Honerine Exploration 2.0

[Hawkeye-TP]

Hi All, I've done a lot of reading on here about the Honerine. I'm possibly heading out tomorrow afternoon for a little exploration and still have a few questions that I know the forum can help me with.

First: I've explored the main level of Honerine but hear on MU that there is a side passage by the ore cart that links to a stope with a strong air current. I somehow missed that. Also, in the back we found arrows pointing deeper into the mine and then up a shaft to higher levels. How do you access the upper levels that people have obviously come down through? We were up there on the hill above, a month ago, and found several vertical shafts and several slope shafts (that all ended collapsed). Tomorrow we are thinking of dropping one of the vertical shafts on the hill to try and access those upper levels. Can you point me in the correct direction as to which shaft would actually access the mine? We could spend hours climbing in and out of the wrong shafts, getting nowhere...If I can avoid that, I'd love to... I don't want to waste time hitting dead ends that have already been hit by explorers on this forum.


Second: do you know of any lower passages in the Honerine mine? The Etherington winze is supposed to end at the 600ft level, but do you know if there are other levels prior to the 600ft level? Was Jeremiah Ehterington correct in thinking that there is another level 50ft or so down just passed the bend in the winze?

Any info would be much appreciated!

[Kiel]

Love that first picture on the outside of the mine at night.

[Hawkeye-TP]

Thanks. I think that photo turned out pretty well.


So the trip was successful. I'll give you a quick write up. We started the adventure by dropping the Southport shaft one draw up from Honerine. This shaft doesn't drop far and is blown at the bottom. Why did they gate it and not just blow the whole darn thing?

We then drove up to the tailings pile above the Honerine entrance and poked around up there. We dropped one long shaft that deadended in a mound of pigeon poo deeper than I am tall. I thought the shaft smelled a little off on the way down! There were dead mice and very colorful dung-like beetles crawling through it. As soon as I touched down and started to sink in, I locked off my rope and quickly threw on my ascenders to get out of there. Man did it stink. On my way up I discovered the pigeons. They freaked out at my headlamp. I shielded myself as birds buffeted me and crashed into the walls. Some found their way up and out. Some went down. Two landed on a cross beam next to me, calmed down, and cooed at me all friendly and curious. I cursed at them and continued up and out.


We then entered the adit on the east edge of the tailings pile. I nicknamed it the Midget Mine. It had rails in the back and was a solidly worked mine, but for some reason most of the tunnels were very low. Too low, I'd say, for tall chaps like me. It had two large vertical shafts, one with a large winch beside it and a pipe going down it, and one that was wide, in hard rock, and had climbing anchors set in the wall at its top. There were a few other shafts that were small and or hard to get to. There were several raises or shafts going up. We explored to raises that dead ended after a good climb. In the back of the main adit there was also a scary looking chute full of rocks being held back by very rotten wood.

As you enter the mine, one of the first lefts you can make leads into a cool honeycombed drift area. It is marked with a red arrow with an N, I assume meaning north. Straight in you can see a big drop/shaft. Watch out! My buddy walked right to the edge before the ground shifted under him and we realized it was a false floor. The wood is rotted and the plywood-like floor bows and shifts. I'm glad the lightest member of our group was the one to discover it! We don't call him the guinea pig for nothing!

is it possible we finally discovered the access to the upper levels of Honerine? The anchored shaft awaits! Does anyone know if this Midget Mine is part of Honerine? Has anyone been in it recently...say since 2008?

[Kiel]

I know that most the easily accessible stuff has been shot out, not sure about the vertical shafts on that one. There are a lot of other mines that I though it connected to much lower. Maybe you will find the locomotive way down deep

[Stuart]

I haven't been in that mine in many years. The main level is pretty big, but I do remember the big stope with the arrows pointing up. It is entirely possible that that is a joke. Although I'm sure with the size of the mine and rumored connectivity of the upper levels there may very well be a way to get down that way. As for getting deeper into the mine I think we are all out of luck. The Etherington Winze from all accounts I have read is a mess and I highly doubt it still connects to the area of the famed "locomotive" in the Bauer tunnel. As always with any kind of vertical work and just plain old mine exploring BE SAFE.

Very awesome writeup on your trip, love the pictures!!

[lobster68w]

The Honerine connects with the Tip Top as well as the Galena King. I believe the Tip Top connection is on a much lower level than the main adit we all go in. The Galena King looks like it connects on multiple levels. The only spot I found that was promising was past that big shaft where JE fell down. Unfortunately, it's caved...

[Hawkeye-TP]

Yes, there is that beautiful portal, framed by timbers way at the back that is collapsed. It is disheartening. You know that tunnel goes somewhere! I plan on one more trip poking around when I get back in town in the fall. I want to see if I can't find any connections in the upper levels. Perhaps Stuart is right and those arrows are a joke. Or, I'm going to find a way they connect to that upper adit. Here's hoping!

[Brahmabull1018]

Hawkeye-

Do you have an update on this? Were you able to get back there yet?

[Hawkeye-TP]

I haven't gone back yet. But it is on the to do list this winter, for sure. The way things are gearing up, I am expecting a fun winter mining season!

[Dawn_CL]

The pictures doesnt load.

[Kiel]

works for me

[Dawn_CL]

hmmm, i dunno then.

[Hawkeye-TP]

False Floor

Here is a video of the false floor we found in "Midget Mine." Gave us a good scare. You really need to tread lightly and pay attention to what you are walking on. Terrible accidents can happen terribly quickly.

We now know this is officially the Tip Top mine, just above Honerine.