old mine shafts !!

at outland exp. we always called them "nazis on crack" lol. what kind of gas vapors differ? i know you can find methane gas wich is odorless. btw , do you know travis frost ?
 
Here is a real quick link I found, do a google and you will find lots more info.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_damp

nazis on crack, that is a good one, man that place has gotten huge, too big IMO, I miss the old days.

I don't know Travis, I left that area 20 years ago and don't get a chance to visit much, maybe when I retire. Chris
 
There are any number of reasons mines become abandoned, none of them good. Some flood, some become unstable overhead, some fill with gas, some don't pay or play out. Many were dug by the owners (not miners) and were never inspected or properly timbered to begin with. They fill with critters like bats, rattlers, and bad bugs. There is really no mystery to be found by going in since all the good stuff left with the owners or was scavenged by other miners . Now caves, those are a different story!

BTW- the Chloride, AZ deal is a vertical shaft 100'+ deep, unmarked, surrounded by brush, and the opening is funnel shaped by erosion. The girls on the ATV probably hit the edge and slid into the hole. Sad.

There are several verticals where I hunt and the edges are crumbly so I have to keep the dog well clear of them. At noon you can sometimes see the animal skeletons at the bottoms. ss.
 
runningboar said:
Would you like for me to applaud you for your stupidity?
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Can you see how this can be seen as an insult? When I see this bells go off that the possibility exists for future confrontation.

runningboar said:
IMO there is no need for you to get "preachy" on me
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I'm not preaching. I'm enforcing the rules of the forum.

The FAQ's said:
First & foremost, remember the golden rule: Do unto others as you would have done unto yourself, in other words, BE NICE. When you are polite to people, they will tend to be polite back to you.
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ive actually been snooping around different places that either had alot of caves or mines and you had to be careful of where you put your feet sometimes . i was up monteagle mtn one time and sunk up to my hip , got out and shown a light down and was surprised at how deep it was . erosion over time can make stuff like that really bad.
 
What part of Tennessee you find the mine shaft? You can anticipate different problems for different geologic strata and conditions. Needless to say, going into any mine shaft or mine audit can be dangerous. Your biggest concern is roof falls. Second concern is falling into a vertical shaft that you didn't see or encountering gas of some sort. Different gases have different characteristics; ie heavier than air or lighter than air. So, there is a need for some basic education before much exploring with the biggest being that you tell people EXACTLY where you are in case you don't come out.

(Added) Be careful around old coal mines especially. Not much to really see unless you are into plant fossils. Hard rock mines are a different set of potential safety issues. You need to understand how the mining is done to some degree which provides some insight to safety issues.

Mostly limestone caves on Monteagle Mountain. Gas is typically not a big issue although you can carry a gas meter with you that gives measurements for CO, CO2, O2, etc. Most natual limestone caverns/caves have natural vent holes and as a result have few atmosphere issues. You can see them in the early morning during the winter when the outside air temperature is much lower than the air in the cave.
 
As an archaeologist I found and recorded hundreds of historic mines and test pits. Some are even prehistoric. We never went into them though, or mapped their interiors. In many cases the mines are historically important, remains of the areas early economic developement, and as such are possibly eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. In those cases, the land management agencies often close off the mines using non-destructive methods, like filling the pit with foam, building a gate, or even walling off with cinder blocks. Other hazardous pits that aren't historically important are often filled permanently.

Mines I've seen and found were used for coal, gold, uranium, other ores, even quartz crystals.

Also, some old mines can become homes for animals, like endangered bat species, snakes, or salamanders. Saw a news story on television about a rattlesnake scientist in New Mexico. He led a camera crew into a shallow mine where he expected to find some snakes to study. Once they got in there, they found hundreds and hundreds of rattlesnakes. On ledges, in holes, on the floor. I'd never seen anything like it, and it was absolutely terrifying.
 
bowieman said:
A few years back, two teenagers went to explore an abandoned mine shaft down in Orange County (south of L.A.).
The mine had some standing water, and not far from the entrance, a barricade of some sort was placed width-wise to prevent entry(it had not fallen from the roof, as I recall).
Well, these two could see under the barricade, and decided to simply swim under it, as the water wasn't that deep.
When they came up on the other side, they were dead.
Literaly. The coroner said they were dead as doornails in seconds.
On your excursion, the dog was breathing air close to the surface; you and your friend could have walked right into a terrible situation, and the dog would be non the worse for wear.
Do be carefull when spelunking.
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What killed them? :eek:
 
I used to explore a lot of abandoned mines. One of my favorite areas, the Tintic district near Eureka, UT, had holes in the ground all over the place. Tintic produced more silver than the Comstock, but how many of you have heard of it? There was even one shaft, called the Glory Hole, that was 2400' deep.

