Channel Title: Abandoned Mine Exploring with Tom and Julie Channel Description: Hello and welcome to our channel. We travel the southwest U.S. to find cool places to explore. We have explored over 2000 mines and it is our main focus, but we also make videos of hiking/climbing, 'how to' instructional advice, and live music. The videos are organized into playlists, so please click the playlist tab on our homepage for easy navigation of our channel. We would love to have you as a subscriber, and love hearing from you, so please subscribe and leave a comment for us. Thanks, Tom and Julie WARNING: Entering abandoned mines is not safe. Mine names and locations may not be correct, and workings depicted may not actually exist the way they are presented. The videos on this channel are for entertainment purposes only. <video> 1884 Copper and Silver Mine - Navigating Narrow Passageways - Colorful Minerals Description: We started this mine explore with a fun and scenic hike through the mountains. Once we arrived at this copper and silver mine that was first found in 1884, we were pleasantly surprised at the unusual and interesting workings. Even the door at the entrance to the mine was exceptional. After exploring the lower level workings, we went back outside and climbed up the mountain, and found the upper levels. Both levels held beautifully colored minerals. We hope you enjoy this video and appreciate you watching it. Here is a link to another video we think you will enjoy: https://youtu.be/4Juhec_dbYU </video> <video> One Of The Best That We've Seen. The Number Of Artifacts Deep In This Mine Is Amazing. Description: Our best mine of the year. This exploration was one of our favorites because of all of the amazing artifacts left behind. This polymetallic replacement deposit was discovered in 1875 and consisted of lead, silver, gold, copper, and zinc ores. It was worked heavily in the early 1900s and into the 1920s. To access the underground workings, we had to navigate down an inclined shaft and across a couple of deep stopes where the skip track has washed out, leaving only a water pipe and some track left to walk on. After that, there are a couple of caved areas left to crawl through before we finally arrive down at the 900-foot level. Here is where we find a museum like mine in its natural state. It's a very rare treat to see so many artifacts in such good condition still in a mine. Some of the things we found are ore cars, skip cars, winches, numerous wood dynamite boxes, hand tools, rare cans, and much more. Thanks for watching, and we hope you enjoy the video as much as we enjoyed seeing this mine. Here is a link to our favorite mines playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBirOpgY-NV_n393pa-mL4RNYBMYUs04f&si=MpEzgO4CnmlA1l_j </video> <video> Arizona Gold - Mine Camp - Ball Mill - High Mountain Mine - Steep Shaft Description: This exploration starts with a visit to an old mining camp where there are several interesting pieces of equipment. There, we saw a nice ball mill, feeder belt, shaft bucket, and more. Next came a fun Jeep ride through a rugged wash and up a steep road where we parked after getting tired of bouncing around on the rough road. We continue on foot past an impressive road wall, high into the desert hills, to a box canyon where we arrive at a remote gold mine. While we were exploring the interesting underground workings, we came upon a hoist room and winze shaft. The shaft was quite steep, but we made our way down it with the use of a rope to a point where the shaft went almost vertical. The shaft seemed to be quite deep from what I could tell. It was fun explore, and we hope you enjoy the video. Here is a link to another video we think you will like: https://youtu.be/2IN0eSqc96w </video> <video> Historic Nevada Mine Site - Cemetery - Cabin - Multi Level Mine Explore - Ore Car ⛏️💰 Description: Silver was first discovered in this area in the 1860s and is still being mined here today. The remains of the once thriving town have been just about reclaimed by nature. We start by visiting the cemetery, where a large number of unmarked graves exist. Most of the unmarked graves are reported to be Chinese miners. Next, we take a look at a very old cabin that is built into the earth, providing stability and temperature control. After that, we make our way into an interesting underground working supported with hand hewn timbers. Finally we move to a different section of the mine for some ladder climbing where we find a large ore car and some interesting stopes. We hope you enjoy the video. Here is a link to another video that you might like: https://youtu.be/eo8H0oSuuRE </video> <video> Trying Not To Get Lost In This Mine Maze Description: This abandoned mine exploration finds us in a real maze of workings. We are in the desert of southern California at an old mine that was worked in the late 1800s. We drove the Jeep to the end of the road leading to this mine and then hiked the rest of the way. The hike takes us through a very rugged and scenic mountainous area. This was a lead/silver mine which has underground workings that weave through the mountain