** Lost Gold At The Dead Man's Mine ** A Miners Journal **

[GhostMiner]

So much gold we might "Walk Like An Egyptian."

 

[GhostMiner]

1 hour ago, Bedrocker said:

Oh man Ghostminer. You really got the cliffhanger thing down pat lol.

Do you have photos to share with the readers?

I will look. I might have some from the ladder looking up on one of the levels in the shaft. 

[GhostMiner]

   Some of you readers may have wondered how I came up with my name GhostMiner. I have spent over 23 years of my life prospecting, mining, & exploring old gold mines in the northern Sierra Nevada mountains of California. Ghost mines you could call them I suppose. Sometimes I swear I can still hear the old timers working them. I've lived off grid on them with crews and also by myself. I've got so many interesting stories aside from the journal that someday I may write a book about it all. This all started when I quit my business I ran for yrs to chase a dream of gold. I knew nothing about prospecting or mining before 2002. I learned on the go with the help of some good people who were also chasing golden dreams. Not a good plan but somehow it worked out for me. I no longer have to work and am able to live off a nice retirement plan thanks to gold. I am thankful that my wife and love of my life was able to put up with all of this and my being gone for so much of the time. She did travel with me at times but mostly stayed at home to take care of things while I chased gold. Many of the areas I explored were dangerous and remote. Too dangerous for me to bring her. I've had some close calls including several bad falls that should have killed me. I've been shot at, robbed, and involved in a few all out brawls both on the mines and in bars. A crazy Humphrey Bogart life at times. But getting back to my nickname and how it started is coming up in the next entry of the journal today. I just thought I'd take a minute to explain it first. Also, I'd like to dedicate this song to my wife Lindy and thank her for sticking with me all these years. 

 

 

[GhostMiner]

   August 10   2002     Part Five     An Old Chest And A Poem

 

   Bill shined his light in as well and it quickly became evident this area was some kind of old storage room. The walls looked to be cedar. It was about fifteen by twenty feet in size and at the north wall was another five foot wooden door. We opened it to expose another tunnel heading straight north and inclining up the mountain. The dimensions were five by five by six just like the others. We could feel fresh air coming in from somewhere which meant ventilation of some sort.

   We took a good look around the big room. There wasn’t much of anything in there except some old gloves and rags. Then in the southeast corner we saw an old blanket that seemed to be covering something. We went over and uncovered an old wooden chest made of pine. There was a latch but no lock. I took a look at Bill and his hands were shaking a bit. Without saying a word he opened it up. The only thing in there was an old piece of yellowed paper with some words written on it. It looked to be a poem of some sort. Here is what was written.

 

                                                     THE GHOST MINER

 

   I dig a hole

   cover up my tracks

   far as I know

   I ain’t comin’ back

 

   A mystery

   they may never solve

   hidden gold

   from the motherlode

 

   Ghost Miner is 

   the name he’s called

   a thousand ounces

   in a casket culled

 

   The old Ghost Miner

   starin’ down a forty five

   out in the Sierra Nevada

   he didn’t survive

 

   The graveyard train

   rollin’ down the track

   will never bring

   that miner back

 

   The gold is gone

   sad and blue

   gone for good

   without no clue

 

   I looked at Bill and he was just staring at the paper with the flashlight illuminating it. What the hell was this supposed to mean?

 

[GhostMiner]

Something else to figure out here. Didn't Bill call those wrecked mine cars the Graveyard Train? 

 

[geof_junk]

GhostMiner my mate wants to get in on the DIG

[GhostMiner]

10 hours ago, geof_junk said:

GhostMiner my mate wants to get in on the DIG

I actually had a guy come all the way from Scotland to work with us back in 2019. Send him over.

[GhostMiner]

   August 10   2002     Part Six

 

   Bill didn’t say a word and we took the paper with us. We explored the north drift until it ended abruptly just 60 feet from the storage room. There was no sign of a quartz vein. The only thing left for us to do was take samples from the one vein we did find in the east tunnel. Then we went back up to the surface.

   Conner was asking us if we had found gold down there and I answered him that there was only one vein showing and we had brought up some samples from it. Bill seemed to be devastated. His dreams of finding quartz with streaks of gold through it had been dashed. 

   We hiked back down to camp. It was well into the afternoon and we fixed up some grub and discussed the day's events. I gave the note to Jacob and he shook his head saying something bad must have happened at that mine. Bill figured that one of the partners may have murdered the other and buried him in a casket loaded with 1000 ounces of gold. Perhaps he had to leave the area and couldn’t take all the gold so he hid the rest. As to why he had left a note we didn’t know. Maybe he had a morbid sense of humor. If there was a casket full of gold buried on the mountain where might it be? Jacob said probably not far from the mine they got it from. I agreed.

