The current owner of the mine gave us the tour and talked for about 2 hours about the history of the mine, how he came to own it, and how he operates it. It was very interesting. This tower is located on an adjacent mine and was built by a previous owner over a deep mineshaft.
There is a cable and pulley system on it for raising and lowering the elevator up and down the shaft.
As you can see, it was built from scrap iron salvaged from other machinery.
A close up of the actual elevator sitting on the boarded up shaft.
There were some open shafts leading to tunnels where bats live and are protected by these screens over the shafts.
The man who built the tower also drilled into the rock on top of this mountain and installed these rods which were connected to light bulbs that he thought would light up if aliens came into the valley.
The man on the right is the current owner of the mine who led the tour.
A gold nugget embedded in a rock.
Another gold nugget embedded in a rock.
One of the types of cactus that is common around here growing at the mine.
The remains of one of the two cabins at the mine.
The tour ended around 11:00 and we headed out on the trail ride.
We stopped along the trail for lunch and then passed this. It looks like maybe a mine entrance, but it was an outhouse.
We stopped at the Deere Run Resort, listed as a bed and breakfast on the trail map.
This is the Deere Run Resort.
The Deere Run Resort fire pit and golf course.
After a brief stay at the resort, we had a short drive to the end of the trail and headed home about 3:30. It was a fun day.
