[Rockhounds] New Mexico / Colorado trip suggestions + Leadville Symposium

[Al Balmer]

On Tue, 31 Jul 2007 18:07:52 -0400, pmodreski at aol.com wrote:

>Al,
>
>No, two different mines (both moly mines, owned by the same company).? The Climax mine, the first big moly mine in Colorado (and the world I presume) is located right at the summit of Fremont Pass,?north of?Leadville on the way to Copper Mountain (the ski area).? It is both an open pit and underground mine, but has been shut down for some years now--hence no active mining, no new rock being blasted & exposed.? They are planning to get it ready for renewed operation, though.? Our August 25 tour will be only of the surface open pit workings.

I think I remember now. I drove down to see (from a distance) the
other mine. They'd taken away half the mountain. I remember stopping
at an overlook (overlooking a cyanide lake, I think) and meeting a
fellow whose job was wandering around the mountains looking for
abandoned gold mines. That was a long time ago (late '80s).
>
>The Henderson mine is strictly underground, has been continuously open, & is located near Berthoud Pass--mine entrance on the east side above Empire, and the crushers & recovery plant many miles away via underground conveyor belt, on the West Slope north of Dillon.

That's where I was. I stayed in Dillon (Silverthorne side, actually)
and drove up the mountain every day. They told me the tunnel was dug
by hand - pick, shovel, and blasting powder. I wonder if that's right,
since Google says the mine opened in 1976. Seems like there would have
been modern tunneling equipment.
>
>Pete
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Al Balmer <albalmer at att.net>
>To: Rockhounds at drizzle.com: A mailing list for rock and gem collectors <rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>
>Sent: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 3:34 pm
>Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] New Mexico / Colorado trip suggestions + Leadville Symposium
>
>
>
>On Tue, 31 Jul 2007 17:11:16 -0400, pmodreski at aol.com wrote:
>
>>Since Tom mentioned it, I realized that I ought to have posted something here 
>to Rockhounds about the Friends of Mineralogy-Colorado Chapter, field symposium 
>in Leadville this summer.
>>
>>It's a weekend meeting + field trips headquartered at the National Mining Hall 
>of Fame & Museum in Leadville, August 24-26.? There's an evening talk at the 
>Museum Friday, then a field trip to the Climax Molybdenum mine* on Saturday 
>morning, a tour of the Mining Museum and another talk in the afternoon followed 
>by a banquet Saturday evening, with a dinner talk by Ed Raines on the Leadville 
>Mining District.? Sunday will be a field trip led by Ed around the Leadville 
>mining areas. (*A historic tour of the famous Matchless Mine is an alternate 
>option if registration exceeds the bus capacity (65) for the Climax trip.)
>
>This is the Henderson mine? Years ago, as a software engineer for a
>process control company, I spent a week at the Henderson mill, at the
>end of a 14 mile tunnel to the mine. I remember huge chunks of pyrite
>in the tailings.
>
>While there, I got directions to a small lake which had lots of
>petrified wood. 
>>
>
>
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-- 
Al Balmer
Sun City, AZ