Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Part 2 is here. Last time, we dug open a portal sealed for 130 years — then the air meters went off and we had to stop. Today we go back in.
Before we even step through, the hillside starts making a deep, hollow booming sound none of us can explain. Once inside, this old drift keeps the surprises coming: intact wooden mine rails, iron spikes, strap rail, and an old oil can left behind by miners — with dates carved into the timber reading 1904 to 1908. We trace multiple quartz veins loaded with limonite, calcite, and manganese oxide staining, cross a basaltic andesite dike contact, and hit a heavily altered high-sulfation zone soft enough to dig with your fingers.
The question that follows us the whole way: why did the original miners leave veins like this behind? We pulled rock samples throughout the drift to find out — lab results (and whether there's gold in this rock) are coming in Part 3.
Huge thanks to Tyler for digging like a machine, and a shoutout to geologist Alex, who's helping us survey and sample this mine properly.
▶️ Missed Part 1? Watch it here: youtu.be/Qw2ETtm-CfU
⏱️ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 – Strange hollow booming sound from the hillside
1:39 – Digging out the entrance
2:34 – Going down into the hole
3:43 – Back inside the drift
4:04 – First quartz vein
5:41 – Old mine rails and ties
6:24 – Mine cart evidence & spikes
7:33 – Manganese oxide, limonite, calcite in the vein
8:24 – Dates carved in the timber: 1904–1908
9:30 – Deeper into the drift
10:09 – Basaltic dike contact & alteration zone
11:53 – Cross-cutting vein, more samples
12:30 – Collapse area near the shaft
13:12 – Calcite stringers
13:49 – Tyler gets in there and digs
14:15 – More veins in the basalt
15:22 – How the old rail/tie system was built
15:36 – High sulfation alteration zone
16:25 – More veins & a mystery can
17:03 – Intersecting the upper shaft
17:33 – Final veins, wrap-up, and what's next
💰 WANT A SHOT AT REAL GOLD?
Every month we give away 10 bags of rich paydirt straight from our drift mine, PLUS a Gold Monster 1000 metal detector and a King dry washer. All it takes is a $10 Patreon pledge — look for the icon at the end of this video to join.
#goldmining #goldprospecting #abandonedmine #lodegold #goldmine #mineexploration #historicmine #prospecting #metaldetecting #goldpanning #mininghistory #mineshaft #hardrockmining #treasurehunting #askjeffwilliams
Part 2 is here. Last time, we dug open a portal sealed for 130 years — then the air meters went off and we had to stop. Today we go back in.
Before we even step through, the hillside starts making a deep, hollow booming sound none of us can explain. Once inside, this old drift keeps the surprises coming: intact wooden mine rails, iron spikes, strap rail, and an old oil can left behind by miners — with dates carved into the timber reading 1904 to 1908. We trace multiple quartz veins loaded with limonite, calcite, and manganese oxide staining, cross a basaltic andesite dike contact, and hit a heavily altered high-sulfation zone soft enough to dig with your fingers.
The question that follows us the whole way: why did the original miners leave veins like this behind? We pulled rock samples throughout the drift to find out — lab results (and whether there's gold in this rock) are coming in Part 3.
Huge thanks to Tyler for digging like a machine, and a shoutout to geologist Alex, who's helping us survey and sample this mine properly.
▶️ Missed Part 1? Watch it here: youtu.be/Qw2ETtm-CfU
⏱️ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 – Strange hollow booming sound from the hillside
1:39 – Digging out the entrance
2:34 – Going down into the hole
3:43 – Back inside the drift
4:04 – First quartz vein
5:41 – Old mine rails and ties
6:24 – Mine cart evidence & spikes
7:33 – Manganese oxide, limonite, calcite in the vein
8:24 – Dates carved in the timber: 1904–1908
9:30 – Deeper into the drift
10:09 – Basaltic dike contact & alteration zone
11:53 – Cross-cutting vein, more samples
12:30 – Collapse area near the shaft
13:12 – Calcite stringers
13:49 – Tyler gets in there and digs
14:15 – More veins in the basalt
15:22 – How the old rail/tie system was built
15:36 – High sulfation alteration zone
16:25 – More veins & a mystery can
17:03 – Intersecting the upper shaft
17:33 – Final veins, wrap-up, and what's next
💰 WANT A SHOT AT REAL GOLD?
Every month we give away 10 bags of rich paydirt straight from our drift mine, PLUS a Gold Monster 1000 metal detector and a King dry washer. All it takes is a $10 Patreon pledge — look for the icon at the end of this video to join.
#goldmining #goldprospecting #abandonedmine #lodegold #goldmine #mineexploration #historicmine #prospecting #metaldetecting #goldpanning #mininghistory #mineshaft #hardrockmining #treasurehunting #askjeffwilliams
