Thursday, October 3, 2013

Old Ghost Town Tunnel

 Before Jennie went back to college, she wanted to do some exploring.  I remembered a spot that we had been to when she was about 3 years old.  It's about 16 miles from our house up in the Bradshaw Mountains.  An old railroad mine tunnel.


 She didn't remember going there so we headed out with me thinking it would be a piece of cake to find.  But it wasn't.  I knew what dirt road to take and kept thinking any time now, it should be around this bend.  As we went further into the woods I didn't recognize all the cabins that had been built.  20 years of progress in the woods.  We backtracked and at every indent by the mountains, we would get out to look for the opening.  Finally after climbing up a little hill, behind some trees and over a landslide....there it was.



 It's a hidden gem of history with graffiti and remnants of a campfire.



 During the late 1800's gold was discovered in the Bradshaw Mountains.  The tunnel was constructed in the mining era of 1902 and is 200 feet in length.  The Prescott-Crown King Railroad (No longer in existence)  used this tunnel to transport ore.


When I was here 20 years ago, you could walk through.  Now you have to climb fallen rock to the other end.


 Luckily I brought my camera which I used as more of a flashlight.  It was dark and scary.


This is the entrance from the road.  A secret hidden mining ghost town tunnel.  I challenge my kids to find it in another 20 years.



Nothing more beautiful to me than adventuring in the woods.

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