Nobody Explored This Abandoned Mine for 150 Years Until We Dug it Out!
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2022
- It FINALLY happened! We found and dug out an abandoned mine that had been eroded shut for 150 years. Inside we encountered oxygen deficient air, inclined shafts dropping to unknown depths, rubble-filled tunnels, and a possible ghost!
I met up again with Nick and Traci from the Miner49er UA-cam channel for a couple more explorations in the wilderness. One of the mines I had researched for this trip was supposed to have been a very extensive one with workings on multiple levels. After an arduous hike to reach the mine, we were dismayed to find the entrance totally eroded shut. Bummer! Being that the mine was last worked in the late 1800s, Mother Nature has had lots of time to slowly fill in the portal with soil and rocks from higher up on the steep hillside.
While we three sat outside the mine’s portal and took a break in the brutal sunshine, Nick and I looked at each other and realized that we were thinking the same thing: Let’s go move some rocks and see if we can gain entry! I knew this was going to be a longshot because I’ve attempted to dig out a few mines in previous years and have never been successful. Nick and I weren’t even sure where to begin digging without knowing exactly where the top of the tunnel arch was. So we blindly picked a spot that looked like it might be in the general area of where the tunnel was, and within five minutes of removing rocks and dirt with our hands, we made a small hole through which we could feel cold, musty air blowing out at us! Once we saw that, Nick retrieved his collapsible shovel from his backpack and we began digging more eagerly to open up the portal. An hour later we had made a hole big enough for us three to slide down the erosion pile and into the mine! It was thrilling knowing that nobody had been in this mine for 150 years and that we were the first ones to enter it and document it on video.
For those of you interested in the paranormal, I realized after I got home that I caught another strange light that appeared in a tunnel that I was filming. The scene starts at 10:11 in the video. At 10:33 as the clip is fading out, you can see what looks like a small white light that appears on top of the rubble pile next to the left hand wall as I’m looking down the tunnel. This is the second time a strange light like that has appeared in my footage while exploring abandoned mines. It’s probably just some kind of anomaly, but it sure is intriguing! Please let me know what you think.
I hope you enjoy this unique exploration of this pristine, undisturbed, historic mine that was devoid of the modern garbage, immature graffiti, and the other hallmarks left behind by other explorers in other mines.
**If your viewing device can handle it, be sure to watch this video in stunning, 4K resolution!
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SPECIAL NOTE:
While exploring this mine, Nick and Traci were able to access some areas both inside and outside the mine that I did not. To see Nick’s exciting video with footage of these additional areas, click here: • Unearthing a Sealed Ab...
Additionally, Nick uploads outstanding abandoned mine exploration videos EVERY Saturday, so if you haven’t already subscribed to his Miner49er UA-cam channel, you can do so by clicking here: / miner49er1
Thank you very much for supporting a fine fellow explorer of abandoned mines!
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#ExploringAbandonedMines
#AbandonedMines
#MineExploring
#UndergroundExploration
Quite frankly, this is the most fascinating and fun video I have seen on UA-cam in quite a while. Bravo and thanks!
Hey, John! Thank you very much for the great comment! Always nice to hear when a viewer is enjoying my videos and getting something out of them. Glad to have you following along here!
It’s crazy to think that the view you were looking at in the beginning of the video was almost the exact same thing the people that dug that mine saw!
if you are referring to the unmolested hillside, yes, that’s kind of what they saw before they started digging. Of course, the erosion pile would not have been there.
@@AbandonedMines11 but always be secure about visiting caves at midnight with a torch 😊
One of the best old mine videos on UA-cam.
We hope to get back there this summer and check out that lower level. Who knows what might be down there! Thank you for watching and commenting.
Thank you very much for this very impressive video, it was great that you managed to get the mine open as quickly as you did. As you rightly pointed out, the rock had impressive array of colours throughout the mine. I am sure that you felt it a great honour to be the first to traverse the mine since the last miner left it, we are certainly grateful that you shared this experience with us.
Thanks for the great comment, John! I appreciate your words. Glad you enjoyed the video.
Wow, what an incredible find. Being the first people in there in over 100 years is amazing. That wood looks to be in amazing condition, especially when compared to that rusted metal on the door.
Thanks for watching and commenting! We had a lot of fun doing this. It’s rare that one can dig out a mine and go into it like we did. It definitely ratchets up the risk and danger, though, due to the almost certain possibility of oxygen deficient air.
