Geurillas Along the Interstate

[Ncogneato]

I would like to get some thoughts about growing near or along an interstate highway. This particular highway is in a rural area, not very busy and there are huge sections of it that divide the opposite direction lanes. Some dividers (medians) are very large and heavily wooded. One spot in particular I can access from a county route that runs diagonal under the the interstate. From the road it slopes up and the elevation is considerably higher than the road. There is no way the plants could be seen from the highway. South facing woodline. No risk of hunters. The nearest farm is several hundred yards of the "drop" point. I would have to have a partner drop me off and pick me up because there is no safe place to park. I need to get my boots on the ground and scope it out better (morel hunting) but to me it looks like a beautiful spot. That must mean that I am not taking something into account. What am I missing?

 

[TangieFanatic]

Hi,
Maybe you can just plant one or two seeds there and see how it goes. Personally I wouldn't plant there because I like small clearings in woods more. I like the experience of coming out into the woods and walking a ways. Good luck on your cannabis/morel season!!!

I would like to get some thoughts about growing near or along an interstate highway. This particular highway is in a rural area, not very busy and there are huge sections of it that divide the opposite direction lanes. Some dividers (medians) are very large and heavily wooded. One spot in particular I can access from a county route that runs diagonal under the the interstate. From the road it slopes up and the elevation is considerably higher than the road. There is no way the plants could be seen from the highway. South facing woodline. No risk of hunters. The nearest farm is several hundred yards of the "drop" point. I would have to have a partner drop me off and pick me up because there is no safe place to park. I need to get my boots on the ground and scope it out better (morel hunting) but to me it looks like a beautiful spot. That must mean that I am not taking something into account. What am I missing?

 

[Ncogneato]

Thanks, Tangie. I agree with the hiking. Nothing clears the mind and heals the soul like a nice hike in the timber!

One thing that came to mind is the possibility of being spotted from the air. Highway patrol could possibly have aircraft regularly taking radar looking for speeders. I don't know if they do that in my area or not. As long as I work at night and keep the girls spead out, it might not be an issue.

 

[jay-toker]

.

 

[Cannabis]

You'll need to get water to the plants is the thing. I've had similar ideas myself in places where it's obvious no one ever goes. The thing is, the plants will stunt due to lack of water.

 

[mowood3479]

An old school buddy of mine had a spot in a swamp 50 yards off a fairly busy parkway just outside of nyc.. He grew hundreds of pounds there. It was compromised eventually but he grew there like 15 years

 

[FirstTracks]

the aerial surveillance thing is big. That's something to look into, as far as local and state policies. Lots of states are running smaller budgets now.

If a large interstate connecting major airport-accessible cities, be careful, as small aircraft often follow these or use them as waypoints/landmarks.

Awhole lot of autoflowering plants or superautos that topout at 2 or 3 feet might work out better than a couple bigger plants. Also spreads out the risk.

If in a deer or elk prone area, keepin mind that they often hide out in these areas due to lack of people.

If your state mows medians, know how far in they mow and how often. Some places with low budgets barely mow (or don't really), and some places mow every couple weeks and pretty far into the medians on either side.

Know areas where cops might set up speed traps, as you don't want to be doing night drops there and get out of the car a hundred yards from a parked cop.

Getting the stuff far enough off the highway for cops/other drivers not to notice during the initial material drop can be an adrenaline rush, you'll feel like you never moved so much bulk of materials so fast.

Keep in mind if your state/area has any prisons close that bring inmates out for highway cleaning. Don't want to have a ton of plants around where a lot of people will be working.

Look for zones that had construction work done in the last couple years, as they'll be less likely than beat up sections to get new construction work allocated to them.


I used to consider doing the work in the middle of the day, posing as someone picking up garbage on the side of the road. Deck yourself out in an orange construction vest, drive a white (american made, if you're in the US) truck (not too nice, but not rusted out). The truck thing is only necessary if you want to be acting like a surveyor or maybe fixing underground wires.

Keep in mind, cops might be looking out or people tearing up underground roadside wiring. There's people out there who rip it up and sell it as scrap. Nobody likes that.

Good luck

 

[Ncogneato]

Good points made here. Of all the possible major issues I can see, water would be the biggest. The spot is on high ground above the road and, as far as I can tell, there is no available water source. I don't know if it would be worth the time or effort to risk hauling in water.

 

[TangieFanatic]

You couldn't have said it better. Walking in the woods really does heal the soul and clear the mind. And finding morels along the way makes it even more special.

I thought of something that you might want to keep on you if you try growing at this spot. I would advise printing of the safety brochure on your state's Adopt a Highway clean up program website. Then you can fold that brochure and keep it in your pocket whenever you visit the grow site. If you are questioned, take out the brochure and explain that you are still learning the safety procedures. If the cop still doesn't buy your story, then you will want to call your lawyer and remain silent until you speak with him.

Thanks, Tangie. I agree with the hiking. Nothing clears the mind and heals the soul like a nice hike in the timber!

