from the St Cuthbert's Way long distance footpath?

 

[Giddierone]

Yes from a path next it that lead to the gate to the field.
What was your method? RIS on the UFO hill?

 

[Trailblazer]

Yes from a path next it that lead to the gate to the field.
What was your method? RIS on the UFO hill?

Yes reverse image search on just the distinctive hill came up with a photo taken from the Waterloo Monument which looked like a fairly similar angle.

From there I used Google Earth to backtrack from the hill until I found matching landscape features.

It turned out to be closer to that photo than I originally thought so I went down some dead-ends before that.

 

[Giddierone]

I took this yesterday. What's the flight registration number?

 

[deirdre]

I took this yesterday. What's the flight registration number?

if i know im facing directly NW can you help me with whether that shadow puts me in morningor evening? i have jumbled spatial issues.

oops east is on the right of North...so im facing NE. see my issue?

 

[NorCal Dave]

if i know im facing directly NW can you help me with whether that shadow puts me in morningor evening? i have jumbled spatial issues.

oops east is on the right of North...so im facing NE. see my issue?

View attachment 79686

We need to identify the church right? Then look for flights over it on 4/24. For us Yanks, it looks like a lot of UK churches. And American ones for that matter.

Gidierone lives in London, so presumably the church is in the London area? But maybe the outskirts where there is enough clear sky without bigger buildings to take the photo. Or it's a notable church to UK people that already know where it's at.

 

[deirdre]

Then look for flights over it on 4/24.

there are lots of flights if that's not the nose of the plane in my pic. and if you could narrow a time by the shadow that would help as my flight radar times out after a few hours. (plane hrs not internet hours). i got one maybe at around 3:50 pm ? <IF that is the nose, but why would the wings be so long?

yea i cant orient myself to which way the plane would be heading.. i suck at spatial shit. if the plane is coming south to northish...we really need a time.

But maybe the outskirts where there is enough clear sky without bigger buildings to take the photo.

well the photo is pretty straight up. its rather unique, so photo search does it.

edit to fix map

 

[Trailblazer]

well the photo is pretty straight up. its rather unique, so photo search does it.

I did quite a lot of reverse image searching, even rotating the photo to a more upright orientation, and I haven't had any luck finding the church yet. Once that is found it should be very simple.

Although if your not-very-redacted map is in the area, it gives me a good idea!

 

[Giddierone]

I did quite a lot of reverse image searching, even rotating the photo to a more upright orientation, and I haven't had any luck finding the church yet. Once that is found it should be very simple.

Although if your not-very-redacted map is in the area, it gives me a good idea!

Try Yandex image search - it gives the correct answer in the first line of similar images.

 

[deirdre]

I did quite a lot of reverse image searching, even rotating the photo to a more upright orientation, and I haven't had any luck finding the church yet. Once that is found it should be very simple.

Although if your not-very-redacted map is in the area, it gives me a good idea!

i can message you the location if you wish, i just didnt want to ruin others fun if they wanted to find it.

 

[Trailblazer]

No idea why I couldn't find the church from reverse search, but @deirdre clearly did.

So...

Spoiler

view is looking slightly north of east, plane is flying west, and it's late afternoon as the southwest-facing side of the church is illuminated from slightly to the left.

The sun anlge is slightly north of perpendicular to the wall, so around 5pm BST?

The plane is not leaving any contrail, but looks quite high. Humidity at 250mb was pretty low so lots of flights could be contrail-free, so that doesn't help too much.

I've found a few candidates but none of them looks quite right. It's hard to replicate the camera angle completely.

Based on the timing and the angle, I am going to go with this one:

easyJet 2936 from Prague to Bristol, photographed at about 16:53 BST.

 

[Trailblazer]

Hmm, actually I might rethink. I think my time was wrong.

Spoiler

Zooming in, it looks more like closer to 4pm BST perhaps?

But I can't find a suitable flight at that time. This easyJet was about 4.30:

Similar path but looks slightly too far south to me.

 

[deirdre]

No idea why I couldn't find the church from reverse search, but @deirdre clearly did.

i ended up searching a different church. the triangle brick on the tower is rare..so i saw one in austria then image searched that and saw the right one pretty quick. i stopped my plane searching at 4:25! nd almost tagged you to help with the shadow (but didnt want to bother you)

 

[Trailblazer]

if i know im facing directly NW can you help me with whether that shadow puts me in morningor evening? i have jumbled spatial issues.

oops east is on the right of North...so im facing NE. see my issue?

View attachment 79686

The nose is at the 1 o'clock position, I think. Or possibly the 7 o'clock, but I think 1, which means it is heading roughly towards the camera.

 

[deirdre]

This easyJet was about 4.30:

i have an air france at 4:16 (all white) and a exy47xq at 4:25 (orange and white)<south to northish direction though

 

[Giddierone]

Hmm, actually I might rethink. I think my time was wrong.

Why the rethink?