The Cartersville Abandoned Plane

I originally posted this article on Atlas Obscura after noticing the fuselage in satellite imagery and set forth to check it out. The site has since gained massive popularity to the point the city has it removed. Here's the article as posted on Atlas Obscura.

THIS DISCARDED G-159 GULFSTREAM PLANE was abandoned near a river put in during the mid-2000s. It has since been picked clean by salvagers, the wings, tail, wiring, and instrument panels are no longer present. However, the fuselage and leather seats remain and display the effects of more than 15 years of exposure to the elements. In recent years, the airliner has become a canvas, as the site has gained popularity with area teenagers, intrepid hikers, and graffiti artists. The twin turbo-prop was retired and scrapped by nearby Phoenix Air and dumped in the woods on city land. Despite some speculation, this is NOT the Dessault Falcon 20 that crashed near the Cartersville airport in 1989. This aircraft used to carry the registration number N173PA but that registration was canceled in January 2005 and subsequently transferred to a newer Gulfstream III that Phoenix Air currently uses as air ambulance. The scrapped aircraft currently resides on land owned by the City of Cartersville. There’s a parking lot nearby for the put-in for kayakers and tubers that connects to a walking trail and a gravel service road. Follow the gravel road past the gate that keeps vehicles out and follow the road around to the right, and stay to the right when the road forks. Just past the fork in the road, start looking to your left. When you see an open meadow on your left next to a stand of trees, walk into the meadow about 20 yards. You’ll see the plane tucked in the trees on your left.