I wish I was still out there exploring those mines. That's amazing you found the entrance. First people in over a hundred years, I'm so jealous. Thanks for sharing Frank, stay safe.
Thanks for watching and commenting, John! Yes, Nick and I totally lucked out by choosing to dig exactly where the top of the tunnel arch met the downward sloping erosion pile underneath it. Had we started digging anywhere else, there would’ve been a lot more debris to remove. As it was, we found the sweet spot regarding that erosion pile and the tunnel arch. We both are really curious about what’s on the lower levels. If you watch Nick‘s video, he explored the drift tunnel beyond the inclined shaft while Traci and I waited. He found another inclined shaft with a ladder that went way down to a lower area. No doubt, though, that there is oxygen deficient air down at the bottom of those shafts. Now that the mine is open, maybe enough air will start to circulate in there over the next three or six months to help eliminate any oxygen deficient air that might be on lower levels. I wouldn’t get my hopes up, though.
@@AbandonedMines11 Are you planing to go check out the lower area? Do you think it is there where you could find some old artifacts like bottles, tools, perhaps something very interesting?
Wow how fantastic! So lucky that you and Nick dug where you did. That would be such an amazing thing to step into a mine that has no foot steps, that no one has been in in a century or so! Thank you for sharing! Safe exploring Frank!
Thanks for your comment! And thank you for taking time out of your day to watch the video - I appreciate it.
Re: the view at the start. As somebody from the UK, I always find it amazing at just how large the US and how a lot of it has absolutely nothing in it!
Very true. Lots of open space in the deserts and mountains of California, Arizona, Nevada, and other states.
That's what I love about America, so much land that's barely touched and explored.
If you appreciate the outdoors and exploring America is the best place for that.
Plus we have guns🇺🇸
Excellent comment! There sure is a lot of open space in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico. Lots of abandoned mines out there, too!
@@AbandonedMines11 yes those are all great places! I also love Idaho Montana and Wyoming, Alaska's just too cold for me lol but that's probably the king of empty areas lol
Great explore and well worth the time digging out the opening.
The colors are so vivid! Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the support.
What a treat--for you guys, and for us! Thanks for taking us along
Thank you for following along! I appreciate the interest and support.
Thank you, Frank for this new discovery of a long time sealed mine. It must be impressive to be the first to enter after a century! This mine seems small but is on three or more levels. It was even scary for the miners to go up or down these dark ladders. They were very brave and had such a rough life. Their past is still roaming in this tunnel.
Hello, Muriel! Glad you enjoyed the video! This was definitely like stepping into a time machine and going back 100 years or more. We were excited about it but disappointed that we weren’t able to access the lower levels because of bad air. Who knows what might be down there?
I only visit mines that contain Karst.
Sometimes what I'm inside exploring
discovers what miners had excavated
before they destroyed their mine entry.
Hello .......... ?
That was a crazy find! Hi Mr. and Mrs. Miner49er. Thanks for thanking us along. Stay safe.
Hello, Katherine! Nice hearing from you again! Thanks for checking out the video and for taking the time to comment.
Im in awe of you all for this, that was a lot of good luck and hard work .
Absolutely amazing and also slightly terrifying ! 🤩
Hi, Rachel! Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed the video.
Thank you all for taking me along
Certainly glad to have you following along, Jim! Thanks for the support and interest.
Hey Frank, glad to see your upload this morning! Is it me or have you been AWOL for a while? Anyway what a cool find and glad to see you, Nick and Traci exploring together...you all are my favs! Looking forward, as always, to the next awesome adventure! In the meantime, be safe out there and take care!
Not really AWOL. Just haven’t been posting on a consistent basis like I used to do. It seems in recent months I’ve been posting a few videos during the last week or ten days of the month. At any rate, it’s nice to see you here again, and thank you very much for your support! Yes, I always have a good time hooking up with Nick and Traci. I’m glad you support his videos, too.
Thank you for the lovely adventure
Thanks, Joshua! Thanks for taking the time to watch and comment.
I like the videos you do with Nick @miner49er, always good to have company when exploring a mine you are not familiar with. Must be a great feeling going into a mine which nobody has been infor 150 years. Awsome. ❤😊👍
Yeah, Nick is a great guy! His UA-cam channel is growing by leaps and bounds as we speak. I hope to meet up with him again soon. We need to return to this mine and check out the lower level now that it’s had over a year to air out.