following the ore veins and creating a real maze. There are two levels that we visited, and there is at least one more that we didn't get to. We found several stopes, chutes, and a few ladders. This is one of the more confusing mines that we have been in, and we had to pay close attention to where we were, so we didn't get lost. There is some interesting miner's graffiti here, as well. We hope you enjoy the video and appreciate you watching. Here is a link to another video we think you will enjoy: https://youtu.be/lsy7WxIwa5w </video> <video> We Couldn't Believe What We Saw In This Mine - An Historically Important Artifact Description: While exploring this 1890 era California silver/lead mine, we came across an artifact so rare it's the only one of its kind that we've ever seen. We will probably never see another one in its original setting inside of a mine. We couldn't believe it was still sitting there after more than 130 years. We headed out from our base camp early in the morning and had an idea that this artifact was in this mining area but did not know exactly where it was located. After making our way up a fairly rough road in the Jeep, we left on foot and started the search. This mountain is full of portals, and we explored at least a dozen underground mine workings with no sign of what we were looking for. It was getting late in the day, and we had a long way to go to get back to camp. We were just about ready to give up when we decided to try looking in one more portal. After about a half hour of making our way through the maze of the workings, we finally found it. It really was an amazing sight for us to see. We hope you enjoy the video and would like it if you left us a comment. This is a re-edit of a previously released video. Here is a link to another video we think you might enjoy: https://youtu.be/eo8H0oSuuRE </video> <video> What Do 500 Miners Leave Behind? A Lot Of Equipment And 13 Miles Of Underground Workings! (pt 1of 3) Description: What a treat it was for us to explore this private mine camp and some of the 13 miles of underground workings. What's left behind is pretty amazing. This is primarily a silver and copper mine that was first discovered in the 1860s. It was worked for 100 years before it finally shut down. At one time, there were as many as 500 miners working here. The nearby town that sprung up four miles away included five stores, eight saloons, two hotels, restaurants, three stables, a lodging house, butcher and barber shops, a blacksmith, and a post office. In 1872, a furnace was built in the town to treat silver ore from the mine. In 1880, a five stamp mill was built there. At the mine site, there is a 1000' deep shaft, covered trestle, intact hoist room, assayers office, three huge air compressors, tool shop, auto shop, change room, and showers. There are also several small houses and a school here. In 1914, an aerial tram was built to haul ore over the top of the mountain, where it was taken by narrow gauge railroad to be processed. We will make a return trip soon to try to access some of the lower levels that are here. Thanks to Herschel and Max for helping out on this adventure. We hope you enjoy the video! Here is a link to part 2 of this 3 part video series. https://youtu.be/nZiPbPw45MM Here is the link to part 3 of this 3 part video series. https://youtu.be/WaJsYV8RdiI </video> <video> 1876 Nevada Silver Mine - Huge Stopes - Long Ladders Description: In this video, we explore a Nevada silver mine that was discovered in 1876. Julie sits this one out as she is still recovering from foot surgery. I am joined by a fellow mine exploring enthusiast who has been in this one before. This silver mine also produced smaller amounts of copper, lead, and zinc. It was worked through the 1880s, yielding an average of about 10 tons of ore per day. The ore carried native silver in flakes, yielding about $40 per ton and sometimes up to $2000 per ton. Late in the 1880s, production declined, and in 1893, the mine fell silent. In 1906-1907 and again in 1912-1914, there were short periods of renewed activity. There are some very large stopes here left behind where massive amounts of ore was removed. The stopes are mostly unsupported, leaving huge open rooms. There is also an unusual large elevated wooden platform with ladders that go deep into the mine. There is also a long free-standing ladder that we check out to see where it goes. We hope you enjoy the video. Special thanks to Herschel for joining us on this day. He also took some of the photos and video, including the thumbnail photo. Here is another video we think you might enjoy: https://youtu.be/BzRW11jEFsQ </video> <video> Some Digging Required To Enter This Hidden Copper/Silver Mine ⛏️💰 Description: We stumbled upon this football sized opening with a cool wind powered ventilating device nearby and decided to grab our shovel and dig it out. It was indeed a mine portal that opened to an interesting drift. This polymetallic replacement deposit was first discovered in the late 1800s and worked from 1904 to 1907. It was worked again from 1918 to 1921. The metals mined here were copper, zinc, silver, lead, and gold. The deposit was hosted in limestone. We found a nice drift with some interesting artifacts that made the digging worth our time. The wind powered ventilating device was one of a kind and a great example of miners ingenuity. We hope that you enjoy the video and thank you for watching. Here is a link to our favorite mines playlist, where you will find some great mine explores. