GhostMiner

There is a MME Form 9 # and a contract #.

May 3 1936 I took first watch at the dig sight last night which was uneventful. I got some sleep while John took second watch. About an hour before daybreak I was woke up by the crack of a gunshot - and then a second and a third. I quickly pulled on my boots and grabbed my rifle and ran up there. We had set up an agreed upon place to hide out and watch from. When I got there John was gone. I could here something going on in the woods going up the mountain on the west side of the ravine. I cautiously walked in that direction with my rifle at the ready. John had thrashed his way about 50 feet up the mountain and stopped. There was a good moon and I could see his outline. I hollered out to him as he came back down. I asked him what was going on. At first he just shook his head as if to tell me not to ask. Then he told me the story. John said something big came walking down the canyon from the north. Bigger than a man. He said maybe nine feet tall or so. Then a second one appeared right behind the first one. John said he watch the two creatures for about five minutes as they started getting closer. John figured they knew he was there. He said they looked like huge apes. One of them started shaking a tree and grunting. That's when he let loose with three shots from his rifle. He said he didn't try to hit them but shot over their heads. John said the two creatures took off up the mountain faster than any man could climb that rough terrain. He was all fired up and talking fast. Seeing as it was almost daylight I said we ought to just get back to camp for breakfast. So that's what we did and we talked further on what happened. I've never gone in for this kind of stuff but I figure John to be very reliable and truthful. I couldn't say much about any of it because I wasn't there and eventually John settled down and we went about our work day. Up on the fault I showed John where we would work and we started to dig. After a few days of teaching John the process we plan to split up with one digging and hauling down buckets while one washes gravels. We were still in the good gravels all day but the digging was still hard as we moved big rock with bars and pick work. The two of us did good and brought down 125 buckets for the day. Tomorrow we will both work the tom and then maybe John will know the work better. I will want to do this a few times until John is ok with working alone and I am sure he won't lose any gold. Tonight we are going to have a good supper of hash and bread and drink some good whiskey. TO BE CONTINUED ......................

A note here : I'm getting ready to post another entry of the journal and part of it is controversial. These old mines are located in a remote area of the Sierra Nevada mts of California. It is in what is called a hot spot for certain sightings. I have talked with the Forest Service in this area about the subject. All I know is there have been multiple reports of certain things. I am in the must see to believe category. With that being said, the journal is the journal and contains the writings of Jed Stevens. I'll get the next entry posted soon.

You have to do anual filings by Sept each yr. If you don't you could lose it.

Another note here : I found out that Jed was working this fault line under the direction and advice of a very prominent geologist. He may have been a silent partner but i'm not sure because Jed never mentioned him in his journal. It would help to explain his success although no geologist could guarantee what he ended up finding. The gold numbers were being reported periodicly to the geologist and ended up in the Dept of Interior report as well as a small part of Jed's story. The rest comes directly from Jed himself and i'm most fortunate to have it.

In the Sierra Nevada mts of northern California.

There was a mining company north of that area back in 1965. They did some testing and there is a 282 page Dept of Interior report on the activities. That's is where I came across Jed's work. We have over 500 acres of claims in that area. We explore them and lease them out & sometimes do some mining as well. I had no idea about Jed until I read it. I went up the mountain using the old mapping and found his dig site. The road he made is nearly gone but we were able to get a skid steer on tracks up there. We had to knock down some small trees & brush along the way. I got ahold of a descendant of the mine president fro the 1960's. I was trying to find out more information. They are the ones who had the journal which I couldn't believe. It's actually in fairly good shape. They said they had no use for it so they gave it to me. Very nice people. As far as placer mining claims, you pay taxes on them & do the anual filings with the county they are in and the federal BLM agency. They are located on Forest Service land as most mining claims are. You own the mineral rights. If you want to use commercial equipment like excavators, dozers, trommels, etc you usually need to put in a Plan of Operation & post a reclamation bond. The claims are good until you sell them or abandon them. You just need to keep all paperwork current.

