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 Post subject: Our Expeditions To Cold Springs & Dixie Valley Nevada On 2/7
PostPosted: Wed Feb 11, 2015 1:07 pm 
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Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2007 10:38 am
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Location: Las Vegas, NV
Our Expeditions To Cold Springs & Dixie Valley Nevada On 2/7/15.........

I often spend allot of my time in the winters exploring Northern Nevada then again the high desert in the winter months is more welcoming. You do not have rattle snakes and it surely is not to hot. If you also take those two into consideration its also very desolate this time of year and you will be lucky if you ever see any human being on any of the expeditions we go on. During the warmer months I work allot with the Sierras and around California. While in the cooler months I try to work with parts of Nevada such as ghost towns and mines since its much safer and the weather works in our favor.

Before I get on with my report let me just say I was really disappointed to learn as off current the county is going to demolish American Flats near Virginia City. Our team had done multiple investigations there but a piece of history will soon be lost. One of the largest concrete structures and mills in the US back in the 1920's with tunnels all being demolished. So trust me when I say this the locations in this report and the additions to our site may be all that is left of such locations so its important that we all do our part to keep the dream alive and these historic sites! When I think that a historic site like the flats could be torn down I can see after this expedition that many other similar sites may not prevail either like the ones you find in our reports.

This current expedition was a bit extensive it was bigger then I ever thought it would be and a great start to February's bucket list of adventures. To be a good explorer you cannot take short cuts sometimes you see a mine on the mountain you have to climb up to get to it other times you might have to hike through the desert just to get to some old stone ruins. But I never leave a stone unturned I am not afraid to leave my jeep and go off into the wilderness on foot that is what produces results and well when you see television shows most of the investigators never get to travel more then 100' however I experience full freedom so when you enter my world its just you, me and the great outdoors! I would rather toke, off road, hike to the top of mountains and seek out the strange then to be someone's puppet. Therefore I do what I do out of enjoyment not because I want fame or fortune.

Allot goes into what we do granted you may not think so but it cost money for us to drive hundreds of miles to locations. Then we spend time packing the jeep with food, supplies, water, paranormal gear, clothes etc All our trips require us to leave early or we do not beat dusk and nightfall in a ghost town you wont find much because they are very scattered therefore you could be staring a miners cabin in your face and would not see it. Plus I want to give our viewers the scenery, videos, nature etc. so we really go all out there is allot of effort that goes into this all the way from offroading to funding these research trips.

In this case we would be heading up to Cold Springs which is on the loneliest highway in America besides its not to far from Austin which is something ill bring you guys either this year or next. That is one hell of a ghost town but prior to ghost towns you had the Overland, Telegraph Repeater and Pony Express Stations throughout northern central Nevada and today some of them still exist.

Then if you head up to a place called Dixie Valley you can go up into the mountains along the eastern edge of the valley to visit ghost towns like Wonder and Hercules. So our trip was very much extensive and we had allot of ground to cover. The thing about going up into the Nevada Mountains is you start to realize there are many forested mountain ranges above the high desert which could hold UFO activity or even Bigfoot.

Nevada is such a diverse state with timeless scenic views and so many offbeat places its something everybody should experience even if its just once so if your willing to visit here I am willing to include you in our journeys as I have a jeep so it takes me anywhere I want to go period! Allot of ghost towns, mountain ranges,wilderness, ancient sites, desertscapes and more dirt roads that you cannot possibly fathom then anywhere else in the country.

We would have to leave very early sometimes I spend the entire night prepping so I do not get very much sleep. Then again I am excited because out at these locations I can do UFO and Ghosts Research. Most of these places we go are UFO hot spots if they are not then its the ghosts of the past that haunt such historic sites which again are very remote so it makes it a bit easier to do what we have to do to bring our viewers a good investigation.

The one thing you will see allot of hiking in Nevada are wild Mustangs, cattle on free roaming the wilderness, antelope, eagles, deer, cougars, black bear and so much more. Sometimes you do not get to see allot of wildlife but other times its abundant depending on what ghost towns you visit or the time of day. I am a history buff as some of you know but I love nature too so when I explore my eyes are always looking out to capture some of the best nature photography possible again so our viewers can enjoy all that a given location has to offer if that makes sense.

