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In fourth grade, we learned about the 49ers and how they flocked to California to find gold. I went to a private school where I grew up with the same kids since preschool. I was usually bored by history but my fourth grade teacher really cared about it and made it interesting. I don't remember her name but I can still see her face. We learned about the California Gold Rush. I didn't care about the gold. I didn't care about the fortunes made and lost. I saw a black and white photo of miners standing next to a long sluice run. I wanted to know how that worked. I'm not sure if I asked, but the yearn to know stayed with me for many years. This was 1996-1997.
It was something like this photo
Sometime around 2008, I found a documentary series on Youtube about placer mining. I watched the 4 episodes and noticed the sluice runs and processing of the period. I still enjoyed it but didn't care much for the gold they found, but rather about the way people mined for gold.
Gold Rush started in 2010 and I watched every episode because I liked watching the machines move dirt and the wash plants process the material. I didn't really care about the gold they found.
In 2015, we decided to buy a truck. I wanted the new Tacoma that would come out in 2016. During the search for the truck we wanted, I found the camping board on the Tacoma World forum. I saw a photo report of a trip to some desert region. There was one photo of a 'mine' somewhere in the desert. I immediately wanted to know what an underground mine looked like and how it worked. I started researching locations, safety, and terminology of underground mines while waiting for our truck to be built. I was hooked before we even had a truck to go find mines in.
We bought our Tacoma in December 2015.
Bought my wife a quad. Went to Calico twice but couldn't find much to explore because most of the popular spots were blown up or sealed. I had no idea how coords worked then. Did a lot of 4x4 exploring rather than mine exploring during the first year.
We made the stupid decision to explore the El Pasos in July.... it was a bit hot, but the exploring got me into Bickel Camp and I got to see all the machinery and equipment for small mining operations. That was fun. Also walked through Burro Schmidt Tunnel with crappy flash lights and no helmets. I'm 6' and smacked my head near the end... this trip left me wanting more.
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It was something like this photo
Sometime around 2008, I found a documentary series on Youtube about placer mining. I watched the 4 episodes and noticed the sluice runs and processing of the period. I still enjoyed it but didn't care much for the gold they found, but rather about the way people mined for gold.
Gold Rush started in 2010 and I watched every episode because I liked watching the machines move dirt and the wash plants process the material. I didn't really care about the gold they found.
In 2015, we decided to buy a truck. I wanted the new Tacoma that would come out in 2016. During the search for the truck we wanted, I found the camping board on the Tacoma World forum. I saw a photo report of a trip to some desert region. There was one photo of a 'mine' somewhere in the desert. I immediately wanted to know what an underground mine looked like and how it worked. I started researching locations, safety, and terminology of underground mines while waiting for our truck to be built. I was hooked before we even had a truck to go find mines in.
We bought our Tacoma in December 2015.
Bought my wife a quad. Went to Calico twice but couldn't find much to explore because most of the popular spots were blown up or sealed. I had no idea how coords worked then. Did a lot of 4x4 exploring rather than mine exploring during the first year.
We made the stupid decision to explore the El Pasos in July.... it was a bit hot, but the exploring got me into Bickel Camp and I got to see all the machinery and equipment for small mining operations. That was fun. Also walked through Burro Schmidt Tunnel with crappy flash lights and no helmets. I'm 6' and smacked my head near the end... this trip left me wanting more.
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