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBirOpgY-NV_n393pa-mL4RNYBMYUs04f&si=hFxer26vSwxxVnL2 </video> <video> California Gold - Multi Level - Winze Shaft - Tons Of Graffiti - Jeep And Hike Description: For this abandoned mine exploration, we take a Jeep ride on a 4x4 trail, as far as we could comfortably go, then we hiked the rest of the way to the Treasury Mine. Once at the mine, we find a collapsed ore bin and trestle, plus a partially eroded portal. There was a good amount of nice-looking vein material near the portal that never got hauled off to mill. Once inside the portal, we made our way through some stopes, and further on, we found loads of miners graffiti lining the walls of the drift. We also found a winze shaft with a ladder system, which I used to climb down to a lower drift level. After I explored the lower level, we finished the exploration by checking out a crosscut, which we passed by on the way in. This was a gold mine, and judging from the graffiti, it was last worked in the late 1930s. All in all, it was a very fun explore, and we hope you enjoy the video. Do you like wooden ore cars? Check out this video: https://youtu.be/30h4akBUZ_c </video> <video> What Do 500 Miners Leave Behind? Roping Down To The 500 Foot Level (part 2 of 3) Description: We spotted this shaft during our initial exploration of this mine and decided that we had to know what lies below. We returned with our climbing gear and ropes to try to tackle this beast. It's a dangerous inclined shaft due to it being wet, muddy, slippery, and containing a lot of loose rocks and debris. Here is some information on the mine: What a treat it was for us to explore this private mine camp and some of the 13 miles of underground workings. What's left behind is pretty amazing. This is primarily a silver and copper mine that was first discovered in the 1860s. It was worked for 100 years before it finally shut down. At one time, there were as many as 500 miners working here. The nearby town that sprung up four miles away included five stores, eight saloons, two hotels, restaurants, three stables, a lodging house, butcher and barber shops, a blacksmith, and a post office. In 1872, a furnace was built in the town to treat silver ore from the mine. In 1880, a five stamp mill was built there. At the mine site, there is a 1000' deep shaft, covered trestle, intact hoist room, assayers office, three huge air compressors, tool shop, auto shop, change room, and showers. There are also several small houses and a school here. In 1914, an aerial tram was built to haul ore over the top of the mountain, where it was taken by narrow gauge railroad to be processed. We will make a return trip soon to try to access the 200 level and the winze shaft seen in part 1 of this series. Thanks to Herschel for helping out on this adventure. We hope you enjoy the video! Here is the link to part 1 of this 3 part video series. https://youtu.be/GB90HzOKETI Here is the link to part 3 of this 3 part video series. https://youtu.be/WaJsYV8RdiI </video> <video> 5 Levels Of Cool Stuff In This Mine - Ore Cars - Skip Car - Spectacular Ladder System Description: This 5 level abandoned California gold mine has a great hoist and hoist room that's still intact despite a major fire that occurred here in the 1950s. There is a maze like ladder system that weaves through very steep, nearly vertical stopes 500 feet to the bottom of the mine. We entered the mine to find an explosives room near the portal. We found several artifacts and a few more rooms on our way to a major junction where there were huge wooden ore chutes entering the haulage adit. There are two ladder systems that were used by the miners to access the lower levels of the mine. One ladder system going down the main shaft is burned and broken. The emergency ladder system starts through a small opening in the haulage adit and winds its way down through the incredible stopes all the way to the bottom of the mine. The main shaft is very steeply angled and also has a skip track and manway that starts on the main level at the hoist and goes all the way down to level 6. We saw stations on the main shaft at each drift level as we looked for the skip car. At level 5, we found two beautiful ore cars that were still able to roll on the track. About 80 feet below the 5th level, there is water, and the whole lowest level of the mine is flooded. Near the end of the explore, as we came back up to level 2, we finally found the skip car. We also found a mummified ring tailed cat on level 2. This is a re-edited version of a previously released two part video. Thanks for watching, and we hope you enjoyed this mine explore! Here is a link to another video we think you will enjoy: https://youtu.be/2IN0eSqc96w </video> <video> 10 Ore Cars - 2 Mucking Machines - Hoist Room - Skip Car - Cage - Square Sets - Slusher - Dynamite Description: This talc mine has more equipment underground than any other mine that we have seen. This is a very dangerous mine to be in due to the unstable and brittle nature of talc. There is also a massive cave-in that has taken place recently, making access to the lowest part of the mine all but impossible. There are 10 ore cars, 2 Eimco 12B mucking machines, a fully intact hoist room, an elevator, (which in mining terms is called a cage) a beautiful skip car still in place with the corresponding hoist, a double drum slusher winch with the drag bucket, numerous sticks of dynamite randomly laying around and some beautiful square-set timbering. All this is scattered throughout this six level talc mine. This mine is so intact that it looks like the miners could have just left last week. It's a very challenging mine to explore with numerous ladders that are necessary to climb to access all the different levels. This video is the culmination of five different trips to the mine spanning three years that Julie and I made, the last one being accompanied by a few of our other mine exploring friends. Much of this video footage has been released before but never in a single video compilation. We hope you enjoy the video of this extraordinary mine! Thanks to Ken and Kenny from Mine Adventures channel. Here is a link to their YT channel: https://youtube.com/@mineadventures7938?si=AGJO5DQ4ulLk6yti Thanks also to Chillis from Chillis Lives channel. Here is a link to his YT channel: https://youtube.com/@chillislives?si=Frsm38UpipUEYJEE Here is another video that we think you may enjoy: https://youtu.be/BzRW11jEFsQ </video> <video> What Do 500 Miners Leave Behind? Exploring The 200 Level and Winze (part 3 of 3) Description: In this video, we explore the 200 level off of the inclined shaft that we were unable to access in the previous visit here. We made a ladder that allowed us to climb up to the drift level to see what was there. After exploring the 200 level, we made the long hike undergound to the winze shaft. Once there, we roped in and went down the slippery winze to see what was there. Here is some information on the mine: What a treat it was for us to explore this private mine camp and some of the 13 miles of underground workings. What's left behind is pretty amazing. This is primarily a silver and copper mine that was first discovered in the 1860s. It was worked for 100 years before it finally shut down. At one time, there were as many as 500 miners working here. The nearby town that sprung up four miles away included five stores, eight saloons, two hotels, restaurants, three stables, a lodging house, butcher and barber shops, a blacksmith, and a post office. In 1872, a furnace was built in the town to treat silver ore from the mine. In 1880, a five stamp mill was built there.At the mine site, there is a 1000' deep shaft, covered trestle, intact hoist room, assayers office, three huge air compressors, tool shop, auto shop, change room, and showers. There are also several small houses and a school here.In 1914, an aerial tram was built to haul ore over the top of the mountain, where it was taken by narrow gauge railroad to be processed. We will make a return trip soon to try to access some of the lower levels that are here.Thanks to Herschel for helping out on this adventure. We hope you enjoy the video! Here is the link to part 1 of this 3 part series: https://youtu.be/GB90HzOKETI Here is a link to part 2 of this 3 part series. https://youtu.be/nZiPbPw45MM </video> <video> Early 1900s Copper Mine and Mill In Nevada - Deep Shaft - Antique Lantern - Colorful Minerals Description: This rich copper bearing mineral vein is spectacular to see. The deep shaft here follows the vein down vertically a long way. During the years 1915 and 1916, the mine and mill were actively mining and processing copper ore, and in 1943, tungsten was mined here for the war effort. We descend down the shaft looking for drift levels and find a couple of interesting artifacts. We also explored the mill ruins and found several large pieces of equipment that were used there. We hope you enjoy this mine exploration of the Bataan Mine and Mill. </video>

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Description

Hello and welcome to our channel. We travel the southwest U.S. to find cool places to explore. We have explored over 2000 mines and it is our main focus, but we also make videos of hiking/climbing, 'how to' instructional advice, and live music.
The videos are organized into playlists, so please click the playlist tab on our homepage for easy navigation of our channel.
We would love to have you as a subscriber, and love hearing from you, so please subscribe and leave a comment for us.
Thanks, Tom and Julie
WARNING: Entering abandoned mines is not safe. Mine names and locations may not be correct, and workings depicted may not actually exist the way they are presented.
The videos on this channel are for entertainment purposes only.

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