Our trip would not be easy it never is their are risk involved once you leave the pavement and even on the pavement there is nothing out there in the center of Nevada. You have no gas stations if you find one gas is double priced. There are no markets or restaurants so if your hungry your going to stay that way. Its so important to prep even in the winter you still have to keep fluids up when hiking because allot of what we do is offroad to these locations then we hike at them also conducting research.

I am very thankful that my family helps me but when it comes the more iffy or dangerous things my family does not get involved with it. I do while they either wait or communicate with me via radio because honestly there are some mines I wont let my family and ill do them myself while other mines are very small and safe. So you have to really decide where to go and what to do when your in no mans land. The west was dangerous in the 1800's and not much has changed people still die out there or come up missing forever so you have to know the lay of the land.

We would take it to the road early in the morning getting our coffees at our favorite place which is Maverick they have all sorts of types including double shots of Irish Creme Coffees to Guatemalan Sunrise. Throw in a few doughnuts and breakfast sandwiches your good to go lol. To get to Cold Springs we would have over a couple hours of driving and when they say its the most loneliness highway in America they are not kidding halfway there past Fallon there was no vehicles that time of morning and so our adventure begins here.

Cold Springs Nevada

We had just gotten almost 24 hours of rain so I was not sure what the weather would be like in Cold Springs but I did manage to pull ahead of a storm. Even though it sprinkled on and off the sunrise was beautiful to watch as we headed eastbound across northern Nevada.

I was nearly in Cold Springs when I came across a well known site called the shoe tree. Its this massive lone tree on the side of the road with a thousand pairs of shoes thrown up into it. While many of the shoes hang off branches some brand new others like kids flip flops there is at least a thousand pairs surrounding the trunk that fell from broken branches and winds. The shoe tree was fun to see but its a bit creepy also to see in the middle of nowhere. It sure makes me wonder how one day people begin to toss shoes up onto it so indeed it was our first oddity of the day.

Our first arrival would be the Overland Station which is this set of massive ruins including a wall which led to the nearby telegraph repeater ruins. There was also a couple sets of living quarters, guest room, kitchen, three corrals, stables and even a blacksmith. It was built in 1861 and eventually the old Pony Express used this building as their headquarters as one of the plaques stated.

Many of the walls at the Overland Station are merely only a few feet high but this station was one of the main ones on the Overland Route. I guess that as a stage stop it was an important place for wagons to stop to fuel up for the rest of their journey towards the Sierras.

This was a place they could keep there horses safe and make sure they had some water before heading back out on the road. Also goods and mail could be transported here as the Overland and the Pony Express were a bit in competition with one another except that one offered some services to travelers on the road as to where the other one did not. While Wells Fargo also used these stations and break while carrying currency at the time.

The views were amazing surrounded the station but its ashamed to see that its also in a state of crumbling and disrepair even though some restoration has taken place. Its so much easier to show videos, pictures and do a history write up on each of the locations of the stone ruins. Jarrod and I would take readings here along with EVP.

I would then take a dirt road which led me to the ruins of the old Transcontinental Telegraph Repeater Station which believe it or not was built also in 1861 but just prior to the Overland Stations construction. Incredibly its not much different then the Overland Station nearby however this station is just half of the size but still a very large set of ruins to check out.

This station had a few rooms one may have been for livestock while another one was the telegraph room while the other room may have housed the caretakers or been rather the living quarters which were a bit cramped. I did the telegraph station by myself very quickly as the station seemed to be in worst condition then the Overland Station unfortunately. But back in the day messages through the wires was state of the art now look at our society we have the Internet and it can be wireless on our cell phones.

I think its kind of odd to see a telegraph station in the middle of nowhere sure some ghost towns had them but this is all by its lonesome not to far from the Overland Station. I guess the principal was that guest would water down there horses and stay the night at the Overland Station while walking over to the telegraph station to send a message to perhaps loved ones letting them know they were still alive. Life was dangerous in this region people were killed all the time in Indian raids seriously!

Not only that but this is a region full of strange lore such as giants, mummies and even UFO landing sites. So you can only imagine what these early settlers may have experienced while en route to the stations for safety. While one could get a fresh steak from the cattle that were butchered at the station food and supplies was scarce so you made due with what you had.

