Yep, I have given up retirement (for now) and have started work for Baker Hughes.
Should be fun.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
The Spencer Reunion
I had always heard tale of my fiancee's family out east but I had met precious few of them. Well, it was about time to change that. Every once in a while the Spencer family hold's a family reunion (like most families) and one was coming up.
We booked our flights, waited until it was time, and then headed out east. The lot of them live in that megacity type area in Southern Ontario, and we were all to rendezvous at a place called Presqu'ile.
The reunion was at a lodge/cabin within the park with people staying in the park itself, or in the near vicinity. I guess there isn't much to tell you since I can't remember half of the people's names, but it was a good time. The whole family was there, a party was had, and the locale was gorgeous. We did manage to take a walk around the park and even to spend a night in Kingston.
I was too busy having fun with my rowdy to-be-in-law-extended-family to take many photos, but I'll show you what I've got.
Overall, great time, great people, and great history (they are totally related to Princess Diana as well as a number of sketchy (and not) notables from the 1400's).
We booked our flights, waited until it was time, and then headed out east. The lot of them live in that megacity type area in Southern Ontario, and we were all to rendezvous at a place called Presqu'ile.
The reunion was at a lodge/cabin within the park with people staying in the park itself, or in the near vicinity. I guess there isn't much to tell you since I can't remember half of the people's names, but it was a good time. The whole family was there, a party was had, and the locale was gorgeous. We did manage to take a walk around the park and even to spend a night in Kingston.
I was too busy having fun with my rowdy to-be-in-law-extended-family to take many photos, but I'll show you what I've got.
Overall, great time, great people, and great history (they are totally related to Princess Diana as well as a number of sketchy (and not) notables from the 1400's).
On the Water
Spray
Rocks
Spots
Lighthouse
Muscles
Elements
Beauty
Interesting Taste
What We All Need
Epic
Insulators
The Valuable Purple Ones
Lookin'
Monday, September 16, 2013
The Second Expedition into the Mineral King Mine
As always there is a link to the full album on the left or you can click here (first half of the album is the first expedition, the second half is the second).
Note: my sincerest apologies... evidently the strap from my camera jostling about combined with my camera's super sensitive microphone resulted in some seriously irritating noise... hopefully it doesn't drive you too nuts... or you could just mute me... I don't say anything important anyways... plus, we will hopefully be doing the Third Expedition in October so then we can have movies that aren't so... irritating.
Adam and I just had time to set up a tarp shelter at the Mineral King Mine site when it was time to rendezvous with Ian. Given that we were in no cell phone country that meant our driving down the mountain, back onto the Toby Creek Road, and then driving until we found someone. We were supposed to have walkie talkies to find each other... but there were certain... logistical issues... with that.
It actually worked out very well, and very easily.
It was late, and the only people that far down that road was us. We took him up to the camp side (which was dark so he missed the view), we set up the rest off the camp, enjoyed meals of steaks over fire, and drinks over the valley. It was a good wind down from the Black Diamond Mountain adventure, and come late time we headed to bed.
We woke. We ate. We geared up. And we headed up. As with the first expedition we headed up the cable car track to get to the mine entrances. We didn't know where the road was, and we didn't have a quad to get us there. Similar to last time, the hike sucked. Grueling is probably the best word for it. Still the whippersnappers were pretty quick so I did my best to keep up.
Before we went in we followed the roads a bit further than last time. First we were at the 3rd level entrance of the mine. We kept walking and we found what we believe to be the 1st level entrance (as we did last time). This time we kept walking, sent Ian to scout ahead, and followed when he said we needed to see.
Imagine the caldera of a volcano... that's what it looked like. There was a massive hole in the ground, a cavern with a number of different entrances exposed. Wait. I've heard of this. My brother-in-law's brother-in-law mentioned this place, saying he had been to the mine, but that he had to repel in. This must be where he did it. It was nuts. Simply massive. There are lots of ways into the mine (though they do not appear to be "mine entrances" made in the mining days (and that line up from my map). I suspect that in level 1 they followed the ore down down down to level 13, and that they also followed it up up up and out of the mine through this mini-non-volcanic-caldera.
Actually, referencing the map now, we found the level 3 and level 2 entrances (not level 1) and the big mini-non-volcanic-caldera is listed as the "Glory Hole." Wicked.
Anyways. We were excited now. We headed back to the level 3 entrance and geared up. We had more time this time and we headed in and deep. We think we were easily over 1000 m into the rock. We followed the main passage we explored last time, we signed our names, and kept going. It was there that we found the first of the mega ore caverns that we heard of in other people's reports of going into the mine. We were glad to have the spot light with us so we could see across. They were enormous, and much larger than I could have thought.
