Windmills – California’s Gold (3012)

The first stop on our adventure is the Dutch Windmill in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, which was built in 1902, at a cost of $16,000. It is 75 feet high, and 33 feet in diameter at the base, is sails have a span of 102 feet and it was capable of pumping 30,000 gallons of fresh water per hour from underground to a reservoir on Strawberry Hill. Despite being a great success for a few years (so much so that a second windmill was built), by 1913 electric pumps were introduced, so the windmills began to become obsolete. In August 1976 volunteers from the US Navy Reserve started work on restoring the Dutch Mill. Work continued through to completion in 1981. The second windmill, which is lose by, is patiently waiting its turn to be brought back to its original glory.

From the historic to the cutting edge of technology, Huell’s next stop is sure to make you gasp. We travel to Enron Wind in Tehachapi to look at the biggest and most modern windmill we could find. Join Huell as he climbs two hundred and thirteen feet straight up to the top of this amazing machine. The blades are one hundred and twelve feet long each, for a combined wing span (with the center hub) of two hundred and thirty one feet! If you’re afraid of heights, this show is sure to make you squirm.