Across the road almost directly is the trail head which takes you to the old Pony Express Station built in 1860. Interesting enough if your into history like me then you can read a bunch of cool plaques about the Pony Express like how it begin, fastest rider, trials, tribulations etc.

Standing at the trail head made me feel small your literally surrounded by the Augusta and Desatoya Mountain Ranges both which are forested and connect to other mountain ranges with national forest on them. There is also allot of hot springs in the area and two creeks I believe both were dry because I checked. Many of the peaks in that area are very large therefore they had some snow on them so it just made the hike more cozy for me and comfortable. I love this time of year because the snow really makes the peaks stand out more.

Our journey would take us two miles across the desert floor but at the same time we were ascending into the Desatoya Mountain Range almost. There was a peak in the background that reminded me of being in the sierras or even Mount Zion with cliffs, woods and snow just overshadowing the station off in the distance.

BTW you will not see the station until you get about a half of mile away since it sort of is hidden by sage brush and hilly terrain. Not allot of people come out here you could tell its very remote and from what I learned about folks is that the moment they leave the pavement they start to freak out. My family is use to me taking them to remote locations so for us its just part of our lives ya know?

We did reach the Pony Express Station I was amazed at how high the walls were here these ruins were amazing. I was hoping to see some antelope come down from the woods behind the station but instead I see a few hawks and eagles swooping down for rodents on the desert floor. There was a few giant hares around also one of them was very large and to fast for me to photograph. But back in the day the men at the Pony Express did hunt wild rabbits which seem to be in abundance here.

I spent most of my time at this station perhaps because it was my favorite being the oldest. These ruins also had gun ports something I also seen at the Overland Station. You have to understand that any station in Northern NV became victims of Indian Raids, attacks and in most cases men were killed. At least at every station one or two deaths would occur. The gun ports here were used as a means of protection as to where the couriers could put there rifles out the ports and fire upon any attackers.

This station was attacked several times its station keeper was even killed but no less the layout was interesting. The station had living quarters with a fireplace still in tact, corral for the horses, livery stables which was also used for storage, blacksmith shop, hay storage room and even a maintenance shop. The station no less was a mini fortress the walls being three feet thick, ruins 151' in length by probably 50' wide so by any means they were not that small but still the natives felt that stations like these were a threat to there lands especially during the Paiute Indian Wars.

Generally a rider for the Pony Express would finish his 35 mile trek then switch out with another courier here while resting up at the station. Plus it allowed that courier to rest his horse while another horse that was well rested could be used to deliver mail leading up until the next station.

The springs and creek that run along the stations living quarters wall ran dry. I am sure with the snow melt of the mountains behind might cause some water flow in the Spring but the water today is more scarce then it was back in the 1800's then again winters were five times harsher in Nevada as opposed to today's times in the region.

I really tried to take in the history here perhaps it was just the views that kept me here longer besides the need to smoke one out of celebration to be able to see such a grand set of stone ruins. As a matter in fact all three stations have some of the best preserved lava rock stone ruins in the state. They were masterpieces of their day as every rock had to be fitted with mortar and be able to withstand attacks from Indian raids.

I made sure that I filmed and photographed thoroughly every station that includes the plaques all the way to the remnants and layouts of every room within every station. So that schools can use this expedition as not only a historical learning tool but about preservation and what really opened up the doorway into the wild west. If it were not for these stations its possible that allot of the towns that exist today in Nevada may have very well ceased to exist but instead the mail, stage stations etc drew in people to try to make a life here out west as well as curiosities even though most pioneers knew of its dangers.

One thing I learned is life was not easy at any of the stations. You butchered and hunted for your own food, collected water in hopes that while doing so you were not killed by Indians and you made your own furniture. You did not have luxury here and while the living quarters at each station served as means for activities the men at the stations did allot of drinking because for them life was remote as well as less exciting most of the time.

These are some the finest stone ruins in the state they need protection and they need more press that is why I did it. Now whether I captured anything paranormal here that will be something ill have to check out when reviewing photos, recordings etc. but honestly I did not go here to find ghosts I came here because I feel this will be an important educational addition on our site that could benefit many schools across the nation since these three historical sites seem to have a very deep enriched history even before NV became a state!

