Quick Eastern Washington Trip

Before leaving for New Mexico we got in a quick rockhounding trip to eastern Washington.  Despite the horrible heat wave here right now we still managed to find some great rocks.  

We drove State Route 410 over Chinook Pass and made a quick stop at what I think is called the Blue Bird Mine near Bear Gap.  I have been here many times, but for my compadre it was a new experience.  She is just not used to driving to the opening of a mine. 

Mouth of Blue Bird (maybe Belle) Mine

Nice Ore Specimen

Large Tailing Pile

We hung around the tailing pile and found a few nice ore specimens before we decided to move on to the Little Naches River.

When we got to the Little Naches River, the temps were getting pretty warm, so we pulled off and took a little hike back into the woods to view Horsetail Falls.  Boy was the water low!  It was pretty cool back near the falls though.

Horsetail Falls

We drove a little ways down along the Little Naches River and finally found a shady spot to search the river for agates and thunder eggs.  Someone else was there ahead of us adding rocks to their buckets.  We were worried they got all the good rocks, but I soon realized that they were picking up too many to have gotten any real good ones.  There just aren't that many there to be found and they probably didn't know what they were looking for.  

Nice and Shady Little Naches River

A Pleasant Surprise - Serpentinite or Jadeite! 

After scouring the river for good rocks, and having found only a few possibles, we decided to head back to the cooler side of the Cascades.  One of my best finds was a nice large serpentinite or jadeite! I keep finding these in just about every WA river.  Go figure.

Meanwhile, be sure to check out our beautiful mineral specimens on our Etsy shop!

Gold Sheen Mahogany Obsidian Slab

Agatized Petrified Wood Rough

Golden Tunnel Mine Update

View of Golden Tunnel Mine From Below - Photo Courtesy Aaron G.

10/10/2012 Update - Many thanks to Aaron G. who sent me the photos of the Golden Tunnel Mine from his recent visit.

Golden Tunnel Mine Location from Overlook - Photo Courtesy Aaron G.

"There weren't too many more artifacts laying around, just a flattened ore bucket outside the mine (cave) entrance. I've had location information for approximately 2 years, and tried 2 unsuccessful attempts last year, and made it on my 2nd attempt this year (4th total). The 1st attempt this year was foiled by thick fog that ended with us spending the night on a cliff a few thousand feet below the mine. The site is very interesting, and we were very excited to finally make it, but the "hike" (or more appropriately climb/scramble) is a bear. We ended up completing the trip in 10 3/4 hours (8 hours of hiking)." Aaron G.

Closer View of Golden Tunnel Mine - Photo Courtesy Aaron G.

View From Mouth of Tunnel - Photo Courtesy Aaron G.

Old Stove - Photo Courtesy Aaron G.

Tram Wheel - Photo Courtesy Aaron G.

The Golden Tunnel Mine Controversy

This post isn't about rockhounding, but I really wanted to put this info out there for others in the state to enjoy, if you can get to it...

Cadastral Survey Page Showing Aerial Tramway and Township and Range of Mining District

Recently I read a book called Discovering Washington Mines written by Northwest Underground Explorations (NWUE) and became intrigued by a mine named the Golden Tunnel located in the Index Mining District in Washington State. They described the mine as, "a natural cavern, perched 4,200 feet above sea level... It was reported to be 15 feet high, 20 feet wide, and 65 feet long with streaks of high grade copper pyrites in large crystals carrying gold and silver." It sounded interesting, but they described it's location as being inaccessible. This was strange I thought, because they had a photo of them visiting the tunnel and obviously they had been there. 

I decided to do a Google search for the mine and ran across this hostile exchange on NWHikers.net regarding the location of this mine. Click here to read the thread.

As I read the discussion, I could almost smell the testosterone in the air. Apparently a select group of self-elected "keepers of the Golden Tunnel mine" (in this case NWUE),  and a curious hiker who had somehow acquired a map to the mine were arguing about disclosing the location of this very special mine on the internet. The privileged "mine guards" (NWUE) were worried that someone would haul away a 500 pound tram wheel with a helicopter or some such nonsense. Apparently they, (NWUE) are the only ones allowed to tour the secret site and bring in news crews and helicopters (in this case Channel 7 News out of Seattle sometime in the 1980's). Why they feel that they and their friends and families are the only ones who should be allowed access to the site is beyond me. It's just mining artifacts that will rot away to nothing, when they could at least be viewed in photos or sit in a museum. I could almost feel an Indiana Jones movie sequel in the making. This piqued my curiosity and I decided to try to locate this illusive mine.

Because I didn't want to make a trip to Olympia to locate the info, I decided to use the internet. After reading the entire discussion on NWHikers.net, I felt I had a fairly good idea of it's location and decided to start my search on the BLM Cadastral Survey website. I started by viewing the Washington Master Title Plat Map Grid.

I knew the basic area to search which was south of Highway 2, near the town of Baring, so I clicked on a few off the townships there and checked out the Cadastral Survey Links until I found a good detailed map of each area. I usually start by choosing the largest file size surveys, since they typically have the most information. I hit the jackpot on my second try.

I looked closely at the survey map, which was made in 1921 and recalled a few facts. Because some older mines may not be on the map, I looked at the artifacts. One thing I knew for certain was that the Golden Tunnel had an aerial tramway from the pictures and description in the NWUE book. Low and behold I noticed an aerial tramway on the map in sections 20 and 21. No mine was marked, but the hikers' veiled descriptions from NWHikers.net had basically described the route to the mine area, and sure enough, this notation on the map, matched that description.

Golden Tunnel Mine - Cadastral Survey

I noticed that this tramway was located slightly northwest of Crater Lake on the northeast side of Red Mountain above Salmon Creek. There also appeared to be a large valley below where the mill site could have been. I also noticed a notation on the survey map of "Tunnel" north of the tramway. I'm not sure what this is either. Maybe someone could fill me in. I next looked at the topographical map (Mt. Si) of the area on the USGS website. I noticed that no mines were marked on this map either. The only way to be sure the mine is there is to visit the site. According to NWUE it is at 4,200ft. elevation (they could be misleading us though). It looks like a long way in and a long way out of this area. Not a good trip for me, being up in years and having a bad knee. Maybe someone will take pity on me and send me some photos of the site and area. I sure hope so. I want to see these wonderful "historic artifacts" that are rotting away up there for the Eagles to enjoy.

USGS Topographic Map of Golden Tunnel Mine (approx. locations)

I next checked out the Satellite images of the area on Google Earth and Bing.com maps. It definitely looks like where the Golden Tunnel should be. The mill site should be on the west bank of Salmon Creek. Possibly under the trees.

Golden Tunnel Mine Location - Google Earth Image

Here's to the adventurous few who want to track down this elusive AND exclusive piece of Washington State history. Please let me know if you find it.