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Subtract off the speed of sound (about 1000' per second) and subtract a bit for margin of error and the result is still a shaft depth of over 50 feet! A five story fall would probably hurt, so we decided not to jump in. Forty or fifty rocks later, we look around to see what else is nearby. The Ruins
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At
the top there was a strange collection of towers, buildings, and
unidentifiable humming equipment. Naturally, with so much technology,
there must be something of the "X-Files" category going on.
"Lower
Potosi Telecommunications Facility Los Angeles Department of Water and
Power (213)367-3176" [right]
A small sign on a fence said that the facility was for Los Angeles water and power. Yea right. Like there was any visible power lines or water pipes on this mountain top. Not to mention we were no where near Los Angeles. Just who thinks up these signs anyway? We were not fooled for one minute. The sign was merely a ruse to throw off the public. We explore further.
"Warning:
This facility is used in FAA air traffic control. Loss of life may result
from service interruption. Any person who interferes with air traffic
control or damages or trespasses on this property will be prosecuted under
federal law."
We run across another building that was fenced off from access. It also had a sign. It said that the building was for air traffic control. This sounded somewhat believable. Yes, it appeared to be for air traffic control. ...for alien aircraft! Notice how the sign mentioned "life" but it was careful not to mention "human" life. Also it mentioned prosecution by "federal law", and as we all now the "F" in "F.B.I." stands for "Federal". Need I say more?
Looking
downward, we can see a concealed small white building tucked into a fold
of the mountain [right]. This building was carefully positioned so that it
could only be seen from the top of the mountain. What could this building
be for? Maybe all this mountain top equipment was here just to keep a
watch on the inhabitants of that building? Maybe the building was actually
a secret entrance to a vast underground complex?
After
exploring further, we run across a building at the far end of the complex.
I had some particularly large pipes and wires coming out of it. Also, it
was adorned with a sign that said "Danger Radiation". The
radiation must be pretty strong since the red pigment for the word
"Danger" was nearly burned off of the sign.
We
also discover a strange low container bearing some weird protrusions and a
sign labeled "leak detector tube". I only had two questions.
1) Just what was in that container? and
2) Were leaks so common that they needed to install a detector tube?
Dwight noticed that there was no life near this facility. Not a bird, lizard, ant, or anything. With all these signs about radiation and leaks, we decided to depart. Can you blame us?
Avoid areas with radiation and leaks, especially when indigenous life cannot live in the area.
As we turn to go, we notice that there is a fantastic view from this mountain top! Forgetting the radiation and leaks, we stop and look. [Dang! We sure are easily distracted.]
We
can see Las Vegas in the distance. This would be a great place to view Las
Vegas if it was at night. All the hotels were visible, but details like
cars and people were not. Too far. If only there were some way to get a
little closer.
It
was then that Dwight discovered a scaffold that extended out over the edge
of the cliff. This scaffold led to nowhere and appeared to serve no
purpose whatsoever. It fit in with the rest of the facility. By this time,
we weren't surprised by any unexplained thing we saw here. The scaffold
was facing toward Las Vegas and was just the thing to get a little closer
for a better view. How convenient.
The scaffold was made of wood. With all the radiation and leaks in the area, I was surprised it hadn't dissolved away. It was big enough to walk on and it would provide a better view of Las Vegas. However, only a fool would actually step out onto it. One person decided to venture forth. This person shall forever remain unidentified and kept secret because only a crazy person would walk on the scaffold. Yup, completely insane. You will never know who the volunteer was. Don't bother emailing me or asking anyone because you'll never find out. Not in a million years. However, the view of Las Vegas from the scaffold was fantastic! I could even see cars and people.
Unidentified volunteer (he actually lived after this stunt)
The view from the scaffold. Fantastic eh?
I wish I could have taken more pictures,
but the scaffold was too wobbly for my taste.
As we head down the mountain, we examine the map to decide where to go next. Further west of our position is a location marked as the "Green Monster Mine". There was a dirt road marked that would go right past it.
We head toward the Green Monster Mine, or so we thought. After several miles we reach Sandy Valley, not the Green Monster Mine. Oh, we could see the mine a few miles away on the side of a mountain, but there just didn't seem to be any roads leading to it. After tracking and backtracking around the area, Dwight discovers a faint trace (nearly invisible) of a dirt road toward the mine. Way to go, Dwight! A half mile later and we are at the base of the mine. The road didn't stop exactly at the entrance, but rather about 50 feet down the slope.
This
is the perfect time to break for lunch -- so we do. We "feast"
on a few sandwiches that Ted brought, even though there were not enough to
go around. <sigh> As the rest of the party finishes lunch, I climb
up the slope toward the mine.
The
entrance to the mine is very steep. There were wood sticks to brace the
mine and they didn't look very sturdy.
At
the entrance to the mine I can see that there is another entrance to the
mine about 1/4 mile away. We pack up and follow more invisible dirt roads
to that mine entrance. This entrance also required a small climb to reach
it. The entrance was similar to the previous -- nearly vertical and braced
with sticks. It was a bigger entrance, but still inaccessible.