We would hike our two miles back I was enjoying views of the Augusta Range which is also known to some as the Alpine Clad Range. No less would we have to keep moving we had much more work ahead of us. I would take us up the road to a place called Middlegate Station which is also historic. But today not much of it remains but the saloon and the gas station. If you ask me gas is far to high here so I just figured forget it I had plenty to get me up into Dixie Valley which is about 8 miles from the station. But no less the station was cool they had a bunch of old wagons and stage coaches. On one of them was a kitty which I petted while walking by we would then head on off to our next destination of Wonder Nevada.

Wonder Nevada

When you turn onto the road which takes you up into Dixie Valley there are turn offs in every direction. Some lead to old ghost town sites others lead up into the various mountain ranges. Technically this valley to the west has the Stillwater Range which we been on the otherside of back in December when we did the preserve and ghost town of Stillwater. While on the eastern end of the valley you have the Chalk Mountains which meet up to the NE with the Alpine Clad Mountains.

Our offroad journey would take us in a canyon between the Chalk and Alpine Clad Mountains in this valley where the ghost town of Wonder is found. If you were to head down Dixie Valley for about 20 miles maybe more you would come across the old ghost town of Dixie Valley which was a ranching community. It is also a ghost town which merely has been erased over the years.

Today the ghost town of Dixie Valley is really off limits as its just a giant chess board for Naval bombers to target abandoned ranches or for NATO to train at. While some areas of Dixie Valley are public lands other areas are part of the Naval base near by therefore armored trucks and even some soldiers living in some of the houses out here is one of the reasons I chose to focus more on Wonder and Hercules since they were vacated. While I was heading out here

Once we veered east and went up into the canyon we could no longer see Dixie Valley no less the area we were at was very beautiful with allot of rolling hills, dunes, desertscapes and beautiful rippling mountains. I seen a mine all by itself the dump pile was small so the tunnel probably only went 50' back. Mining here was mainstream just as the ranchers of Dixie Valley would provide food and livestock for the miners of nearby towns like Wonder, Hercules and Victor. Since they were secluded mining camps and towns they relied on getting supplies from the valley below.

Along the road we found these giant blue water bins which looked like children swimming pools. It appears that maybe a water truck comes by to fill these for the cattle or maybe the wild mustangs. Lets face it water is becoming scarce in Nevada preserves, lakes, rivers, streams etc are all drying up. Its sad because this year these canyons and valleys may not be as green as they should either will the forest which just reside higher up above the valley floor.

When we were about halfway to Wonder we seen all sorts of cattle by the dirt road just grazing while off in the distance we spotted two to three groups of wild mustangs. One of the Mustangs was completely white just gorgeous and this is what the wild west is truly about. Your not going to see wild Mustangs in NYC or even find somewhere as remotely offbeat as Wonder is so its a treat to see them.

Then the canyon narrows you follow this wash its fairly deep which means for centuries water came flowing through here and maybe even flash floods. The skies were turning dark gray I was a bit concerned because at times the road crosses this wash and well if it rains in the mountains then that just means anytime you could be blindsided by a wall of water which I almost was back in 2008 in the Mojave Desert outside of Vegas.

Once we came out of the canyon we came into this valley it had crossroads reminded me out of something you would see in the series Supernatural! I seen this foundation but was filming and well I lost it which was weird, I lost it because while I was filming from the truck riding down the outskirts of Wonder I decided to scope out the area first make sure there was anyone shooting guns or wild animals etc. Sad to say on my way out of town never did I see that foundation again but it was hidden by sage brush then again I felt when I entered the town site many things were consumed by nature.

We would go down this hill then take this long dirt road past the crossroads heading over this hill which brought us into another valley. Only this time to my left I could see the Wonder Mill which went many tiers up the side of this mountain while above it was a honeycomb of mines.

Just below the mill appears to be the main site of the town keep in mind this was not a small place. This location had a church, saloons, hotels, cafes, stores, sports lounge, boarding houses, school, stagecoach stop and even a freight depot. So you could see the plot of the town itself as many streets are present but it is the streets that really tell a much more deeper story as among them is debris but other then the massive mill the town is just GONE!