@@AbandonedMines11 yes I enjoy watching his channel. Although my heart is in my mouth sometimes! He is very daring I will say to myself no don't go in there Nick & no don't walk across that old plank near a shaft & he does! Love his enthusiasm though.🥰☺️
I have been excited to see this! Thank you!~
Great! I love hearing that! Thank you very much for your interest and support.
This mine looks absolutely beautiful thx
Glad you like it! Thanks for letting me know. And thanks for spending some of your day here on my channel - I appreciate it.
Frank, you're the best! So good to see you again. Looking forward to new episodes! Thanks...
Glad to see you again here! Thank you for your support.
Thank you for the video! ☺♥
No problem! Thank you for stopping by and checking it out.
Beautiful. Thanks for the tour. Stay safe.
Thank you very much, Beverly!
Way to go Nick and Tracy for digging that one out. Wow the colors in there were beautiful. Looked like sulfides, cinnabar, lead and silver. It would be fun to see y'all go down to the lower levels. But you might want to wait a few days to let that mine air out.
I don’t know how long it would take for air to circulate down to those lower levels. That opening we made isn’t that big to begin with! We all are wondering what might be down there awaiting discovery.
The colors of the wall rock remind me of the Tintic Silver District. Spectacular video.
I’m not familiar with that particular district. Nick and I have to get back to this mine and go down that interior inclined shaft we found. I’m sure the intervening two years have been more than enough time for the mine to air out and get oxygen down into those lower levels. LOL Thank you for taking the time to watch and comment - I appreciate it.
Very unique to get into such an old sealed up mine. Thanks for sharing the adventure
It certainly was an experience, Scott! Thanks for taking some time out of your day to check out the video and to leave a comment. I appreciate it.
So glad you decided to make the switch with the camera...it's so much more beautiful! This was a fun one...more buried mines!
Thanks for your feedback! Glad you see an improvement in the video quality. I was way overdue for an upgrade.
my fishing buddy is 68, he told me his dad use to camp and fish all over with friends and explore old mines. They were camping out somewhere between vegas and calico ghost town, riding motorcycles and ran out of gas, while walking the bikes back, saw the remains of a very old camp. They saw a rope, old school yellow fiber rope, tied to a spike and going right into a hill. They went back weeks later out of curiosity to see if they could find anything cool. They got an old lantern, a tool box and pulled the rope, digging it clear and found the opening to a mine, not as big as this one but had the remains of a human. They went to the police and made a report but never heard anything. A different time on earth, the late 60's.
That is a great anecdote, Pharraoh! I loved it! Thanks for sharing it. Those kinds of stories are always very interesting and, as you pointed out, it definitely was a different time back in the 1960s and 1970s. Thanks for stopping by here today, and I hope you have a great holiday weekend!
Love it, keep up with the epic vids man and have a nice day.
Thank you for your support here. I appreciate it very much.
I can tell your new camera is working out. The pictures are definitely better. What a great find & how exciting this had to be. Thank you for taking me along with you. Another great video Frank! 👍👍Thank you! Thank you!👍👍👻🖤💙🖤💙☠🖤💙🖤💙👻
I appreciate your support throughout the years. Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed this video. This was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Your new camera is really showing us what you're seeing man. Very beautiful to see Creation at its prettiest. Very cool. Thanks a ton for sharing your adventure.
It was pretty colorful in this mine. Thank you for watching and commenting!
Awesome video Frank
Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for watching and commenting.
Always nice to see you guys back again. Wish I had the balls to do what you do.
Uncle Yar! Thanks for stopping by and checking out the video and leaving a comment! I sincerely appreciate it. Glad you’re able to follow along from the safety and comfort of your home as we go underground in some of these sketchy places.
That must have been quite the satisfying experience revealing the entrance! I noticed this mine was void of modern litter, that's a great find! You, Nick and Traci need to get back there one day after letting the mine "breathe" for a bit and try those ladders! Maybe the ghosts will be set free as well! Great video, Frank!
Thanks for the comment, Justin! We looked at those ladders pretty closely. Due to the wood being so old, it has shrunk and a lot of the nails that were holding the rungs on underneath had backed out of their holes that they were pounded into. The rungs were also not notched; they were just nailed to the side rails. If you check out Nick’s video - I put a link in the description - he went down the drift tunnel beyond that inclined shaft and found another inclined shaft going way down with ladders in it. He also got a good shot looking at the ladders that were going up into a higher area, too. Definitely cool being in a mine that had been sealed up for a century. It felt old in there.
