Rappelling Down an Abandoned, Pre-Civil War Silver Mine in New Mexico
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ก.ย. 2024
- This abandoned mine was a challenging one to access and exit. We rappelled down a wide-open void 100 vertical feet down to the upper levels and stopes in this locally famous abandoned mine. Inside, we were able to hike down large stopes and underground caves to a depth of 300 vertical feet below the surface from our entry point!
This two-part series catalogues thousands of feet of underground workings that connect with natural caves. There is a particular cave named the "Crystal Cave" that was documented in the 1880s as "...so spectacular, it became an immediate public attraction and overnight sensation." This cave contained elaborate formations from chalcedony, calcite, calcium carbonate, and tinted with colors from silver, lead, and copper ores. The miners name the formations the "Silver Forest," "Cleveland, Grant, Garfield, and Arthur" (after U.S. Presidents), and the "Sleeping Lamb." We have yet to rediscover this cave (as it was destroyed during the mining process), and it is at a lower level that we have yet to reach.
Part 1 shares a point of interest on the surface, initial entry into the mine, the upper level with its stopes, and an intersection with a natural cave.
Part 2 will show a 450-foot-deep underground chasm with a decrepit wooden bridge crossing, some mysterious items that you don't usually see in mines, and lots of wulfenite!
Joining us once again on this adventure is @Zia Mountain Adventures, along with their friend (and now my new friend) Joe, a 10-year SAR volunteer with vast amounts of knowledge on rope work. Together, we take our underground abandoned mine exploring experiences to another level. We have hiked several miles underground, documenting this historic place, each one of us with a different perspective. I hope you enjoy our videos, and I encourage you to check out and subscribe to @ZiaMountainAdventures channel as well!
Inside of this mountain holds many mysteries and surprises- we hope to rediscover them and share them with you!
On a side note, entering this mine can be dangerous or deadly without the right equipment. Don't do this kind of thing without the proper knowledge, equipment, ability, or experience!
This abandoned mine exploring video is shot and presented in 4K and HDR. I recommend for your viewing experience to watch this video with a TV, monitor, or mobile device with a 4K/HDR compatible display. It really does make a difference!
WARNING: Abandoned Underground's videos are intended for entertainment purposes. No intention of training, education or desire to duplicate actions performed in these videos are suggested, implied, or inferred. Performing actions that expose one to risk without proper training, education, or experience are inherently dangerous and should not be done.
#abandonedmines
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Another great video! Yall are becoming one of my fav mine explore channels.
One critique, and this is just my personal preference. PLEASE do longer videos!! I guarantee that people who watch mine explore vids will watch videos that are an hour long!
I really appreciate that! I have done linger videos in the past (and still do [around 30 minutes] from time to time), and my metrics show that most of the viewers only watch about half of the video! Part 2 of this mine will definitely be longer. Thank you for the advice! I always appreciate feedback. Thank you for watching!
Awesome Guys. I cant wait to see the crystal caves! Regards from Ody Slim
Thank you very much! We can't wait to get to it!
Hi Justin, whoa they certainly got all they could in the mine, your name ant farm was very apt lol.
Thank you for sharing, much love. xx ❤
Hi Sue! For being in operation with a few idle times for nearly 100 years, I'd certainly hope they got what they came for, lol! The "ant farm" thing was what first came to mind when I first laid eyes on it. I was pleasantly surprised! Thanks for watching!
Another superb video! What did you mean when you said that one adit had a double barrier? Two bat gates in it? 1847 is pretty old! That barrier in the drainage adit was interesting with the circle cut-outs. Looked old-school. Some good colors in that mine like at 12:15 to 12:30. The “crystal cave” intersection sounds intriguing!
Thank you very much, Frank! The "double barrier" remark is towards a decrepit bat gate about 20 feet into the portal, then a cemented series of steel tubes at the portal. The cemented part was probably put in because of the shale at the portal crumbling. It was similar to the barrier at the drainage tunnel. I find it amazing that the miners drove a tunnel that long just for drainage! The colors were a nice sight! They were in what looks like a small cave that was intersected during mining operations. That "Crystal Cave" unfortunately was destroyed to get to the ore in the 1890s. We still plan to descend down to where it was located, hopefully to see some areas of it still intact, but that will be a monster rappelling operation. Getting down isn't so bad, but getting up is arduous! Thanks for watching, Frank! I'll shoot you an email.
@@ABANDONED_UNDERGROUND Now that you’ve mentioned about the steel tubes, I think I remember you sending me a picture of that a long time ago.
@@AbandonedMines11 you know, I think you're right!
I think you guys did awesome, I’m glad you chose to go into the unknown and I’m excited for the next one… also, full disclaimer I’m not a professional!
I'm so glad you came out! You may not be "professional," but certainly adept!
That wouldn’t be in the Grant county area would it IE Silver City New Mexico?
It is not. I've been to some places in Grant County!
That awesome silver was born on mining both my dad and grandfather retired from mining
Anyways y’all be careful and watch out for dirty air
@@Stuff_said_ I am friends with an active miner. It's a tough job!
@@Stuff_said_ always, thank you!
If it is pm me and I can tell u some more cool places
I appreciate that!
When you said that they minded into a natural cave system and silve I can think of a few mines
@@Stuff_said_ there are quite a few where there are replacement deposits.