A PA28 PLT; WHILE TAXIING FOR TKOF AT KUCY; ENCOUNTERED AN UNLIGHTED GRASS AREA IN THE MIDDLE OF THE APRON.

Narrative

I MADE A CROSS COUNTRY TRIP TO KUCY FOR AN OVERNIGHT PERSONAL TRIP TO SEE FAMILY AND FRIENDS. IN PREPARATION TO RETURN TO KTKI; I PREFLIGHTED THE ACFT AND I WALKED AROUND THE ACFT TO VISUALLY CHK THE SURROUNDING AREA BEFORE I TAXIED TO THE DEP END OF THE RWY. THE RAMP AREA ON THE SE END OF THE ARPT APRON WHERE THE ACFT WAS TIED DOWN WAS COMPLETELY DARK WITH VERY LITTLE AMBIENT LIGHT FROM A FAR AWAY FLOOD LIGHT NEAR THE TERMINAL BUILDING AND ADJACENT HANGERS. FROM MY POSITION; I OBSERVED THE DISTANT BLUE TXWY LIGHTING AND THE APRON APPEARED TO BE CLR FOR TAXI TO THE TXWY. AS I BEGAN TO TAXI; SUDDENLY OUT OF THE DARK; THE LNDG LIGHT ILLUMINATED A SMALL GRASS AREA IN THE MIDDLE OF THE APRON. THE GRASS AREA WAS TOO CLOSE TO AVOID BY TURNING EITHER DIRECTION. HOWEVER; I WAS ABLE TO STOP THE ACFT JUST SHORT OF AN UNMARKED AND UNLIT DRAINAGE AREA COMPLETE WITH A CONCRETE REINFORCED PIPE. THE AREA ITSELF WAS APPROXIMATELY 10 FT BY 15 FT; WITH SURROUNDING APRON GENTLY SLOPING TO THE DRAINAGE AREA. APPARENTLY; THE AREA IN QUESTION IS VISIBLE IN THE DAYLIGHT HRS AND THEREFORE AVOIDABLE. HOWEVER; AT NIGHT; IT IS DISGUISED IN THE DARKNESS AND YOU DON'T KNOW IT IS THERE UNTIL IT IS ALMOST TOO LATE. I WRITE THIS AS A SUGGESTION FOR SOME TYPE OF REMEDY TO A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SIT. PERHAPS; THE AREA COULD BE PAVED; INSTALLING A STEEL GRATE THAT AN ACFT COULD TAXI OVER. IF NOT; PERHAPS THE AREA COULD BE LIT WITH BLUE TAXI LIGHTS AND AT THE VERY LEAST; IT COULD BE MARKED WITH BLUE REFLECTIVE TYPE MARKERS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THE RPTR REITERATED WHAT HE STATED IN THE RPT. THE S RAMP AREA; WHICH EXTENDS MUCH FURTHER TO THE S THAN DEPICTED ON THE COMMERCIAL AERO CHART; IS UNLIGHTED. THIS AREA AS DESCRIBED BY THE RPTR; IS AN OLDER PORTION OF THE APRON AND CONTAINS AN UNMARKED GRASS AREA IN WHICH A CONCRETE DRAINAGE PIPE IS LOCATED. WHILE TAXIING TO THE NW; TO JOIN THE MAIN TXWY; (OLD RWY) THE UNMARKED AREA LOOMED AHEAD OF THE ACFT. HE FEELS FORTUNATE THAT HE WAS ABLE TO STOP IN TIME TO AVOID ANY DAMAGE TO HIS ACFT; I. E. PROP DAMAGE AND OR RELATED ENGINE DAMAGE.