The Winkeye Mine peaked our interest after watching a YouTube and reading a blog post by Justin Ames aka The Velvet Rocket. One of Justin’s earlier explorations before…
On a sunny spring morning way back in 2015 we set out for our second trip to the Allegheny district. This time we had the Morning Glory stamp…
Poker Flat history begins with the gold rush when extreme quantities of gold were pulled from the district as much as $700,00 per month (period values). Major hydraulic…
The Mugwump Mine is a drift mine only yards outside the town of Forest City along Oregon Creek below American Flat. We visited the Mugwump on a rainy…
In May of 2017 on a 4×4 trip from Washington, CA to Alleghany we stopped along side Washington Road at Washington Creek to let the dog go pee. Within…
Jim Crow Creek has a long and extensive mining history reaching back to the 1860’s including numerous “Bonanza” claims. On a hot summer day in July 2017 we…
I have known about the Tuolumne Gold Dredge for years, driven past it, viewed the plaque on the side of the road and even caught a glimpse from…
The 16 to 1 Mine is one of the big boys on the block. Originally producing over one million ounces of gold the 16 to 1 is one…
The Gold Bug Park features an underground tour of the authentic hard rock mining shaft of “Gold Bug Mine”. The mine started in 1888 and now has a…
The Kentucky Mill is one of the best preserved stamp mills I have had the pleasure to visit. A large part of that preservation is its more modern…
The Empire Mine has been on our list to explore for several years. We finally got a chance to drop in for the mine yard tour. The Empire…
Not much history on the Ophir Mine is out there. It does appear on USGS Topo but that’s about it. The Ophir is best know by off roaders…
Established in 1859 the town was named after the Alleghany Tunnel mine which was named after the Alleghany River. The town was home to the miners of the…
The Monte De Oro Mine’s stamp mill still stands in the woods only yards from the busy paved highway south of Woodleaf, CA. The dense forest hides it…
The North Fork Mine was worked from 1875 to the 1930’s with a 13 degree shaft 1000′ long and a crosscut 1000′ long and 3 levels of inclines…
Forest City California now called “Forest, CA” is a real lost gem. The town was once a booming gold rush town. Now several authentic buildings remain such as…
Originally I had written off the Kennedy as a mine to tour because it lacked a stamp mill or underground tour. Then in Oct 2014 we decided to…
Malakoff Diggins is California’s largest hydraulic gold mine. There are no shafts (except for massive drain tunnels) because the gold was dug up by using high pressure water…
A mining settlement established in 1850. In 1852 a snow avalanche destroyed the camp and it was not resettled for several years. Today a few period buildings remain…
The mighty Plumbago Mine (aka lower Plumbago) and Stamp Mill has a long and rich history. Millions of dollars of high grade have been pulled from small pockets…
I added the Hiller Tunnel as a mine to visit because the 600 ft long tunnel is about as authentic as it gets. Though the tunnel is not…
A popular hiking destination located within Plumas-Eureka State Park. The Jamison was a top producer that once yielded a 52lb nugget. The mine site is also known as…
Not much is know about this 5 stamp mill other than the men pictured above restored it in 2012 to be placed in the Downieville Memorial Park along…
First settled in 1849 as “Nevada” but not incorporated until 1856 and the word “city” added in 1864. Today the town features many period buildings including hotels and…
The Mexican Mine has been on our to do list for a while. It wasn’t until our third trip to the area we were able to find it.…
The stamps at the Herman Mine still stand tall as of our visit in May 2016 despite several forest fires sweeping the steep ravine below Deadwood Ridge. There…
According to Mindat.org the Hambey operated from 1900 to 1916 and sooner. Workings include underground openings comprised of a vertical 300 foot shaft with levels at 200 feet (the…
The Discovery Dondero Mine was submitted by Sean Berry-Kelly who also took the photos. Sean writes; “This is now an abandoned mine, down a 2 mile access road…
Gwin Mine was posted by an anonymous author who wrote, “It was once the fostoria mine & then asenator bought it. It is really neat & is what…
With Lake Don Pedro water levels at an all time low in November 2014 and much ado in the press we set out down Highway 49 to take…
I found this mine searching USGS Historic Topo maps near La Grange. The maps show two shafts only a few minutes north of La Grange. Mindat.org indicates a…
We have driven by and through Chinese Camp several times over the years on our travels up and down Highway 49 but never stopped. But now with Lake…
The Tarantula Mine can only be seen when Lake Don Pedro is at extremely low levels as it was when we visited in November 2014. Part of the…
The Argonaut is the site of the worst gold mining disaster in California History. On August 27th, 1922, 47 immigrant miners became trapped at the 4,650 foot level…
Located right off old Highway 49 is what used to be the North Star Mine (according to USGS Topo) now owned by Sutter Gold Mining Inc.. Sutter Gold…
The Keystone Mine was a significant contributor to gold production in the Mother Lode producing $24,000,000 in gold to a depth of 2680′ from 1851 until it’s close…
The Newton is the only copper mine so far that we have visited and added to this site. It sits only yards off highway 88 so it was…
Its amazing that one of California’s most productive mines has faded into a barely visible steel structure among the trees and has even been used as a cell…
Opened as the Rancheria Mine in 1853 and renamed the South Mayflower Mine in 1893. In 1899 it became the Bunker Hill Consolidated Mine and operated until 1922…
Mining began in the 1850’s with an 8 stamp mill added in 1867. The mine reached a depth of 3030′ on incline and a drift connected to the…
I have never seen a headframe so twisted, mangled and distorted. I really wonder how this happened, to much load, wind, who knows? The claim is composed of…
Not much is known about the Ryan Mine except it has a 400′ deep shaft and produced 1700 tons of ore in 1940. We were able to drive…
Murphys was originally known as Murphys Camp, named after brothers John and Daniel who began placer mining in the area in 1848. Claims were limited to 8 sq/ft…
On Main Street in Georgetown is a restored stamp mill from the Slate Mountain Mine. The mine was a few miles south east of town. The mill was…
Lucky me! I was perusing local USGS Historic Topo’s and came across this awesome find. From Google Earth I could clearly see a mine shaft, a ball mill,…
I found this stamp mill searching the internet. No real information other than it is near Salado Creek off Hunt Rd near Milton, CA. You can see it…
This 5 stamp mill sits in a small roadside park across the street from the “Native Sons of the Golden West” building in Auburn. The park also has…
The old town of Coloma has some residents but is generally considered a ghost town. The only residents are museum/park workers and a few miners. Several original buildings…
Mariposa is a true California Gold Rush town without a doubt. It started as a mining camp 6 miles away near a small creek called Aqua Fria in…
This small California mining town was occupied by thousands of miners only shortly after the discovery of gold in the area. Dozens of banks, saloons, stores and hotels…
The owners have closed the mine tours. After a landslide at the mine they were no longer able to continue tours due to the insurance company. I believe…