Hydro Towers

Yes, they don't carry water, and no, they might not even carry hydro-electricity, but in Canada we call power pylons "hydro towers".  Anyway, they are a conspicuous part of the landscape anywhere near civilization and/or major roads throughout North America.   They can be a definite eyesore, sticking out in front of an otherwise lovely vista.

Estes Park, Colorado.  Resort towns need power, one supposes.

They can sometimes make a mockery not only of natural landscapes, but of historical ones as well.

Both of these were taken during the 2011 re-enactment of the First Battle of Bull Run at Manassas National Battlefield Park in Manassas, Virginia.  It was hard not to get shots without the iron giants in the background, and these are two of the ones I made sure to take to display what an eyesore they are.  This is a sacred site in American history, and yet...

They come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and materials,  and to be fair, some of them are actually historic pieces of art, such as the Pylons of Cadiz.  Some of them do have elegant patterns to them, and with a little imagination, they look like little Eiffel towers or even people.  The Australian slang word for them, in fact, is "iron men".  Any substantial journey down a major highway will bring one into visual contact with a variety of towers, and childhood memories of heading down I-95 from DC to Fort Lauderdale include associating places with hydro towers as much as the local vegetation.

Just below Hoover Dam, they stick out nearly horizontal from the canyon walls high above the Colorado River.  Western New York and Southern Ontario are absolutely crowded with them, and they are a good way to tell how close one is to the Niagara River.  Many open, seemingly desolate stretches of the deserts and plains are sometimes broken by the sudden appearance of a long line of them that vanish into the distance, often joined by giant wind turbines.  As power sources such as dams can often be deep into wilderness territory, such as northern Quebec near Radisson, hydro towers can often be found even where most other signs of human habitation are usually absent.

They have been with us for a while now, and are still getting built and replaced despite plans to make everything underground.  The Romans left us aqueducts, despite their plans to put their pipes underground whenever possible.  Our steel, concrete, and wooden structures might not last as long, but it would be amusing to see tour buses and their future versions one day stop beside our electric aqueducts for picture taking.