Excavating a Backfilled Tunnel Deep Inside an Abandoned Mine

I never thought I'd be digging out a backfilled tunnel in a sketchy, abandoned mine that was dug by hand in the 1940s. However, that's what Paul and I ended up doing one day not too long ago.

The mine Paul and I explored was worked from the 1920s to 1941 for silver and lead. An attempt was made decades ago to dynamite the entrance shut, but it didn't work and left a small gap inside the entrance that foolhardy explorers like us can squeeze through. This mine is an unusual abandoned mine because it appears that the entire mine was dug by hand. I say that because the rock in this mine is very, very soft and crumbly. Almost seems exceptionally dangerous. Digging it by hand is certainly not out of the question. Deep in the mine, we came to a four-way intersection where, according to an old map we had of the mine, the leftmost tunnel extended for another 1200 feet (366 m) and was the main haulage tunnel. However, it had been backfilled long ago. We had gathered some intelligence prior to our exploration that suggested the backfill was only two and a half feet thick (0.76 m). With that in mind, Paul and I decided it might be worth digging out the two and a half feet of backfill so we could access the lengthy tunnel beyond. With shovel in hand, that's what we set out to do in this video. Enjoy!

Who remembers Paul? It was nice hooking up with Paul once again after a hiatus of five years or so. Paul still maintains his own YouTube channel, and his eclectic collection of videos can be found here:    / stonedagin1   Drop by his channel and say hello!

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