Anyway, such activity requires intelligent risk management. There are many dangers, some obvious, some not so obvious. At least that area did not have a significant gas issue. As a geology buff, I find both mines and caves fascinating. I have found a lot of quality mineral specimens in and near mines. And one of the neatest visual experiences I ever had was in a mine. It was a tunnel that sloped downward into a mountain at about a 30 degree angle. The entire tunnel was completely lined with calcite. When I got down as far as I could, to where I could just barely see vague shapes (I didn't have a flashlight with me, and stumbled across the tunnel and couldn't resist), I turned around and looked toward the tunnel entrance. The sunlight filtering down the tunnel was just right, and all of the calcite was fluorescing. The entire tunnel was glowing pink.
 
straitshot said:
BTW- the Chloride, AZ deal is a vertical shaft 100'+ deep, unmarked, surrounded by brush, and the opening is funnel shaped by erosion. The girls on the ATV probably hit the edge and slid into the hole. Sad.
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That happened right in my backyard. The girls were on a three wheeler riding into up number one, number wo they were way too young to be doing that, number three they went off the trail at a good clip thinking the "hill" was going to be fun and ended up at the bottom. It is real unfortunate.

I always tell people not to ride off trail and to stop and make sure you know what is on the other side of a hill before attempting to climb or jump it. Could be an old car, trash, cholla, or a mine shaft. I learned my lesson thankfully with cholla and not a mine shaft.
 
I tend to agree that exploring abandoned mineshafts is a pretty foolhardy activity. I used to explore the Southern California deserts in my younger years. The region is filled with abandoned mineshafts. They're abandoned for good reason, and often simply left to decay. No warning signs or barriers. Surprisingly few seem to be closed off. I've come across shafts suddenly simply by walking. It gives me the willies to think of someone coming across one while riding a motorcycle or atv at any reasonable speed.

Lots of people seem to find them irresistable, and it's not uncommon to see closed mineshafts with signs of forced entry. I guess I'm just not that adventurous.
 
Ive explored a few caves , and a couple old mines , both opal and gold mines .
Ive passed on the ones that looked to me to be unsafe or had a bad vibe about them .

Ive explored old buildings , and passed on others , Ive drove old cars and left others that woulda drove but I felt better walking or hitch hiking ...

It pays to be careful , and keep your witts about you .

people get killed crossing the road , or pick up nasty social infections from pretty cuddly girls , mines and caves are just another possible danger .

the biggest danger I have noticed is other prospectors , my brother was surveying and happened to find and abandoned mine entrance on a mountain side , he came back with a bullet hole in his collar lapel .

The mine it self was safe as houses , carved into blue stone , the freaky people and prospectors living around there tho were something different alltogether .
 
I used to explore old buildings with mates when I was a teenager. We went to the old powerstation which is about 20 storeys high and as big as a football field. Amazing place. Very dangerous though and looking back we could have fallen through the floor easily. We even went once at night with about 10 carloads of us to have a party there but got chased off by security. Old mines would be interesting, especially if you had a metal detector. They obviously found stuff there once but did it the old fashioned way. There could be a heap of minerals left at some of them. Just make sure you watch that "Hills have eyes" movie first and take a big Busse with you :) ...
 
Lol Bailes....make sure you take that Fbm you got off me :) ....you never know if the DCs are hanging around. They have already infiltrated Sydney so Cairns might be next ;) ...
 
Lanbertiana:
... I turned around and looked toward the tunnel entrance. The sunlight filtering down the tunnel was just right, and all of the calcite was fluorescing. The entire tunnel was glowing pink.
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Now that would be a sight to behold. Very cool!
 
There are two main types of mine gases. Methane which is usually associated with coal mining and carbon dioxide which is associated with limestone decomposition. Methane can be poisonous but is more of an explosion hazard. It usually has an odor. Carbon dioxide is the more dangerous gas because it is odorless. It is formed from acid mine drainage or when acid rain reacts with limestone. Being heavier that air it will accumulate in a mine shaft or low place. You can Walk into it and suffocate very quickly. Basically don't play in old mine shaft for many of reasons. Know the rock types in your area. A candle held in a shaft will go out if there is CO2 in it, but if there is methane you may get a really big surprise
 
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