We drove though town for awhile could not even find the cemetery which had two to three graves of men who died of strange deaths. When I say strange I mean falling rocks, death by falling down a mine shaft because the miner was riding the carts and mining accidents such as walls giving away causing them to be crushed. Death surrounding this mill and mine were horrifying so it was important we did an investigation of what we had. As far as the existence of the small cemetery in theory it may not even stand the graves could be on the ground while sage brush consumes them. Places like this often get vandalized so for me its important to get what we can on video and photography wise. So if anyone has photos of the graveyard submit them to us please however my theory is that its possible that the men who died in Wonder may also haunt Wonder if that makes sense!

We would eventually take a road up to the mines and what is also known as Wonder Peak. If you do not like hikes then taking this road is not an option because out here in the west your going to grace cliffs and steep dirt roads. When you do it enough times its nothing but its a steep climb to the top where I wanted to check out the mines first.

Sadly the first Mine I went down into was caved in when I crawled into this hole however the view was really breathtaking with the ghost town of Hercules to my left. It also gave me views of the Chalk Mountains to my left while to my right you could see the forested Alpine Clad Range which fog and snow looming over a couple of its peaks. I could also see over the Chalk Mountains and Hercules Canyon into Dixie Valley with the Stillwater Mountains in the background far away so the jaunt was BREATHTAKING!

I followed the mining road along the top of the peak it switched back and every single fenced in area was a shaft. More then likely the men were lowered down or worked along these shafts suspended in mid air. It is not safe to be near these shafts just a forewarning as I check every ghost town for its safety which might help other explorers. The shafts here can go as far down as 1,100' down so the entire mountain probably has tunnels within while what was taken out of the mines could be directly processed at the mill below.

I found this massive diagonal crevice it was deep I stood near a fence and seen a bunch of wood beams that kept continuing down into the darkness. Its hard to explain but it appeared they found a quartz or ore vein then continued to mine diagonally down for hundreds of feet. The wood beams then are put between the crevice to make that shaft more stable however on both ends of the crevices are drop offs one is really slanted so if you were to slip you would fall to your death just being honest.

There were more shafts near the peak most collapsed while some mines went a few feet back but nothing that was explorable. On the north side of the peak I seen allot of strip mining being done some of it looked new which means someone is up here doing mining I found proof of that when I visited the ghost town of Hercules later on. I did slip sliding down a hill near the mill but not near a mine shaft thankfully; however I thought to myself that if they did not have fences who knows maybe more accidents might happen where people slip and end up falling down a shaft. While some open shafts only are a few feet deep there are others in some ghost towns that can drop off hundreds of feet one fall and you can count your goodbyes as a matter in fact you wont have time to count so be careful trust me I know.

There was one area I ripped my pants on barbed wire but its a mine entrance but you have to climb down a steep bank then there is a tunnel about two feet wide. I did not go in there then again I had good reason since before you even enter into Dixie Valley there is Fairview Peak which seems to be a focal point for earthquake activity. I guess in 1954 a major quake hit the area it was a 7.3 and it left massive fault lines in the region so probably crawling in a tiny hole is not the best of ideas knowing that factor. Other then that there is allot of open pits found another crevice I could crawl down into that was not deep but mines here are just not good for exploring.

We decided to head to the Wonder Mill where we had lunch on the back of the jeep. There was a newer outhouse on site and a few manmade fire pits which means people must come to the mill to camp. Some of the campers used the stones and bricks to form the fire pits at the bottom of the mill. While the mill has at least four to five tiers going up the mountain then above that are the mines where we were just at. Its a pretty cool system actually when you think about it but if the mine went bust so did the mill then the town.

The mill site appeared to have been renovated or at least to have some add on's. Let me explain the bottom of the mill had similar volcanic rock walls very typical of the 1860 time period. While further up the hill the mill was made with concrete foundations and even rebar. Its possible they built on top of the old mill if there was one present or that the mill was once something prior to it becoming one.

My sons and Tammy went metal detecting we use to not do that but after I seen what has been being done to these ghost towns I am trying to preserve what little history remains. Therefore my kids found an old rusty metal spoon around the 4th tier of the mill. Some miner or mill worker may have eaten his beans on lunch break or something leaving his spoon behind therefore it could have sat there for a century so that was cool. When we metal detect its not anything other then to teach the public about the artifacts of the past.

