Another source for copper wire

I was out at our local rodeo arena a few days ago, and noticed that old telephone poles were used in the parking lot for vehicles to pull up to at the main office (laying down for cars to stop at). I got to looking at the poles and almost all of them have the thick copper wire that is used for grounding. Since they are no longer being used for their original purpose I asked if they would mind if I removed the copper wire, and they said "knock yourself out". I always keep a pair of wire cutters in my car, so I went at it. Since there was about a dozen poles laying down I got quite a bit, including a copper plate from the bottom of one pole. If you happen to notice a parking area where they have telephone/power line poles laying down for cars to pull up to, take a look to see if they still have the copper wire on them. If so, ask if you can remove it, and they say ok, then there is some thick wire that you will not have to strip.