   I told Bill that we would find out this afternoon if the vein that was left was worth mining. I also consoled him by reminding him that he still had the lower mine with a good run of gold bearing quartz to work. Maybe it wasn’t loaded with two or three inch streaks of gold but it was still rich. It didn’t seem to help much.

   TO BE CONTINUED ................

 

[GhostMiner]

   August 10   2002     Part Seven

 

   We got our samples crushed up and panned out to see what gold was in them. The results were very poor. Jacob figures that’s why this vein was not mined but just abandoned in the east wall. This was nearly more than Bill could handle. It was as if the old miners had taunted him somehow. He had believed in the old stories. That trophy quartz sample he carried all these years may have indeed come from that mine but there was nothing remaining but a low grade vein now. He opened a bottle of whisky and began to get drunk.

   I turned to Jacob and asked him what we should do now. He said that Bill and Conor could work the lower drift mine that contained the gold rich quartz and that he and I would get back to work sampling the bottom of the mountain for any remaining gold in the gravels down there. He told Bill to buck up. I reminded Bill that I was giving him the opportunity to continue working our mine and he now had Conor to help him. He seemed to be coming around to the reality of the situation now.

   Conor was all for the idea of working with Bill. I figured the two of them could process enough gold out of that lower mine to make some decent money for themselves as well as Jacob and I. And who knows, maybe Jacob and I will get lucky and find ourselves a nice pocket somewhere down here.

   As it got dark Bill was still drinking whisky. He was drunk as hell and still rambling on about the rich ore that used to be in the Hidden Mine. Conor was also getting drunk and talking about trying to find a buried casket with 1000 ounces of gold. He asked his Uncle Jacob about it. Jacob told him that it would be a wild goose chase and there probably was no buried casket out here. Conor and Bill were starting to talk about hunting for it. I told them to do as they wished but it would likely be a waste of their time. 

   Along about 11:00 PM Bill went into his tent. He was so drunk he had to crawl. Conor wasn’t in much better shape and Jacob and I helped him into the camper. Jacob and I went back over to the campfire and did a little talking. Jacob said Bill and Conor were washing out their disappointment and would be ok tomorrow. I told him I was ok with trying to work the sparse gravels at this location and get a little more gold before the season ended. I asked Jacob what he thought about Bill and Conor looking for buried gold. He said they should give it a try and get it out of their systems. 

   Jacob turned in but I stayed up for a little longer to do some thinking. I poured a small cup of whisky and let the fire burn down. It was getting pretty cool now and I put on a flannel shirt. The stars were all out and all I could hear was the creek running slow and calm. It had been a hell of a day. Actually, a hell of a Summer so far. I was starting to look forward to heading back home in the Fall. 

   It was close to midnight and I was tired and ready for bed. I made sure the fire was out and covered it with dirt. As I got up to head back to my camper I thought I heard something. I stopped and listened. Yes, there were a couple of people with flashlights heading east along the creek towards camp. I saw two lights bobbing around and getting closer. My fire was out and our camp was dark except for a small light that was on in Jacob's camper. Who would be walking around out here this late at night?

   TO BE CONTINUED ..................

[GhostMiner]

   August 10   2002     Part Eight     Gunshots After Midnight

 

   I thought about trying to wake Jacob but decided against it. Our other two crew members were dead drunk and out cold. I didn’t like being in this situation and realized it could be dangerous or possibly nothing at all. I did have my semi auto handgun on me with an extra magazine on the holster. 

   I got situated in a dark place against some bushes where I would not be seen. As the two men got closer I could see they were drinking and also could hear them talking about finding a campsite or something like that. Then they got close enough to see our campers and tents. The two of them stopped and were looking around. They were whispering something and got into a quiet discussion. Then one of them slowly approached Jacob’s camper. The other one was following him. They were sizing it up for sure. 

   I couldn’t see any guns on them but wasn’t positive. The first guy was now close to the camper and looking around the outside of it. Obviously he was looking to steal something. The other guy motioned to him and pointed over at an area of camp where we had some various tools and supplies sitting on a wooden table. Just as I was about to intervene the door of the camper swung open and out came old Jacob with the Thompson in hand. He hadn’t gone to bed yet. I jumped out of my hiding area and pointed my handgun at them and hollered for them to get on the ground. Then Jacob fired off a short burst into the ground near them with the Thompson and they turned and ran. I fired off several rounds in the air as well. Jacob was actually laughing and yelled out for them to come back and fight like men. They disappeared into the night.

   TO BE CONTINUED ..................