What was really cool is below the mill in the desert you will find allot of debris such as TNT rusty boxes, bean cans, cables and other pieces of mine machinery. About halfway up the mill are remnants of the old cyanide tanks used for ore processing while there is a metal chute of some kind and allot of sheet metal used as roofing in the early 1900's. While some of the mill has massive wood beams which probably held up the floor the mill today is a mere skeleton of its former glory but still worth checking out.

I climbed every single tier stood on top of concrete walls and tried to find any remnants that I could document via film or photo for our viewers. Its rather extensive but each tier holds something unique or different. At one time when the mill stood from town it looked like a large factory and probably had even smoke stacks no doubt. While standing on the mill you could get a better perspective of the original town site.

Unfortunately it rained for a half hour hardcore my cam was getting wet and all my gear. I was soaked so was everybody and no we did not deter. We actually stuck it out in the rain because temperatures by noon reached 63 degrees so it really was not that cold but the fog rolled in the canyon and I thought wow this is the end of scenic photography here which was not the case it would clear up eventually.

At the bottom of the mill is also the mines vault which may have held the gold and silver processed at the mill its hard to say. The vault is just this massive concrete structure that is missing its door but I have seen similar ones in other ghost towns. This is what kept the outlaws from robbing such sites because the vault was a strong hold at that time impenetrable unless you had dynamite and even then the blast might throw coin for hundreds of feet.

I also found big rusty ore bins and my son found a bunch of old rusted bolts at the mill. He also found allot of old broken glass while I photographed some of them just to show you what remains which is very little trust me. There is allot of mangled and twisted metal on site so if you like rust your going to see allot of that as well here. There was also old rusted buckets and we also noticed an extensive pipe system as water was diverted towards town just another fact.

I did trek through the desert a bit found nothing but a few pipes, metal scraps, sheet metal for roofing and pieces of wood. It just appears as if the entire town has vanished and I understand some pioneers of these towns used tents with canvas but still you would think as large as this place was at one time there would be more left. We spent a good hour driving around the town site and found nothing really so we had no choice but to move onto Hercules as the sun was beginning to set.

Hercules Nevada

When you leave Wonder you head back on out and then drive into another adjacent canyon nearby which is called Hercules Canyon hence named after the town. It did not take long for us to start seeing nature again as we entered the canyon their was cattle grazing everywhere which is kind of creepy when you pull up on them and they all stare at the same time.

In Hercules Canyon their are offshoots most of them are dead ends but at one time those dead ends is where the miners had tents or cabins. It may have even better where a general store once stood or a saloon. These camps did also have brothels and even hotels. I know the town of Hercules had a big hotel but it burned down where it stood I could not tell you as nature has taken over the canyon much like the town of Wonder.

The canyon road at times gets narrow while it follows and even crosses what some call the Horse Wash. Again we had to be very careful it rained prior to this so at anytime water could come rushing down which is why some ghost towns in Nevada were wiped out and people died that is the truth!

We came up on a pond also manmade or not who knows but it appears a rancher may be using it for his cattle possibly. At the pond were 10 Mustangs drinking two were just babies there backs would not have even came up to my chest they were so small and well guarded as they all fled for higher ground as we drove past them. These wild horses are not as friendly as the ones I came across up near Virginia City but still they are free and to me that means something.

There was a mining road to our left it actually takes you to this big canyon nearly up to the top of the Chalk Mountains to various mines that were part of a district. But it was not the mining road that caught our eye what really captured our interest is that to our left was a massive ravine with this 150' wall of pink quartz or maybe mercury stained quartz! It was gorgeous as cattle were grazing above the ravine and below it so I had to get out to do some photography.

The sun was going down quick but it just was barely reaching over the Chalk Mountains thus Wonder Peak and its foothills were all illuminated by a golden glow and I captured a million dollar photo. It looks almost like the Sahara desert seriously but to get that shot I had to hike up a very rocky mining road for over a half of mile so that I could look down into Hercules Canyon and see the all of Wonder Peak. Even as I looked up and across at the peak I could see the dirt roads I walked on when I was looking for a mine to explore.

