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TECOPA, CALIFORNIA
February, 2009
February, 2009
We just returned from Tecopa, CA, and what an amazing trip it was. The mines were deep, intricate, and were in very good condition. Tecopa, CA is an old mining town located on the south east border of California, just outside Death Valley. We visited some of the larger mines, such as the War Eagle, Columbia, Gunsight, and Noonday mines. The California based Underground Explorers also joined us for the explorations. Many of us were expecting warm 40-75F weather, but it turned out to be quite cold and wet. We saw more rain in the 4 days we were there than I have in a long while.
We departed from Orem, UT bright and early Thursday morning. Everybody showed up prepared and ready for the 8 hour drive. Once all the gear and seats were situated, we started out long drive out. We almost made it to Vegas without issues, but one of the vehicles started having some massive drive train issues. We left the vehicle, along with its capable crew and passangers, to fix the vehicle while the rest of the caravan headed off to the mines to set up camp.
Tecopa is a tiny little town, mostly full of hippies, chinamen, retirees, and hot-springers. The actual mines are located about 10 minute south of town. We spent a good 2 hours searching the area looking for our War Eagle campsite; After determining we were nowhere near the area, we attempted a new area just south of where we were exploring, and happened do drive directly to the mine. Each of us set up as much of camp as we could while we waited for the other vehicle to finish repairs and join us.
While waiting for the other vehicles, we decided to head into the War Eagle to do some initial exploring. The main portion of the mine has been picked over pretty heavily. Signs of ‘The Mine’ filmcrew could be seen here and there in the main haulage tunnel. I poked around some supports and found a glass soda bottle from the 50’s-60s and some miners equipment I’ve never seen before. The rest of the crew eventually showed up a couple hours later. While setting up, I managed to convince Stu to take a peek inside the mine with me and see if we couldn’t find anything. On our return, Crystal scolded us like our mothers might have, and we repented of our ways by helping out with what we could
The next morning, Jeremiah and Robert took the Utah crew into the War Eagle to do some exploring, while Stu, Crystal, and I joined the Underground Explorers for some adventure in the Gunsight. Miah and Roberts team managed to find several levels, some excellent condition dynamite, and some intricate rock formations.
Inside the Gunsight, we shot out the entire main level and lower levels of the mine pretty quickly. Two sets of ladders led up to the upper working of the mine. The first ladder reached about 75’ up, while the second reached about 125’ up. At the 75’ level, Stu, Crystal, and a few UE members shot out the tunnels and stopes of the level they were on, while Mike S, some of his UE members, and I hit up the second level. The first explorers to the top immediately began scoping out the levels up top, and found some high quality dynamite, a miners pick and shovel, and a few other mining gears. We also found an exposed high grade galena vein along an igneous dike. There was also trace amounts of copper sulfides oxidized on the exposed rock. We extracted samples of ore for later examination.
By Saturday, many of us were already beginning to be extremely sore and tired from the strenuous activities. It happened that this day was going to be our hardest yet. While the UE explored the Noonday areas, MU decided to investigate the Columbia mine in search for ride-able ore carts on the lower levels. The journey down required three descends. The first was an inclined shaft with a ladder to support. This was fairly easy to navigate. The second descend was a 150’ ladder climb down a cribbed shaft. The ladder was tightly build against the cribbing, making it hard to obtain a strong arm hold. After passing each explorer through the shaft, we followed tunnels to the last descend. Only Stuart made it down to the bottom. This last ladder reached appx 200’, and required far more endurance and strength to reach the bottom than the other ladders did. With only a 150’ rope, we decided to take the safe route and call off the ore carts until we could explore with proper gear. The climb back out to the surface was a difficult one, and required patience and endurance.
After the Columbia, we decided to head into the northern War Eagle entrance, and try to make a connection to the haulage tunnel where we were camped. We shot out the entire main level of the mine, and turned to the lower levels of the mine. We came to a steep and loose rocked incline, where Robert and Miah took point. We waited for a report from them before continuing further down the incline. Once we heard word from them that a possible connection had been found, we all carefully ran down the incline. The bottom of the incline opened up into a fairly large stope, where an aluminum ladder had been placed to allow entrance up a wall to the levels of the haulage tunnel. In this tunnel we found some intense ‘Lincoln log’ like cribbing. We wove through this maze until we came out in the haulage tunnel of the War Eagle Mine. Fifteen minutes later, we excited the other side of the mountain. What an amazing feeling it is to enter one side of the mountain and exit the other.
To celebrate our successful explorations, we decided to head to the Tecopa Hot Springs Delights Resort to warm up and clean up. The water was amazing; just the perfect temperature. Some of us remembered swim suits, while those that did not were forced to enter in their underwear. The ladies did not seem to mind. After tainting the water with our mine bodies, we all returned to camp for our last nights sleep.
Overall, the February trip was a success. Everybody enjoyed themselves and had a great time. We made new friends, found new places, saw new things, and each of us learned a little more in regards to our mining history, and a more proper way to relive the lives of those who made the west what it is.
The entire photo gallery can be viewed here:
Photo Gallery
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