@@AbandonedMines11 thanks for the update! It's not worth it if it's out of one's comfort zone or safety.
Thank you for this amazing, nice video. U are the best!!! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thanks for your comment! I appreciate your support and interest.
Glad to see you
Good to see you on here again, Abdullah! Thanks for stopping by.
The men who dug and chiseled that rock out by hand. It's mind blowing!
It certainly is! Those old-time miners certainly were a hard-working lot.
@@AbandonedMines11 no doubt. Tough as nails for sure
wow great vid Frank , what a mine to explore well done mate .
Thanks, Roy! Nick and I certainly lucked out on finding the sweet spot to start digging. Had we chose any other spot, it would’ve taken a lot longer and probably not have been fruitful at all. This was my first time being inside a mine that had been closed up for such a long time. Definitely was a great experience! If you get a chance, swing by Nick’s channel via the link in this video’s description and check out his video. He explored some areas of this mine that Traci and I did not go into. Thanks again for all the support over the years, Roy - I appreciate it.
Again, Frank, that new camera is awesome, love the colors inside the mine
Thanks for the feedback! I appreciate it. Glad to hear you are enjoying the videos and the improved video quality.
Now this is pretty amazing. Wish I could've joined you guys!
Thanks so much for your comment! It would’ve been nice having you along for the adventure. Maybe next time…
The before & after picture was crazy! That must've been so satisfying reopening that portal. Those colors are amazing too.
Nick and I couldn’t believe how lucky we got by finding the sweet spot to start digging. That was totally blind luck! Only took about an hour to make the hole big enough to get in. We plan on going back maybe in the spring once the mine has had a chance to get some air circulation in there. My O2 meter did go off when we were standing above that interior inclined shaft. Probably some oxygen deficient air down there. And when Nick went down one of the tunnels on the level we were on, he started to experience the effects of low oxygen.
Incredible! What a find Frank! So satisfying to uncover a forgotten, unmolested mine such as this one after who knows how many years. So cool, thank you for your continued dedication, definitely one of my new favorites!
Thanks for your support here! I appreciate it. Sounds like you enjoyed this video. Thanks for letting me know.
Nicely filmed! Great video collaboration.
Thank you very much, Jeremy!
nice work digging it back open! in our experience if there is a wind blowing out of the mine portal that means there is another entrance. just follow the air circulation. you should go back and drop the oxygen detector down the ladder shaft. sometimes the detectors just go off from the co2 in your breath causing the oxygen levels to fall around the detector even in large mines. hopefully you can find a way to rappel down into the mine some more, it would be very interesting to see some more of it!
I hear what you’re saying about the presence of airflow coming out of a portal indicating that there is another opening somewhere else on the hillside. However, I could swear that I have been in mines where there is air coming out of the portal but there was no other opening anywhere else. Sometimes I think the temperature difference between the inside air and the outside air causes that to happen. I like your idea of dropping an oxygen meter down the inclined shaft to see if it goes off. Mine did go off when we were standing at the top of the shaft, but I’m not sure exactly what was causing it. It’s never gone off simply because I’m breathing next to it. So I don’t know… If you check out Nick‘s video for which there is a link in this video’s description, he explored the drift tunnel beyond the inclined shaft and found another set of ladders going way down. When he was exploring that tunnel, he began to experience some effects of oxygen deficient air, and you can see it in his video. His oxygen meter did not go off, but it was apparent that he was getting into an area of the mine that was becoming oxygen deficient. He shows a lot more both inside and outside this mine than I did in my video here, so check it out and consider subscribing to his channel. He uploads an abandoned mine video every weekend. Thanks, guys, for your support! I see your channel has grown quite nicely over the last year or so from when I first discovered you. That’s awesome! Stay safe out there, too!
“We determined the 150 year old ladder was unsafe to use” thank goodness 😂.
Would have loved to see what was down there but not worth the risk
What you don’t see in the video is that when I was standing at the top of that ladder, my oxygen meter went off. We believe there most likely is oxygen deficient air at the bottom of that ladder, and some of it was coming up to where we were standing. Being that the mine was closed up for so long, it needs to air out and get some circulation in there. We might go back in the spring and carefully descend that ladder on a rope to see what might be down there.
Very cool find!!!
We definitely got lucky in picking the right spot to start digging. We plan on returning to this mine to descend that inclined shaft that we found inside the mine and check out the lower workings. Should be pretty substantial from what we have seen so far….
Another great vid
Thanks for the comment, Gene! Glad you enjoyed the video. More coming soon!