May 2 1936 My good friend John arrived at the claims today. I brought him up to date on what has gone on. I will teach John the mining skills needed as he has never worked for gold prior to now. We have also decided to share security watch at the dig site. This will help put my mind at rest. We will also divide the gold equally and each of us will be responsible for the security of his gold. John brought with him his trusty Colt revolver as well as his old Henry. We are now well armed in case of trouble. John helped me finish washing up the gravels from yesterday. We are both wearing big grins tonight. This was the heaviest gold weigh I have ever done anywhere. Good coarse gold and many small pieces fortified the weight of the pan. Out of those 65 buckets we made nearly half an ounce. I can hardly wait to dig those gravels tomorrow. It seems to me we have struck an area of raised country rock that may hold something special. Tonight I will stand first watch at the site and John will take the second. I am hoping we will not have any further troubles. TO BE CONTINUED .......................

Yes. That is Jed's first dig hole and it's the one posted in the journal. He did a lot of work up there as you'll find out. You aren't going to believe what he got out of that first hole but it won't be too long before we get there. I've done at toast to him with Irish whiskey right there.

May 1 1936 I drove up to the dig site and found nothing disturbed. I took a walk around the perimiter of the area and saw nothing out of the ordinary and went to work with my pick at loosening some heavy river rock. I dug out some loose gravel underneath one of the bigger stones. Before I put the material in the bucket I took a close look at it as it layed on the spade. To my surprise there were a number of pieces of gold about the size of a pencil eraser or a bit larger. I picked them out and put them in a small bottle in my pocket. I am definitely on to something here. The digging today was slower due to heavy rock that needed to be moved with my bar. I have no idea as to the depth and breadth of this gravel deposit. I am down close to 8 feet and digging to the wall of the pit adjacent to the fault. My strategy is to stay along this level and work the fault north and south as long as the pay stays good. My bucket count was down to 65 today but I have a good feeling about how the wash will come out. I am expecting John's arrival tomorrow. He is a good friend and can be trusted. He is a veteran of the Great War and can handle himself in the face of adversity. He knows hard work as well as I do. Tomorrow I will wash the gravels and get a weigh. TO BE CONTINUED ..............

On my first trip up to his old dig site I found this in a tree near the dig. Might it have been something Jed placed there to warn claim jumpers?

I will be posting a drawing of how Jed's dig site was layed out after I get a few more posts up so you'll have a better idea of what he was doing. I can tell you that there was an amazing amount of digging & gold found at this area in 1936. I am posting one picture for now of Jed's original hole as it looks today. It has collapsed and is flooded. It is in a remote area of the mountain and I have spent time working that area and camping there, sometimes alone and sometimes with part of my team. I always toast Jed with a cup of Irish whiskey when out there. I will post pictures of our team at the site later as well. It sits at the base of the northern area of the fault line. Very creepy to be camped up there alone at night. Lot's of black bear & a few lion.

APRIL 30 1936 I spent a good part of the night near the dig site and watching for hooligans. I saw none. I hiked up rifle in hand this morning and saw no evidence of trespassers. I don't think anyone could have known I was up there as I was well hidden unless my camp is being watched. I have not seen or heard anyone down here at the creek. I am uneasy and worried that I could be robbed. I have decided to go into town and contact my friend John about coming out to the claim. I will take my gold with me. I finished up the gravels. These were taken deeper and a bit into the hill. There was good rounded river rock amongst the smaller gravels. Very heavy black iron. My weighs continue to get heavier with 10 grams in the pan Upon contacting John by phone at town he is more than ready to come out here and should arrive in a day or so. It will be good relief to have a friend and mining partner at the claim. TO BE CONTINUED .................

April 29 1936 I think I have a problem, I leave no tools or buckets when I'm done for the day at the dig site. I do have a way to mark the dig area to let me know if anyone has been here besides me. When I arrived at the site this morning one of my marker indicators had been tripped and rock overturned. Someone is coming in here at night. Keeping an eye peeled I dug the good gravels deeper down. There seems to be no bottom to these as I am now at a depth of 7 feet or so. They continue to be easy work as well. I removed 90 buckets today and have the gravels in my holding container at the creek for processing. I am going back up to the dig before dark and see if I can catch the claim jumper. I'll bet it's the same two hooligans I ran off. TO BE CONTINUED ........................

