Driving Deep Into A Mine - Video Trail Report

[LandOps]

Land Ops Adventure Radio Club
The Reward Mine, Owens Valley California

This is an abandoned mine between Lone Pine and Independence, California.
During our visit to the Alabama Hills (movie making area) the adventure teams of the club make a night run deep into the Reward Mine.
The mine is deep enough to drive into if your rig is lower than 6' 10" near the lower beginning. Many of us aired down to give our vehicles more clearance.

We don't recommend doing what we did because it is dangerous. Although the mine appears stable there are definitely areas of collapse visible throughout the mine.
If you don't heed our advice and decide to drive into this abandoned mine you should understand the risks, plan for contingencies and never go alone.

Enjoy!

 

[K6GHL]

What an adventure!!

 

[JimBiram]

In the dark, at night...perfect recipe for claustrophobia! LandOps does it again...


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[Retired Tanker]

Uh, ventilation? Carbon monoxide poisoning?

 

[dcoy]

"Don't do what we did" :ylsmoke:

 

[Ferraritech]

How were you recording your position underground in order to find your way back? Old school dropping bread crumbs or did you have a more technical method?

 

[Heading Out]

If you have never been to the Reward Mine, I can tell you it is well worth the trip, and with regard to ventilation, when I have been there at the opening you can drive into, there was a steady cool breeze coming from inside the mine, lots of airflow.

My friends and I found this place Thirty-some years ago, while participating in an annual sports car time trials event on the airfield nearby, before the Interwebs, I just hope this place will not be destroyed by Knuckleheads with no respect for the history or future explorers. If you choose to go here please be respectful.

 

[LandOps]

I was wondering why some of us never made it out, LOL. I don't know how many cubic yards of space there are in this mine but it is significant. However, we only took 5 -6 trucks in at a time. There are vent shafts that draft up and you can feel the draft. Turning the engine off when you arrive is also the best practice.

 

[LandOps]

Grease pencil on the wind shield. High tech. There's a short clip in the video at 0:29 seconds on. In all honesty, the off shoots don't go too far and it would be hard to get lost.

 

[Cruiser79]

[video]https://youtu.be/RRhYJke7MXA[/video]

100% electric landcruiser

 

[Tatted]

WOW, very fun adventure, I would love that

 

[LandOps]

Right, we pre-ran the mine in three trucks before the rest of the group arrived. We found up shafts that created a noticeable draft inside the mine. The cubic yards in this mine are so significant and with the venting it was not a problem. Or course we shut off our engines when we got to the end. All three parakeets died, but not from carbon monoxide poisoning. Autopsy indicates two died of RF poisoning and one died of pure fear.

No animals were used in this test, only humans.

 

[LandOps]

The mine is pretty much one track that is hard to deviate from. It's basically an in and out trip. You really can't get lost by taking a spur.

 

[KTM-Todd]

It's how on the bucket list. I've seen people on dirt bike in the mine never Jeeps. I'm going to be in the area middle of April. Not going to tell my wife you can drive in and just pull up and head in.

 

[LandOps]

Leeky Feeder antenna and cave radio

We've been having discussion in QRZ about very Low RF radios that are considered "Cave" Radios. We will be looking into this the next time we visit the mine with Land Ops. Or use LF SSB such as this:
Cave Radio 185 kHz SSB transceiver