Author: Andrew

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Contest #839: wildlife bridge just west of Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

The Trans-Canada Highway runs through Banff and Yoho National Parks in the Canadian Rockies. This area has a lot of wildlife and four wildlife bridges were built between Banff, AB and Golden, BC – fences along the highway prevent wildlife accessing the highway and direct them towards the bridges to allow safe access across the highway.

It’s built with one arch for each direction of traffic.

Before the hint:

  • Martin de Bock
  • Paul Voestermans
  • Graham Hedley
  • hhgygy
  • Glenmorren
  • Lighthouse
  • Phil Ower
  • Farid Fernandez
  • Eloy Cano
  • Bas van Limpt
  • Garfield
  • hb1547
  • Angie CF
  • ZORRO the FOX
  • Felix Bossert

After the hint:

  • Jeather
  • Gillian B
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Contest #838: the southern gate entrance to Black Star or Independence Square, Accra, Ghana

Black Star Square in Accra Ghana has two main entrances – the main obe with Independence or Black Star Gate in the north and a second building/gate with three thin arches in the south. Both would fit the arch theme of the series – but one was less obvious.

The square was completed in 1961 to coincide with a visit by Queen Elizabeth II, visiting to encourage the newly independent Ghana to remain within the Commonwealth.

It hosts all the major national public gatherings, national festivals, military parades, concerts and occasional fashion shows. Seating for 30,000+ surrounds the square.

The image below shows Independence or Blaxk Star Arch in the foreground, Black Star Square full of people and in the background the building we were looking for in front of the Atlantic Ocean.

Found before the hint:

  • Lighthouse
  • hhgygy
  • Phil Ower
  • zorro the fox
  • Graham Hedley
  • Angie CF

After the hint:

  • Martin de Bock
  • Paul Voestermans
  • Garfield
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Contest #837: two arched bridges at the Kameido Kenjin Shrine in Tokyo, Japan

Following the series theme, we visited the Kameido Kenjin Shrine in Tokyo, Japan to find two arched bridges.

The shrine is dedicated to Sugawara no Michizane, a 9th-century Japanese scholar. It was built in Tokyo in 1646, damaged by US bombing during World War 2 and rebuilt in modern years. It hosts a wisteria festival each year.

Found before the hint:

  • Paul Voestermans
  • hhgygy
  • Lighthouse
  • Phil Ower
  • Martin de Bock
  • Garfield
  • Graham Hedley
  • Eloy Cano
  • Bas van Limpt
  • zorro the fox
  • Angie CF
Posted on

How to solve WhereOnGoogleEarth contests!

Written by Elisabeth, one of the premier players of the game.

How do I find the location of an image?

First I look at what there is to see. Buildings, vegetation, water, landscape, roads. What could be there? What could have happened there? What could be so exciting about any place in the world? Maybe it fits a topic? Use your investigative instincts.

I compare the colors of the photo by spot-searching for places that might look similar. Zoom in – zoom out. Yes, it’s work!

What kind of trees are growing there? I pay attention to the shape of the landscape, whether it is hilly, flat or mountainous. What is the typical architectural style of the country?

Not to forget: the shadows. If they point more north – that could be in the northern hemisphere. Or more south – then it could be in the southern hemisphere. But you shouldn’t trust it, because sometimes the satellite images play tricks on us!

Then of course I ask our friend Google. Enter keywords in the search bar. Even better plus the country you suspect. I’m looking for newspaper articles, reports or lists, or even pictures. In general, it is important to compare and develop a kind of photographic memory.

There is no trick! Just try to hang around in Google Earth as often as possible and memorize what a place looks like.