Post by SteveHolmes on Nov 1, 2008 13:42:25 GMT -5
My friend and I decided we had one more try left to get out and do some hiking. We had been planning this one for some time...but every weekend we had it planned something had got in the way or the weather didn't cooperate. I think I should start doing this for a living...guided hikes by Steve...because this is the area that our book is about...and most of the people I take up have bought a book from us....and would like a guided hike. This is a guy I met that way; and our friendship has really become strong. I have hiked with him several times this year, and I am thankful to have met him. He is like a brother to me, and since mine is a long way from home now, it's great to have a hiking companion. The morning started out fairly early. It's just over an hour drive to where we start hiking from. We had about an hour+ delay as another truck was blocking the road stuck on ice. The road is pretty rugged, and the snow we had a few weeks ago lingered in the shady areas and iced the roads as well. This ding-bat had a 2WD stuck; and it took about 8 bags of salt and 5 guys to get him out of the icey area so we could get by. We made it to the top around noon....so about 1 1/2 hours later than we wanted. This is the view from top! It never gets old to me, and makes me realize what a gorgeous world we live in.
My intentions were to hike down to a mine called the Eldorado. My friend (Dave) had never been there, and I was excited to show him the area. It is in a very rugged and remote area and if you didn't know about the History of the mining in the area, you would never suspect a mine being in the high country. The mine was started in the late 1890's. They mined lead with some silver content. There is a stone cabin still at the site. If you look closely(at the pic below)...you can see it as we transcend down the mountain.
We make it to the mine and the cabin site in probably about an hour. This is what the mine entrance looked like when we arrived.
The snowmelt and rockslides cover the entrance yearly. It is getting almost impossible to even dig the entrance anymore. All the sluff has fallen into the entrance and the mine tunnel is now a sloped hill to get down into.
This is about 30 minutes of digging. Just enough to squeeze in.
looking out at the entrance from inside. Big timbers support the entrance.
Once inside, the mine opens up quite a bit. The old rails still lay within it's walls...forgotten by time~! The mine is hard rock. There are several cross-cuts inside as well as a shaft. The floor is orange gooey sticky mud that stains everything. fingers, shoes, socks...etc....
This was broken from the wall. I'm positive this is what they were high grading. LEAD! or Galena. This stuff is drab on the outside, but once broken, it glistens beautifully.
Beautiful Crystals which line the walls and cieling in many places.
We explored the mine for a little bit, and decided to head out and look around the stone cabin site. this was the boarding house for the miners. It still stands as a sentinel to the Hard work that these men put forth. It was a 3 room cabin, and it's amazing the window still stays inplace after 100 years of weathering.
This mine also had a Broderick Bascom gravity-operated Aerial Tram. Full buckets of Ore would carry empty buckets back up. It's seriously amazing to think of the operation. There are only 3 towers that remain standing. The cable was cut in the 1920's for re-use in an Oregon shipyard!
Look closely, and the towers will reveal themselves.
Lots of country to explore, and I'm sure lots of cool stuff to be found. I found an old ax head and a candle-stick holder hiking out. It was found where i've wlaked many times before, so the last years Spring Snow melt must have exposed new relics. I'm sure stuff is being uncovered yearly. I am tempted to try another hike tomorrow, same area, but it's calling for rain and stormy weather. All in all we hiked about 1.8 miles with a total elevation of 3600! So in less than a mile, it's almost 1600' down or up; one way. That gives an idea of how STEEP it is!
Dave found out!!! ;D
Hope you all enjoyed...and I apologize for the many pictures.
Steve
My intentions were to hike down to a mine called the Eldorado. My friend (Dave) had never been there, and I was excited to show him the area. It is in a very rugged and remote area and if you didn't know about the History of the mining in the area, you would never suspect a mine being in the high country. The mine was started in the late 1890's. They mined lead with some silver content. There is a stone cabin still at the site. If you look closely(at the pic below)...you can see it as we transcend down the mountain.
We make it to the mine and the cabin site in probably about an hour. This is what the mine entrance looked like when we arrived.
The snowmelt and rockslides cover the entrance yearly. It is getting almost impossible to even dig the entrance anymore. All the sluff has fallen into the entrance and the mine tunnel is now a sloped hill to get down into.
This is about 30 minutes of digging. Just enough to squeeze in.
looking out at the entrance from inside. Big timbers support the entrance.
Once inside, the mine opens up quite a bit. The old rails still lay within it's walls...forgotten by time~! The mine is hard rock. There are several cross-cuts inside as well as a shaft. The floor is orange gooey sticky mud that stains everything. fingers, shoes, socks...etc....
This was broken from the wall. I'm positive this is what they were high grading. LEAD! or Galena. This stuff is drab on the outside, but once broken, it glistens beautifully.
Beautiful Crystals which line the walls and cieling in many places.
We explored the mine for a little bit, and decided to head out and look around the stone cabin site. this was the boarding house for the miners. It still stands as a sentinel to the Hard work that these men put forth. It was a 3 room cabin, and it's amazing the window still stays inplace after 100 years of weathering.
This mine also had a Broderick Bascom gravity-operated Aerial Tram. Full buckets of Ore would carry empty buckets back up. It's seriously amazing to think of the operation. There are only 3 towers that remain standing. The cable was cut in the 1920's for re-use in an Oregon shipyard!
Look closely, and the towers will reveal themselves.
Lots of country to explore, and I'm sure lots of cool stuff to be found. I found an old ax head and a candle-stick holder hiking out. It was found where i've wlaked many times before, so the last years Spring Snow melt must have exposed new relics. I'm sure stuff is being uncovered yearly. I am tempted to try another hike tomorrow, same area, but it's calling for rain and stormy weather. All in all we hiked about 1.8 miles with a total elevation of 3600! So in less than a mile, it's almost 1600' down or up; one way. That gives an idea of how STEEP it is!
Dave found out!!! ;D
Hope you all enjoyed...and I apologize for the many pictures.
Steve