Good content, i like greeting from chile
Hello, Chile! Thanks for checking in!
Wow, that rock has lots of beautiful color.
Right on, Jacob! Thank you very much for the comment. And thanks for taking time out of your day to check out the video.
Well now. I know how lucky you were to find that adit. Nice job digging! Also, just found you guys. Nice explore and edit. Peace out.
El Magnifico!
Hey, El Magnifico! Thank you for taking the time to watch and comment! Glad you found our UA-cam channels! Stay tuned for lots more exciting underground content!
Amazing Video 👍🏽
Glad you liked it! Thank you very much for taking the time to watch and comment.
Hello Frank
you got lucky to find the right Spot to dig.
A very colourfull mine. I hope you return with some rope to explore the lower workings .
Thank you for your work and the effords to get there and bring the pictures to us .
Take care have a good weekend and a nice New week.
Greetings Form Germany
Yours Frank Galetzka
Thanks, Frank! I appreciate your words. Yes, definitely a colorful mine. We can only wonder what might be on the lower levels. Once the mine has a chance to get some air circulated in there, maybe we will go back and check those out. But it’s not a high priority at this moment. Thanks again for all of your support and interest on my channel. Much appreciated!
Wow cool find !
Thanks, Dave!
Love the door!
Yes, that door was quite an unexpected surprise once we got through the blockage. I wonder who the person was who saw it last?
Good morning, my names Jack. I live in a very rural part of Montana, I recently found a few old mine shafts in the side of a mountain where I hunt in confederate gulch, if you look up the history of confederate gulch it’s very very interesting and it’s a really hard spot to get to so I doubt anyone has been up there in a very long time. If your interested in exploring or want more videos of the mines and abandon cabins I’ve found please reach out!
Awesome video. Wish i could'a been there.
Nick and I were just talking about this mine on our most recent trip not too long ago. We need to go back to it this summer and check out that lower level. It’s been almost 2 years since we initially dug this out. Thanks for watching and commenting!
wow , but that sure was amazing to go into that mine with very little to see at the start, great find....
Thanks, Ruth! Yes, that nondescript erosion pile certainly belies the extensive, massive mine behind it! Thank you very much for spending some time here on my channel.
Brilliant
Thank you!
Very cool! Wish I could have joined. Greetings from the Netherlands.
Hello, Lisanne from the Netherlands! Thanks for checking in from all the way over there. Glad to have you following along. Thanks for the support!
pretty amazing colors
I agree! Thank you so much for checking out the video. I appreciate it!
Now that is some serious effort on your guys' part! Crazy that nobody has been in there in over a century! I DID see the glowing white down the adit! Some Marfa Lights going on inside an abandoned mine!
Thanks for the comment, Justin! Yes, that white light basically turns on and stays on at the very end of that clip. So strange…. We hope to go back and access that lower area.
pretty cool to see this like i bet it was for you being in it .
Never had successfully dug out a mine before, so this was pretty cool. I always wondered what the oxygen level would be like in a mine that had been sealed up like that for a century. Sure enough, my oxygen meter sounded an alarm as we were standing at the top of that interior inclined shaft and looking down it. If you watch Nick‘s video, he went and explored the drift tunnel beyond that shaft and experienced some minor effects of low oxygen air. That’s why we decided NOT to attempt to go down any of the inclined shafts that we found in the mine. There was probably no oxygen at the bottom of those shafts whatsoever!
BiG Like 500💫 Heck Yeahhh!!! Great Find Indeed.. Wow Now Them Colors Down There is The Wonka Wonka Mine of All The Minerals of Candy Land 👋🤠 Way Cool Brother Best Find I Say HeeHawww !!!!
Now that you mention Wonka, those mine tunnels did resemble the layers of an everlasting gobstopper with all of the different colors. Glad you enjoyed the video! Wish you could’ve been there to experience it firsthand. You would love it! LOL
@@AbandonedMines11 BadAs’ HeeHawww👋🤠💫
Absolutely beautiful surroundings. 1860 Time capsule action!!! If there is air, gotta have another entrance open to the outside. Watching to learn more...
Maybe we’ll get back there in the spring and descend that inclined ladder to the lower areas. Who knows what might be down there!
way cool find.
Thank you, Mark!
Nice was just watching the horton last night.
Nice!
Oh boy!
Very interesting geology there. What kinds of minerals were mind? And good to see your videos again. Take care.