We explored almost every passage we could on the 3rd level without needing to climb up or down. We also managed to get into a cavern or two for a better look. 2.5-3 hours later we headed back out and ascended to the level 2 entrance.
In level 3 the rock is white, the tunnels are cut smooth, and there is lots of clearance. Level 2 is different... the rock is dark, and jagged, and you feel like you are going into the mouth of the beast. The entrance is much smaller than 3 and I squeezed my way in. The tunnels were smaller, with less clearance, and if I had to describe them in a word I would call them... sinister.
We were in, and we were en route. The main approach into the mountain is much shorter than 3 as the ore was closer to the surface. We made it to the end of the first tunnel, which ends at the mega caverns, and looked around a bit. Ian spotted light, and as we investigated we believe that we found the entrance from the "Glory Hole" and people used to enter the mine via ropes. That being said we also noticed a bizarre phenomenon... we could swear that we could hear voices!
We made it back to the main tunnel and could hear the voices better now. It was nuts, the voices weren't coming from the main tunnel... they were coming from inside the mine! We listened, waited, and then could see lights in the depths.
They were a group of climbers who did what I mentioned before. They came down from the "Glory Hole" and explored their ways through the caverns. It sounds like that is a pretty typical approach (as we later saw with worn foot paths), and it sounds like very very few people have explored the 3rd level. They had been in the mine about the same amount of time as us, and they went down the caverns and into the deep that way. They were on their way out now, and as we headed into the caverns we bade them adieu.
On the 3rd level we thought we had seen mega ore caverns. If that is the case then what we found on the 2nd level was giga ore caverns. It is impossible to describe. You would need to see it to believe it.
The caverns are all interconnected and there are worn footpaths in the mud. There are places where cables have been hung to climb and there are is miscellaneous equipment everywhere. Our light was low on juice but we still got a few glances to really understand the vastness of the Mineral King.
The climbers had told us of one cavern/chute where as you look down you could see bridges going back and forth, like the Mines of Moria in Lord of the Rings. Our light ran out, which severely diminished our exploring capabilities but we still looked a bit further. We could see it with our headlamps, though we couldn't see how far down it went... there it was... Moria.
Without light we cut our visit short, but I would like to try and describe it like this. The photos and movies give you a very limited perspective, but in those caverns you could easily stack a house like ours 3-4 on top of itself and still have space to throw in a 7-11.
Massive. Immense. Gargantuan.
There are no words to describe what we saw... except for... Third Expedition.
We were out, and down. We saw the climbers on the way down and asked about the quad trail, and about another tailings pile Adam and I saw from the other side of Jumbo Creek (on the Black Diamond Mountain adventure). They gave us details, and we said our good-byes again.
Back at the camp we were all tired (though I am sure some of us more than others... damn those whippersnappers), and we enjoyed another night. Steaks. Drinks (that we maybe did a run to Panorama for). Cigars.
The one thing of consequence was a sound that we have established must have been a mating elk or something. It was a long moan. It repeated again and again and again. And it was almost identical each time. We could hear it moving on the mountain behind us and as it came closer and closer it was damn unnerving. At one point the lot of us jumped up to take a look into the black; Adam with an axe, me with the bear bangers, and Ian... with his... muscles...
It did eventually wander away, and we did eventually tire. Into bed and another day well spent.
In the morning we packed up the site, and then headed to where we saw the tailings pile on the other side of the mountain. Could it be the 7th level entrance that is indicated in my map?! We needed to find out. We drove down, found the road we thought it was, hit a barricade, and continued on food. It was a good road, though washed out in places and I could easily imagine dump trucks driving out with the ore.
We came to a fork, one that skirted the mountain, and one that went closer to Jumbo Creek. We expected the tailings at the lower level so we skirted the mountain. It was flooding, but Adam and I in our toe shoes were not hindered. We could see ruins... we could see debris... we could see adventure. We walked through the muck, over the debris and into the roughage. There were tracks there once, and they came straight from the mountain and over the edge to the tailing pile. That was it. It was the 7th level entrance. It was completely overgrown and the tunnel had obviously collapsed (and probably detonated). There is no was in now. The flooding was from water coming out of the 7th level entrance, which supports my idea that all levels below 7 are flooded (due to no drainage... the mine likely had pumps while it was active).
Amazing. There it was.
We looked around, guessed at how things must have been, and then headed home.
We stopped at the old bridge on Toby Creek, and then at Bella Vista for a cleansing swim.
We said good-bye to Ian, and Adam drove me home.
It was more successful an Expedition could have hoped for, and as always... it was the tip of the iceberg...