By the way - this is not a post from the journal but some humor from a reader LOL.

After more of the journal is posted you will find out he has more to worry about than bears.

A movie would be great. I know i'd watch it!

APRIL 28 1936 Last night was peaceful with no critters in camp. After a good breakfast of meal and hot water cornbread I worked at washing the fault gravel. With a large grizzly and hopper over the head of the tom and good powerful water down the creek I was able to easily get all my work done and weighed well before dark. The gravels washed today were from a deeper area in the fault and proved out quite well. The weigh showed a little more than 7 grams with much of the gold course. Between my sampling efforts and my start at mining I am nearly to the one half ounce. I have it well hidden and will go back to the dig tomorrow. Tonight it will be hoover stew, corn bread, and whiskey. TO BE CONTINUED ................

APRIL 27 1936 I had a bear visit last night. I heard it moving around camp and I was able to dispatch it back into the woods using a whistle and a holler or two. I'd rather deal with a bear than a lion. I'd rather deal with a claim jumper in the middle of the night than a lion. I awoke to a better day than yesterday as the sun was coming up bright and clear. My mood was good and the gold was waiting for my shovel. The springs on my truck are not up to standard and I must be careful to avoid overloading buckets on the bed. Times are hard and I have no money to replace a broken spring. I feel that better times will come as the gold is found. The day was spent back in the good gravels which seem rich and easier to dig and not requiring much pick work. I will learn more after washing them tomorrow. I worked very hard with only a few breaks and hauled out a total of 95 buckets which was even better than yesterday. If they prove as rich as I think and they are plentiful I will see my ship come to port. TO BE CONTINUED ..............

APRIL 26 1936 Glory days may be nearing. I spent the day shoveling onto the grizzly. The water flowed fast down the tom and I made good time for a tired prospector. I haven't finished all the panning but have got most of it done. The weigh was heavy with over 5 grams and change so far. I think I am on to something now. If I can stay on those gravels my pay day will be a good one this week. There is no clue as to the depth and breadth of this paying material but I will do my best to follow it. I am on guard for claim jumpers as well. My rifle is always by my side. TO BE CONTINUED ................

Yes. We have over 500 acres of claims. Jed's dig site in on one of our northern ones up the mountain. I'll put more pictures up as we get into the journal. My company explores old placer mines in the Sierra Nevada Mts and then leases them out after proving the gold.

Jed didn't get it all. There's millions left. More on that later as well.

It's a true fault. I have all the geology reports. It runs north / south and the high side is anywhere from 60 ft to 100 ft above the bottom. When I read in the Dept of Interior report what this guy found I was amazed. I didn't know anything about Jed or his work until I stumbled on the report while doing research. Then I was able to get the journal from descendants of a mine president who worked near there in the 1960's. His family had it and gave it to me. As I put more entries out I will show pictures of his dig site as well as myself and a partner & our wives testing the ground. I'll just say for now that there are some good pockets still hiding there. Here is a picture of some gold we got at Jed's dig site while doing bucket samples with a recirculating sluice. The gold weighs out to 7 grams. For now I won't say how many buckets we ran because I don't want to ruin the journal story. There are areas of sizeable tonnage. I'll be posting lots of info on that later on.

APRIL 25 1936 The weather today was not fit for a dog. I may have been the only thing moving on the mountain. Cold and periods of heavy rain. I had a good dig which helped keep me warm. There was actually an area of loose gravel above country and I was able to take 90 buckets out. I am thinking this will be good pay. This area along the fault is like a treasure hunt. There may be some trapped gold waiting to be freed by my shovel. As my day is ending the rain is also diminishing. I've got my tent stove providing much needed comfort. I am just too tired to cook supper so dried beef and crackers will do me fine. I will end my day with a good cup of Irish. TO BE CONTINUED ....................