After having a moment in peace I decided to look around for any viable mines to explore. I did not find anything when I reached the top of the mining road but a bunch of dump piles but no entrances into mines. Their was a road that zigzagged right over the Chalk Mountains into Dixie Valley so its possible there might have been something on the other side but another mile of hiking meant that we would not make it to the town with any light. I wanted good photos of Hercules since I been reading that so many are having trouble finding the main town site so I was destined to bring it!

I was by myself in the mining district it was like being in a giant bowl looking across the canyon and down into a ravine with pinkish rock while cattle were on ridges grazing. It kind of was surreal if those words make sense or to put it in a way that everyone can understand.

I think these were strip mines up here also I found a piece of rebar protruding out of the ground possibly a grave marker since when miners died some of them were just buried that way. It was a bit eerie in this area I did take EVP and EMF here and you could see fresh earth mover tracks which means someone recently has been mining the hillsides in the old Hercules mining district NO doubt!

It was nice to see the sun coming out the gray clouds disappeared and it really was in the 50's which you will not find to many places in the country that have those nice temperatures this time of year. So I enjoyed my nature and scenic hike very much but was upset that I never seen Hercules International which was a big hunk of rusty mining machinery now gone. Its possible that its further down the canyon but we did eventually get to the town site and never seen this colossal beast which resided right next to the main canyons road.

Prior to reach the town site we found a mine that was at the bottom of Wonder Mountain or at least next to it. Its possible that this tunnel connected to the mines above since id say that if they dug over 1,100' shafts from the top of the peak then to the bottom of Hercules Canyon is about this distance.

When I climbed the debris pile I went into the mine and someone had recently put up steel bars preventing me from going any further. I am not sure why this was done unless these new mining companies put them there to prevent being sued by careless explorers as you know some people sue for their own carelessness! But it ruins it for people like you and me who are safe who want to see early mining history as the mines are just as much of a big part as the ghost town itself!!!! All I could do is peer down a long tunnel it seemed very safe had a very high ceiling and was very wide with very strong rocky walls then again most Silver Mines are very safe.

After a couple miles I was wondering if we would ever see the town itself because every off chute was a dead end. However a little past the mine to our right was another road that led up into this canyon that is the backdoor into Wonder while a road before also does the same it also could take you 80 miles so again you have to know where to go or you could get lost run out of gas and even die out here seriously!

We were lucky to find the road to the right because the hill led us into the core of the mining camp. I found two miner cabins one appeared to have been later used as a chicken coop while the other deeper in the canyon had a front and a back door. The backdoor could barely open as it was facing a steep hill not sure who built it like this but miners were good at getting the Silver here not being architects.

The canyon had various piles of wood which signify where small cabins may have stood or even tents. We also found a second mine which recently a metal tube was put over the entrance which I crawled on in and that led me to a set of steel bars. However this was still a very rich silver mine I shined my light into the mine while filming a video and you can see it twinkling like a planetarium or the night sky its so cool.

I also found a tram system which was collapsed but at one time the ore carts could transport ore from the mine 50' to a chute which then could be exported for processing. I assume that Hercules either exported the ore to the Wonder Mill or maybe there was one in the mining district which I seen no sign of except for a piece of rebar protruding out of the ground.

The town site is scattered for example above the miners cabins is a few giant iron bolts protruding out of the top of the ridge which could have been an area the tram connected too. There was cans, broken glass and allot of twisted mangled sheet metal. I found also allot of wood boards some TNT metal boxes but what was left was very little. I seen a fenced in mine shaft up on a hill nearby which means that maybe these silver mines had ventilation as well.

I was able to get what was left of the town right before dark I made it in time there is about 3 to 4 structures that are barely standing which very few have gotten to see. I think people are so focused on the road ahead they forget that the town built most of its residential areas up in the canyons.

Just before sun down I looked up seen a couple eagles perhaps hawks hard to tell but they were dive bombing towards the ground perhaps to get one last meal. Meanwhile across the canyon I could see all those wild horses I seen earlier on the expedition walking along a ridge. I took a photo but all you can see is black silhouettes of the mustangs its pretty cool they were heading on over into Dixie Valley.

I did my best to ghosts bust Hercules took some EVP, photos and videos. There just is not enough to check out here it was not as big as some of the ghost towns we have gone to then again was this really ever a town or was it just a camp that one day went bust?