Note: my sincerest apologies... evidently the strap from my camera jostling about combined with my camera's super sensitive microphone resulted in some seriously irritating noise... hopefully it doesn't drive you too nuts... or you could just mute me... I don't say anything important anyways... plus, we will hopefully be doing the Third Expedition in October so then we can have movies that aren't so... irritating.
Adam and I just had time to set up a tarp shelter at the Mineral King Mine site when it was time to rendezvous with Ian. Given that we were in no cell phone country that meant our driving down the mountain, back onto the Toby Creek Road, and then driving until we found someone. We were supposed to have walkie talkies to find each other... but there were certain... logistical issues... with that.
It actually worked out very well, and very easily.
It was late, and the only people that far down that road was us. We took him up to the camp side (which was dark so he missed the view), we set up the rest off the camp, enjoyed meals of steaks over fire, and drinks over the valley. It was a good wind down from the Black Diamond Mountain adventure, and come late time we headed to bed.
We Found Ian
The Camp
Morning Foundations
On Our Way Up
We woke. We ate. We geared up. And we headed up. As with the first expedition we headed up the cable car track to get to the mine entrances. We didn't know where the road was, and we didn't have a quad to get us there. Similar to last time, the hike sucked. Grueling is probably the best word for it. Still the whippersnappers were pretty quick so I did my best to keep up.
Working Our Way Up
The Trail
The Whippersnappers
The Rays
The Valley
At the Top
Solitude
Poses
From 3 to 1
The Hole
Into the Mine
Zag
Before we went in we followed the roads a bit further than last time. First we were at the 3rd level entrance of the mine. We kept walking and we found what we believe to be the 1st level entrance (as we did last time). This time we kept walking, sent Ian to scout ahead, and followed when he said we needed to see.
Imagine the caldera of a volcano... that's what it looked like. There was a massive hole in the ground, a cavern with a number of different entrances exposed. Wait. I've heard of this. My brother-in-law's brother-in-law mentioned this place, saying he had been to the mine, but that he had to repel in. This must be where he did it. It was nuts. Simply massive. There are lots of ways into the mine (though they do not appear to be "mine entrances" made in the mining days (and that line up from my map). I suspect that in level 1 they followed the ore down down down to level 13, and that they also followed it up up up and out of the mine through this mini-non-volcanic-caldera.
Actually, referencing the map now, we found the level 3 and level 2 entrances (not level 1) and the big mini-non-volcanic-caldera is listed as the "Glory Hole." Wicked.
From: Minister of Mines Annual Report 1959
You can see the lower tailings pile, the middle one (that we camped on), as well as the cable car track from the middle one to the top three (where we hiked - the lower of the top three is the 3rd level entrance, the middle is the 2nd level entrance, and the top is the Glory Hole)
From: Minister of Mines Annual Report 1959 Layout
We explored most of the 3rd level, and the parts of the 2nd level near the entry passage. This map does not appear to show everything in the mine, but you get the gist of it. We made it. The view was reward enough, but that's not what we came for.
In and Dry...ish...
Following the Tracks
The First Mega Cavern
Biggest Cavern Ever... at the time...
Bleeding Walls
The Guys
Tracks
Infinity
The Ore Chute
Going Through
Possibly Biggest Cavern Ever
Sign
History
Upwards sans Ladders
Across from Where we Were
Sulphur?
Bleeding Walls
Stalactites
Passage
The Blue
In an Ore Cavern
Adam feat. Blue
Glorious Colour
Tunnel
Into the Cavern
Adam
The Pit
Labyrinth
Pyrite Dust
The Rock
More Blue
Keep Out
To Level 2
Scale
Safety First
Hole
In Darkness
Big Metal Thingy (BMT)
Abandoned Corridor
Into the Black
Cores
Stalactites in the Making
Into a Cavern
BMT
Ian in the Cavern
Crystals
Milk?
Blood?
Ian Survives!
Adam Survives!
Anyways. We were excited now. We headed back to the level 3 entrance and geared up. We had more time this time and we headed in and deep. We think we were easily over 1000 m into the rock. We followed the main passage we explored last time, we signed our names, and kept going. It was there that we found the first of the mega ore caverns that we heard of in other people's reports of going into the mine. We were glad to have the spot light with us so we could see across. They were enormous, and much larger than I could have thought.
We explored almost every passage we could on the 3rd level without needing to climb up or down. We also managed to get into a cavern or two for a better look. 2.5-3 hours later we headed back out and ascended to the level 2 entrance.
In level 3 the rock is white, the tunnels are cut smooth, and there is lots of clearance. Level 2 is different... the rock is dark, and jagged, and you feel like you are going into the mouth of the beast. The entrance is much smaller than 3 and I squeezed my way in. The tunnels were smaller, with less clearance, and if I had to describe them in a word I would call them... sinister.
