As a history buff, private pilot, and frequent visitor to the Arizona Strip, I have found this ghost town to be particularly fascinating.
Apparently, the first mine claim for these 21 acres was filed in St. George, in the early 1870’s. In 1873 someone decided the claim was definitely in Arizona, so it became the Grand Gulch Mining Co., filed in Kingman. By whatever name, this mine is a long ways from anyplace else. Plan on traveling 90 miles of dirt road from St. George, impassable when wet, and best traversed with a 4X4 or off-road vehicle. In the early days, the ground transportation to the mine was several days by wagon, at a cost of $6 one way.
Mining began at Grand Gulch Mine in 1885, shortly after an Indian brought some green rocks to St. George. Within a few years, miners had chased the deposit down to 60 feet. By 1913 the shaft was down more than 500 feet. The hoist foundation for the mighty 22-horsepower engine can be identified near the water holding cell near the mineshaft. This engine lowered men, lifted ore, and pumped air into the dark shaft. As recently as 1920 geologists had no understanding of the mineral’s origin. It is now thought that the ore deposit lies around a breccia pipe. Visualize a vertical tunnel deep into the hot earth through which mineral gasses breathed up to condense into ore. Eons later the pipe filled with limestone from the surface. If you want to impress your buddies while at the mine, remember that some of these ores are called brochantite, chrysocolla, chalcocite, and the better-known azurite and malachite.
Regardless of origin, it was a rich deposit. Though sparse, the veins were more than 14 percent copper, and also contained silver and lead. History varies on the destination of these ores, but historians do agree the trip began with a brutal forty-mile horse and wagon trip down a treacherous draw to St Thomas, Nevada, a site now under Lake Mead. It seems that the fortunes of the Grand Gulch Mine rose and fell throughout the century. The mine was once the richest copper mine in Arizona, then years later sold for a mere six dollars and ninety-seven cents. In 1917 employment was 75 men and women, each earning $10 more than cow punching. In 1918 the mineshaft timbers burned down. In 1955, someone threw nearly one million dollars into reworking the mine tailings, plus searching for new deposits. It was a financial disaster. Perhaps it is just as well that no new deposits were found, because it’s still 40 mean mule miles down the draws to Lake Mead. The mine has been derelict since 1958.
When you arrive at this destination, you will step back in time to the turn of the last century. Most of the buildings were constructed around 1900. A short walk leads past aging buildings, stone walls, aging trucks, even trash dumps. Across a gully rises the magnificent original smelter, built in 1900. Upon close examination, you may think the adobe and brick smelter is newer and virtually unused. In fact, this is true; the design was faulty, so it never worked. Closeby is the mineshaft and associated support equipment. Be careful around that mineshaft, and don’t let children stray, as the mineshaft is 500 feet deep.
After that last million-dollar investment, it could be said that the Grand Gulch Mine has devoured more dollars than it ever yielded. So, when you go, throw a penny down the shaft. The copper may appease the gods, and you will be the latest to throw good money after bad into a hole in the ground.
The airstrip and surroundings are on public-use BLM land, however the Grand Gulch Mine is on private property. Keep this in mind as you explore, and do not remove any artifacts or tamper with anything you find. Make sure to bring your own food and water, and let someone know where you are going, as this is about as remote a place as it gets.
Despite the cost of fuel, and the penny, a visit to the Grand Gulch Mine is well worthwhile. You are guaranteed to find interest, awe, and new knowledge at the Grand Gulch. If you don’t agree, I’ll be glad to give you your penny back.
This is a virtual cache, the site is the cache. I recommend that you use the BLM Arizona Strip map and plan on the trip taking the whole day. To prove that you were there, and to keep me from deleting your log entry, e-mail me through the geocaching web site with the answer to the following question, which can only be answered if you make the visit:
About 30 to 40 feet north of the mineshaft, there is a concrete structure with a rotting and burned black wood roof. As you face this structure, looking from the mineshaft, you will see a metal pipe coming out of the concrete wall, near the ground. On the right side of the pipe there is an on-off faucet handle. There is a name and number on the portion of the faucet handle near the ground. E-mail me the number to confirm your visit.
Happy Geocaching!