One thing that came to mind is the possibility of being spotted from the air. Highway patrol could possibly have aircraft regularly taking radar looking for speeders. I don't know if they do that in my area or not. As long as I work at night and keep the girls spead out, it might not be an issue.

 

[BOMBAYCAT]

I live in Colorado and travel to the Midwest a lot. Some things I would worry about are rippers, water and ditchweed (feral hemp) seeding your crop. They moved around a lot of hemp in the War years and it grows many places. The pollen is viable for a mile or so I think. Also we don't have big medians like you do, and they mow the medians and the ditches pretty well and kill all the pheasants that nest there. Maybe you should try a few plants there and check it out? The place sounds all right and good luck.

 

[snuggles]

find more concealed spots. it's worth the hassle in the end.

 

[meadowman]

i've done it for years. getting in and out are a major problem, i always go in at night. water is captured in dug ponds lined with 6 mil. plastic. i'm in a highly populated area and they don't look for it where i'm at. i've seen news choppers over it many, many times with no problems. good luck!

 

[idiit]

you should have more than one way in/out of any grow site imo.

I use areas without water access. get 'em in while ground is wet and heavily mulch. 5 gl. buckets ( dull, neutral colors) under trees can collect rain water as well (also) as the lined pond tech.

you will have aerial traffic due to the interstate. don't overdo it. just a few for starters.

if you do get seen on foot there have a plausible cover; metal detector is one that doesn't get mentioned much. if a cop/neighbor sees you why are you there on foot? coming and going at night is best like meadowman stated.

grow sites require many trips in and out, even guerilla sites. this eatablishes a pattern. pattern's get picked up on by locals.

getting picked up and dropped off can work if the traffic on the county road is minimal. doing so on curves reduces line of sight exposure for long distances away.

egress and regress (in, out) are the tricky fine points. no exposed vehicle for extended duration.

remember that if the grow is successful you will need to take out large garbage bags of bud. this is the litmus test. will you feel safe carting out a nice load from this location to the vehicle at harvest time?

 

[bd0t]

Any risk of highway workers this season? Is the town doing any road resurfacing? Any ex cons picking up garbage along the highway?

 

[vostok]

Grow Tents are a popular alternative:http://www.greners.com/i/grow-tents...-pro/secret-jardin-dark-room-pro-dr90-ii.html

 

[Eudaimonia67]

Another concern to keep in mind is if they mow that area at all periodically throughout the season.

 

[Ncogneato]

Any risk of highway workers this season? Is the town doing any road resurfacing? Any ex cons picking up garbage along the highway?

None of the above. It's essentially a wooded plot of land between the east and west bound lanes. I could not imagine why anyone would be near where the plants would be. I like the plastic lined pond idea.

I really just need to get in there on foot and scope it out.

 

[MountainBudz]

I have a close friend that had a close friend down in TN that grew along the interstates. One night he was approaching what he thought was his partner pickup and it was a state trooper. He was harvesting as well, try explaining that one to the police! Lol. Be careful man!

 

[wegobigupnorth]

I personally think you are overthinking it to much and people are making you worry. I have grown weed in places people would never, ever think that there would be cannabis growing there including urban spots in major cites and spots right next to heavily trafficked roads and yes, the highway.

If you can get access without being seen and are confident you can all supplies in and then harvest out spots like the one you have in mind are my favorite to use because rippers would never think to check a spot like that.

I have grown weed in a vacant overgrown lot that was surronded by apartments, condos and stores and hundreds of people walked by it every day. I knew I could do it because I lived in the area and knew no one ever walked threw that nasty. fenced in vacant lot. I put them out late so they stayed small. Harvested 1.5 pounds in the middle of a city and would have got more but the street lights prevented 2 plants from flowering! hehe

I love getting creative with my spots. GOOD LUCK!

 

[Team Microbe]

^

Fuck tents, you got this! It sounds like a spot with some real potential, but you won't know until the boots hit the ground and you get out there and explore the area. If it does turn up to fit your criteria, it could be a really great spot by what you're describing. That is, if the highway isn't too popular (air surveillance) and access isn't too easily obtained. Hunting would be out of the question, which is a huge bonus of course. People wouldn't have much of a reason to be back there either, unless a path is created so you better get out there soon before the foliage fills in and paths are created!

Take pics when you visit on foot, we'd all like to see what we're dealing with here. Maybe we can offer some additional insight, just make sure you don't accidentally include street names or anything indicative in the pictures when you take em. No land marks either. Bring back soil samples to look at and possibly test (only costs $20 to find out what's in it).

Oh yeah, and if water is of concern then plant on the lowest point of that hill that you can. Dig out big bowls under your plants for water to collect inside of, and when it rains the run off will come down and congregate in those "catch" holes. You can retain water even further by mixing in organic matter (compost), mulching with native brush (sticks, dead grass), or planting cover crops like crimson clover/barley grass. The cover crops will shade the top of the soil, and if you combine that with organic matter, mulch, and water catching holes... you will never need to worry about that mid-summer drought. I promise.