Mine entrance #2 (deep and dark)
On
the way down from the second mine entrance, Maria decides to toboggan down
the slope. I wish I thought of doing that. There were several vertical
shafts in the area. Most were not marked and so we had to tread carefully.
We dropped a rock down one and it took over 4 seconds to hit bottom. This
works out to be a depth of over 250 feet. Yikes! This mine is a 'monster'.
The 'green' in the Green Monster Mine comes from the rocks which have a
distinctly green color. Apparently this mine extracted copper ore (or so
we presumed).
In the vicinity there were ruins of a mining town and metallic evidence of previous habitation.
Near
the Green Monster Mine were the remains of many houses. Only the
foundations (such as they were) were left. We scoured the area looking for
artifacts and other treasures. A metal detector would have come in handy
here.
Among the treasures found were:
- a piece of mine cart
- a nail
- 9mm shells
- metal disks
- copper ore
- purple glass fragments
In
addition to the abandoned remains of human dwellings, we found the
abandoned remains of an insect dwelling. A very large ant hill to be
precise. The ants must have been humongous because the entrance was about
an inch wide. The ants had left the area just as the previous human
residents had. I can only wonder why.
I
almost forgot the mention the other item in the area. Cans. And more Cans.
First, there was a trail of cans. These cans led to more cans and then
eventually to a field of cans. There were cans as far as the eye could
see. All the cans had one common characteristic -- they were rusted beyond
recognition. Dwight discovered a can that had a key attached! [Yes, Dwight
discovered yet another cool thing. Some guys have all the luck.] This was
the kind of key used to roll back the can lid just like a can of sardines.
They were cool. I wanted one too.
It
now turned into a key hunt. Everyone had to find a key. It wasn't fair to
be given a key; each of us must find our very own. We looked and looked.
We became obsessed. All one could hear was the chant "key, must find
key" whispering through the air as we searched. Oh, that, and the
incessant racket of clanking cans being kicked around.
(to the tune of Armor Hot Dogs jingle)
There were fat cans, skinny cans,
cans that lie on rocks.
Big cans, rusty cans,
even cans with tetanus pox.
Keyed cans,
rusty keyed cans,
the cans we love to find!
Eventually we all found a key. Dwight, naturally, found about 20 keys. It was decided that the key will be the symbol of this trip. If you have a can key, then you have the official memento of the Green Monster Mine trip of January 1st, 1998. The Green Monster Mine Explorer Key entitles you to all the rights and privileges thereof.
Dwight shows off his can finding prowess.
This can still has a working hinge!
It was getting dark and this is the sign to return home. It was getting dark fast! Here we were, in the dark, in the middle of the desert trying to travel on a faint dirt road that was invisible even in bright sunlight. Fortunately, we eventually made it to the main dirt road leading to Sandy Valley. This road lead to the paved road that connects Las Vegas with Pahrump. It was clear sailing home.
Ted mentioned that there was some "site" located on this road. At about the point were this location would be we saw a turn off. Yes, there was an official looking sign. It was getting cold so I didn't have time to read it. However, I really wanted to know what this sign said, so I snapped a picture of it in order to read later. Mike used the spotlight on the sign so that I would get plenty of light in order to not miss a single word in the photograph. The result of that picture is below. Fantastic.
Old Spanish Trail
Mountain Springs Pass
... location of the old Spanish trail
was discovered ...
... Armijo during his first trip from Santa ...
... just north of this marker provided ...
... grass for draft animals ...
... Las Vegas and mountains ...
We returned to Las Vegas (by way of Red Rock Canyon) without further incident. And so ends another field trip.
This
town is small with many rustic buildings alongside the more frequent
trailers. It didn't look like there was much here to do for entertainment.
There was a small bar (about the size of a trailer) and a small volunteer
fire department. In spite of these compelling pastimes, at least one
resident had the gumption to create some literary artwork on the tin roof
of a shed.
The
most interesting structure was probably this rather tall building that had
a tower (well?) attached. There was really only so much sight seeing one
could do in Goodsprings, so we continued westward in search of something
interesting.
After
a few miles heading west from Jean we see a tower off the side of the
road. It looked interesting and so we stopped. After examining the map, it
turned out to be the Red Cloud Mine. The tower marked the entrance to a
vertical mine shaft. On the way to the tower, Ted nearly falls in, errr, I
mean discovers, another vertical mine shaft that wasn't marked by
any structure. I'm not sure what they were mining for, but they sure had
to dig deep.
The
bottom of the shaft was far too deep to see, even with flashlights, so we
resorted to the scientific method of determining its depth -- we dropped
rocks down the shaft to see how long it took to hit bottom.
The
time for the rock to reach the bottom of the shaft was about 2.3 seconds
(as I recall). The formula for distance traveled of a falling object is:
About
100 yards down the slope lies some ruins. These undoubtedly were the
remains of mining buildings, but not much is left of them now. There was a
concrete shell of a large building and a couple of vats. The remaining
wall of the building sported a hole about the size of an Israeli anti-tank
missile. Of course, it probably was caused by something else. I mean, what
are the odds that there was ever any Israeli military armaments within
10,000 miles of this location?
As
we explore the area further, Dwight discovers some evidence. An Israeli
armaments box. Hmmm. We beat a hasty retreat.