Silver and gold were mined here. I wish I knew more about the underground geology than I do, but that’s how it goes. Thanks, Dana, for your comment and question!
Beautiful and amazing color in the drifts. I laughed when you said we are making progress digging, I didnt see you dig, LOL, I would like some proof, LOL. I am thinking if 1860, there would just be a wooden sliding handle and a hired gun outside, I dont think the hasp is that old, but I am not an expert by any means, just my thoughts. There is a large mine near the 40 that I think we can dig out an opening, are your friends up for digging, you and me can do the filming. 😁 but in all seriousness, I think it's a good one to dig open
Glad you appreciated the colors in the drifts. Definitely was an unusual place in that regard. Thanks for the comment!
Shame you couldnt explore that decline!
Thanks for sharing 🇨🇦
Once the mine has had a chance to air out and get some air circulating in there, we may go back and cautiously check out the lower areas as long as our oxygen meters don’t start going off. Thanks for your comment, Paul!
This is remarkable , 150 yrs later ! Visitors ! Just amazing !
Sounds like you enjoyed the video, Glenn! Thank you for checking in and for supporting the channel. I appreciate it.
@@AbandonedMines11 all your hard work , just to get there & go in the cave was worth it !
Sure it was big at one time !
The colors you mentioned are caused by hydrothermal alteration. Super hot solutions moving thru the rocks and depositing minerals.
Thanks for the geological information, Lawrence! I appreciate it. Happy new year!
Lots of cinnabar and potential silver, maybe some gold. Nice find!
Thanks for your comment, Stephen.
Good afternoon from Southeast South Dakota
Hello! Thanks for stopping by. Always appreciate your support.
Congrats on the successful Breach Frank . Seeing that reminds me i need to go back and try again at that one mine we attempted for 2 day lol ,excellent video as always ill be looking forward to more
Thanks, Jeff! This was my first time successfully getting inside a sealed up mine. You do need an oxygen meter, that’s for sure! Mine went off as we were standing above that inclined shaft. Nick and I agreed that there most likely is dangerous, oxygen-deficient air at the bottom of those ladders.
@@AbandonedMines11 you’re welcome Frank !! No doubt about the air in the shaft guaranteed it’s bad , I’d let it air out for at least 30 days before I would attempt a descent .
We examined the ladder in that first shaft, and you can see in the video where the nails on the rungs had backed out of the holes that they were pounded into because the wood is so old and dried out. Also, those rungs were not notched which makes them even more unsafe. I think the only way to get down there would be to have a rope and harness just in case the ladder would fail. If you watch Nick‘s video for which there is a link in this video’s description, he went past the inclined shaft and down a lengthy drift tunnel and found another ladder system going downward. Looks like there are substantial lower workings!
@@AbandonedMines11 nice !!! I’ll check his vid out
CONGRADULATIONS!!!!
That was by far the best video quality I have ever seen on your channel. You changed something, camera, lighting, editing or all, but whatever you did it sure worked. Fantastic colors and clarity this time. I know I have complained before about lack of color and almost like B/W video , but THIS will shut me up. GREAT JOB!!!!!
Thanks for the feedback! I’ve upgraded my camera and editing software not too long ago. I was way due for an upgrade. My old camera that I’ve been using for the last six years or so had gotten so much dust inside of it that it was seriously degrading the video quality. I also had to process and re-process the video files before I could upload them to UA-cam, and that caused a loss of clarity. I appreciate you hanging in there with me as I went through the upgrading. Glad you’re still here - and thank you for the support!
I love your videos bro
Thanks, man! I appreciate hearing that. It’s a lot of work to make these videos. Thanks for the support!
awesome x
Thanks for your comment, Christina!
☾❣👍🏻🔔The way you do the work gracefully - I am very proud of you. Thanks for going through the trouble and it's worth it. I’ve never witnessed such awesome editing as this one. You have the absolute power to rise above any situation or struggle and transform yourself into the strongest and most beautiful version of yourself ever. The secret to happiness is doing what you love and learning to love what you have to do to get it. Congratulations and best of luck for your promising future. Keep doing the best work. Great job, you are amazing, you are important, you are special, you are unique, and you are valuable! Never give up, go ahead, fight for your dreams, everything will get better for you, I wish you good luck. I truly love your channel. You have my full supportt 🎁
Thank you very much for your kind words.
Wow the colors of the rocks were stunning! Wonder what may have been in the lower levels. I wouldn't trust those ladders either though lol. Thank you again for a great video.