In!
Into Level 1 (Actually Level 2)
Looking Out
Level 2 Approach
Mega Cavern
In a Big Hole
Hugeness
Up Down Around
Rock
We were in, and we were en route. The main approach into the mountain is much shorter than 3 as the ore was closer to the surface. We made it to the end of the first tunnel, which ends at the mega caverns, and looked around a bit. Ian spotted light, and as we investigated we believe that we found the entrance from the "Glory Hole" and people used to enter the mine via ropes. That being said we also noticed a bizarre phenomenon... we could swear that we could hear voices!
We made it back to the main tunnel and could hear the voices better now. It was nuts, the voices weren't coming from the main tunnel... they were coming from inside the mine! We listened, waited, and then could see lights in the depths.
In Level 2... Found Climbers...
They were a group of climbers who did what I mentioned before. They came down from the "Glory Hole" and explored their ways through the caverns. It sounds like that is a pretty typical approach (as we later saw with worn foot paths), and it sounds like very very few people have explored the 3rd level. They had been in the mine about the same amount of time as us, and they went down the caverns and into the deep that way. They were on their way out now, and as we headed into the caverns we bade them adieu.
Power Box
Tunnel
Ladders
Digging for Fools' Gold
Tank
The Deep
Out!
On the 3rd level we thought we had seen mega ore caverns. If that is the case then what we found on the 2nd level was giga ore caverns. It is impossible to describe. You would need to see it to believe it.
The caverns are all interconnected and there are worn footpaths in the mud. There are places where cables have been hung to climb and there are is miscellaneous equipment everywhere. Our light was low on juice but we still got a few glances to really understand the vastness of the Mineral King.
The climbers had told us of one cavern/chute where as you look down you could see bridges going back and forth, like the Mines of Moria in Lord of the Rings. Our light ran out, which severely diminished our exploring capabilities but we still looked a bit further. We could see it with our headlamps, though we couldn't see how far down it went... there it was... Moria.
Without light we cut our visit short, but I would like to try and describe it like this. The photos and movies give you a very limited perspective, but in those caverns you could easily stack a house like ours 3-4 on top of itself and still have space to throw in a 7-11.
Massive. Immense. Gargantuan.
There are no words to describe what we saw... except for... Third Expedition.
We were out, and down. We saw the climbers on the way down and asked about the quad trail, and about another tailings pile Adam and I saw from the other side of Jumbo Creek (on the Black Diamond Mountain adventure). They gave us details, and we said our good-byes again.
Back at the camp we were all tired (though I am sure some of us more than others... damn those whippersnappers), and we enjoyed another night. Steaks. Drinks (that we maybe did a run to Panorama for). Cigars.
Fire
It did eventually wander away, and we did eventually tire. Into bed and another day well spent.
In the morning we packed up the site, and then headed to where we saw the tailings pile on the other side of the mountain. Could it be the 7th level entrance that is indicated in my map?! We needed to find out. We drove down, found the road we thought it was, hit a barricade, and continued on food. It was a good road, though washed out in places and I could easily imagine dump trucks driving out with the ore.
Barricade
Looking for 7th Level Entrance
We came to a fork, one that skirted the mountain, and one that went closer to Jumbo Creek. We expected the tailings at the lower level so we skirted the mountain. It was flooding, but Adam and I in our toe shoes were not hindered. We could see ruins... we could see debris... we could see adventure. We walked through the muck, over the debris and into the roughage. There were tracks there once, and they came straight from the mountain and over the edge to the tailing pile. That was it. It was the 7th level entrance. It was completely overgrown and the tunnel had obviously collapsed (and probably detonated). There is no was in now. The flooding was from water coming out of the 7th level entrance, which supports my idea that all levels below 7 are flooded (due to no drainage... the mine likely had pumps while it was active).
Amazing. There it was.
The 7th Level Entrance
Overgrown Entrance
Demolished Entrance
7th Level Tracks
Adam feat. What's Left of the 7th Level Entrance
Guys on Ruins
Where the Tracks Were
We followed the debris to the tracks, and followed them as they went down the hill to the tailings pile. There was more debris there, and more ruins. We didn't expect the 7th entrance to be there as it is 90 degrees off from the other two (around the mountain), but there it was.
Following the Tracks
Destroyed Rail
Ruin
Ian Atop the Tailings
Remnants
Muck
Surveying Jumbo Creek
Jumbo Creek
To 7
Desolate
We looked around, guessed at how things must have been, and then headed home.
We stopped at the old bridge on Toby Creek, and then at Bella Vista for a cleansing swim.
We said good-bye to Ian, and Adam drove me home.
It was more successful an Expedition could have hoped for, and as always... it was the tip of the iceberg...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)