By then the sun was completely down so that sort of put a thorn into my plans as I had wanted to visit the town site of Victor which is gone but the view of Dixie Valley is great. Basically if you keep taking Hercules Canyon it veers to the west and eventually descents into the valley. The problem was it was to dark to take the scenic loop and the other one was gas. We had to make sure we could get back to the highway and to Fallon which was a good distance away.

We would turn around were not sure if there is anymore left of Hercules but from everything I read there is a book that mentions only two structures remain and I managed to find at least 3 in tact and one that collapsed but you could still make out what it use to be. So for me that is as good as gold and we came out of the day nearly rain free despite the poor weather NV had for 26 hours of precipitation and exploring some really great sites. Sites like Cold Springs Overland, Telegraph and Pony Express Stations, Wonder and Hercules Nevada. We experienced fog, rain, sun, winds, wild mustangs and cattle grazing along old wagon roads. We lived the west and we were going home with good feelings that we had no flats or ran into any issues.

As the sun went down I could see Fairview Mountain straight ahead of us as we entered Dixie Valley. The stars were coming out and if you ever see Fairview Peak then you know its a beast. The mountain itself looks like a volcano and at one time it was but it has a pretty steep incline to it and a very small peak. Then again many of the rock formations found around Fairview and Dixie Valley reminded me a bit of being in Utah as there are mesas and very strange rock formations found in this area. It is very unique to drive around the area and well our night drive out of this location was still very beautiful as at night many desert rodents come out and they like to play a game of dodge tire just as much as the rabbits seem to purposely be suicidal at times I swear lol.

We had a long journey home it was dusk it still gets dark early especially due to the fact that the sun sets behind the mountains. Its much different living in areas without hills and terrain because darkness does not set in as quick so for us were very limited on what we can and cannot do. No less I investigated, explored and paranormal investigated every site I could do. I tried to get into quite a few mines also but it appears that more and more of them are being closed up keeping people like me out of them which is unfortunate since its the mines that have some of the best paranormal activity based on my experiences.

When I arrived home we had pizza lined up then I watched Grimm and Constantine. I was looking forward to the VIP Brunch we had the following morning. I looked forward to drinking some Cabernet and enjoying a nice meal. My knee is so so the procedure I had two weeks ago was supposed to cut out some of the pain its temporary and its already wearing off but it did not stop me from our goals. I wish we did not run out of time because id loved to have seen the scenery in Dixie but then again there is always another day to explore. My goal however is preservation, education and most of all safety. So I try to bring all three to all the work that I do because the benefits of what we do can have long term effects so that these locations stay alive.

My final conclusion is that there is allot more to see not so much with the stations in Cold Springs but Hercules and Wonder both have remnants hidden or consumed by nature. Its as if the desert as reclaimed both towns even though they exist very little remains. But in my opinion I feel in my heart they are haunted good men died and were cheated out of life due to accidents that could have been prevented. I can only hope that we can put all the beauty, nature and even the strange all together for our viewers to enjoy for years to come. We did research history we lived in it experiencing a nice finish with a pink and golden wild western sunset with wild horses galloping along the jeep made the journey 110 percent worthwhile! I did allot of toking just relaxing in front of the beautiful mountains and we ate good on this trip so it was a blast. What I can tell you is once these places hit our site they will come nothing short of stellar this is Pony Express territory and its some of the most beautiful country in the Silver State!!!

Someday these places will be gone they already are almost gone I look back and think if I would have came here first a few years ago I may have seen something that I now will not get to see. For example the Silver Mines in Hercules you once could explore but they are sealed now just as Hercules International is nowhere to be found perhaps someone sold it for its scrap metal. These things left behind from the past is what gives a ghost town character sadly they are being destroyed or robbed. So everything we are doing is with just cause so that people can enjoy ghost towns that once brought the wild west to life because someday my friends they will be gone forever but perhaps not the ghost that haunt them!!!
Peace,
Lord Rick
PGS Founder

PS All reports are subject to change or be edited this is just a draft before it gets put onto our site months later along with media, photos, history, paranormal finds etc etc.

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Love is like a ghost sometimes you cannot see it but it is There


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