Thanks for your comment, Phil! Yes, lots of interesting underground geology in this one. We three are curious about what’s down those inclined ladders.
@@AbandonedMines11 are you planning on a return with ropes etc so you can explore down the ladder?
We hope to this coming spring or summer.
Nice find! I know the feeling digging into one! Wild! Did y’all ever return and go down the ladder?
Not yet! We hope to do that later this spring or early summer. Thanks, man, for checking out the video and commenting!
Looks interesting exploring a mine that hasn’t been visited for a long time, are you gonna reseal the entrance when your done?
We did not seal it.
Hope you gave that fella some of Frank's desert grub ,that was a fair bit of digging. When I dug open similar we used to leave a branch half in half out so if it goes again you can always find it, that incline winze is a must for a further trip.👍
Thanks, Barry, for the comment! Yes, I could’ve used some homemade funnel cakes after slithering out of that mine. It certainly is intriguing to wonder what might be down the inclined shaft. Check out Nick’s video (link is in this video’s description) because he explored another drift tunnel that Traci and I did not. He found another ladder system going down and began to experience some mild symptoms of bad air while in that drift.
@@AbandonedMines11 i did just that Frank, after the crosscut the drifts showed the powerful nature of the load , I'm not surprised they sunk on the load,nothing really mineable on the drift, so they sunk down, it was a pleasure to put a face to your voice Frank, keep em coming!
Hopefully you give it sometime let it breath and head down that decline! Great explore!
That would be a plan! But I don’t know how long it would take for the lower levels to become safe to go into. They may never get enough air down there.
It sounds like this mine would've been in operation during the Civil War. That's neat.
Yes, most definitely! That kind of puts it in a historical perspective, doesn’t it?
Crazy video.Very dangerous.Theres a reason they don't mine anymore there.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Hi Frank, what a cool explore, I loved all of the gorgeous colours in this one, I am thinking the reddish colour could either be very rich in Iron or it could possibly
be red Ochre, did Nick mention anything about it and what it could be ?? You made the right decision to not risk that ladder, it looked okay but you never know
It is more prudent to go down using a rope. Thank you for sharing, much love. xx ❤
Hey, Sue! Nice hearing from you again! I don’t recall Nick and I discussing what minerals might be in this mine. Nearly all of the mines in the area, though, were mined for silver and gold. Those ladders looked decent enough at first but upon closer inspection we noticed that many of the nails that were holding the rungs in place had backed out of the holes over the last century due to the wood drying out and shrinking. As you mentioned, having a rope and harness as a back-up is imperative with this particular mine. Did you see Nick’s video of this mine on his channel? I put a link to it in this video’s description. He went past this inclined shaft and found another one with ladders that went way down. One can only imagine what might be on those lower levels!
@@AbandonedMines11 I know right, I would love to know what's down there and how many levels there are.
Thanks again for taking us along. xx
Hopefully you return explore the lower levels since no one has in over hundred years maybe with new air flowing In the air will improve...and the original miners must have been ok ...going down there....hope you return before anyone else does and film it
The original miners undoubtedly had a ventilation system in place to keep the dust under control as well as to provide fresh air to the farther reaches of the mine. I think the air will improve over time. Thanks again for your comments, David!
Wow. Those layers of minerals are fascinating. It would almost be worth going back with proper lights and a good DLSR camera.
Thanks for the comment, Drew! This was my first time digging out an abandoned mine, so it was quite an experience. We three had a good time in this one. Really would like to get to the lower levels but the air is definitely oxygen deficient down there. Maybe once the mine has had a chance to get some fresh air in there over the next several months, a return trip might be in order.
The sense of the past and the present in contact at that place must be so strong. When you see that painted mark at the face, you have to wonder about the life of the man who drew it. How long did he live, does he have descendants alive today, did he make it rich? I can almost hear the echo of their tools on the rock. Would have loved to see you take ropes and climb down that shaft. The thought that other shafts may be covered with backfill is terrifying. Do you cover those shafts when you leave so animals don't fall in?
Thanks for your thoughts, Mat! Yes, that lone painted mark at the end of the tunnel was intriguing. Normally the miners would leave their names and dates and things like that, but there was nothing like that in this mine - at least not on the main level that we explored. No, we did not close up the portal after we exited the mine.
Interesting video, I'm not sure If I would be able to fit through that hole lol !
Thanks for the comment, Andrew! Nice hearing from you.
9:38 A circle with a dot is sometimes used as a symbol for gold.
Excellent! Thanks for sharing that information. I was not aware of that.
A very lucky find, too bad the air down under was bad, perhaps you can open the mine on a lower spot?
There was a portal lower on the mountain that we explored first, and I was under the impression that it would have connected to this upper mine that we dug out. However, we didn’t discern a connection but there still may be one between the lowest levels in the one we dug out and some of the upper levels that we couldn’t get to in the lower mine. It’s all very intriguing, to say the least! thanks for watching and commenting, Rolf!
with nobody in this mine for 150 years it must be a very exciting moment to step in as the first one after such a long time and more exciting what shall we find inside
No doubt! Thanks for taking the time to watch and comment!
This is so interesting! No signs of a survey, no plastic and no paint. Plenty of strap near the entrance. Will there be a part 2 with ropes?
I don’t know, William. My oxygen meter did go off while we were standing at the top of that inclined shaft. There is most likely severely oxygen-deficient air at the bottom of those ladders. It would be risky to go down there. If you watch Nick’s video, he explored the drift tunnel beyond that inclined shaft and seemed to be experiencing mild effects of low-oxygen air. His oxygen meter didn’t go off, however. I had always feared that a closed-up mine like the one in this video would have low oxygen levels at some point in it - especially on lower levels. Now that there is an opening at the portal, maybe enough air will start to circulate over the next few months to eliminate any low oxygen areas. But probably not.
@@AbandonedMines11 I have an old saying, "To Thine Own Ass Be True". That said, I'm just a fan and you are the explorer. I trust your instincts. You have been doing this a long time. You are the first mine explorer I started watching around ten years ago. Thanks for so many interesting videos.
Great video! Any speculation about what the carbide marking was referencing?
I have no idea! I believe that was the only carbide graffiti we saw in the mine. If I had to guess, maybe it was marking where to drill the next blasting hole. I don’t think the miners did that, though. It is a small mystery! Of course, there could be more graffiti on the lower levels but we didn’t go down there due to oxygen-deficient air and sketchy ladders.
i had to stop watching i got claustrophobic , you all are awesome be safe out there
Thanks for your comment, Donnie!
Great history viewing there from our armchairs👌. I wonder if you can keep you text info on a little longer🙂. I have to replay those bits to read them properly without missing the important info? Just a thought👍.
Thanks for the feedback on the captions that appear in my videos. I try to strike a balance between having them on screen long enough to be read completely versus having them on screen too long that they become annoying. I think what I need to do is make the captions smaller. For example, if a caption contains essentially two phrases, I should make each phrase a separate sentence and then display each sentence by itself instead of all together at once. I’m still tweaking the captions! Thanks for letting me know that they sometimes aren’t on screen long enough for you. And thanks for the ongoing support here, too!
Great video.. if air is blowing out when you opened it.. Doesn't that imply there is another portal somewhere?
Yes, it could. However, I’ve been in some mines where there’s air coming out of the entrance but there was no other access point. That, I think, is caused by the difference in the temperatures outside the mine versus the temperature inside the mine.
Bravo!
I wonder if a thermal camera would have helped make this type of discovery easier, being that the cold air would be easy to detect. Just a thought.
I don’t know. We only noticed the cold air once we punched through. I don’t know if the cold air would have been detected by a thermal camera if the air wasn’t able to get outside and past the thick layer of dirt and rocks.
Gorgeous mine, shame the ladder and air were against you, as there seems to be quite a bit more of the mine absconded behind there, going by the back fill, quite a bit.
What i find really curious (mainly because i didn't notice any water lines or water formations) is the rusted track. Rust behaves differently depending on what kind of water content is around, that line looks like it was "submerged" in moisture for years if not decades. It reminded me of old H beams i pull out of rotten basement arches, all flaked and pastry like.
Either way, really cool exploration!
We definitely were wondering what might be down those ladders. If you watch Nick’s video, he found another ladder down another drift tunnel that went pretty far down to a lower area. Now that the mine is open, maybe some air circulation will get in there, but I highly doubt it would be enough to improve the air quality on those deep, lower levels. If I can remember correctly, the mine was somewhat damp and musty, so moisture is getting in there somehow. Perhaps the lower levels are flooded? I remember the dirt that we were digging out also seemed to be somewhat moist for being in a desert environment. Of course, there has been a lot of rain this monsoon season out in the deserts, so that may explain some of that. At any rate, I’m glad you enjoyed the video and thank you very much for your comment and thoughts.