Monday, November 23, 2009

Old Mines: Abbadon and Gehenna

Two posts from the excellent writer "Nagrom" at Rum and Donuts. The first is
an essay on an acquaintance of ours who died exploring one of the old mines in the Magdalena mountains
(our mountain range probably has a hundred such-- someone with the knowledge could doubtless cross the range underground). The second is a poem about his attraction to such hidden places. Read, as they say, the whole thing.

1 comment:

Nagrom said...

Steve, Thank you for the praise and the links.

You're quite right, as far as I know, about crossing the range.
Kelly and Waldo together make up over 50 miles of tunnels (on multiple levels, going quite deep) - That's not counting Germany, Juanita, or the dozens upon dozens of other mines up there. Some small, some extensive, and many places where one breaks into another, or has collapsed into it. A lot of possibilities there.
If no others cross the range, Waldo does or so I've been told - There is a "rear" entrance on the other side of the mountain, which is a 200 foot or so drop (well, there is supposed to be a ladder... save a few spans where its missing. Of course, the rest is dry rotted according to the last person I know to've rappelled past it 20 years ago or so).
The Magdalena mining district is so rich with history, and the remains of the mines. I'm just slowly coming to grips with how much is really there.

As time goes on, these places will get harder and harder to get into and document. State efforts to close off "abandoned mine lands" are always churning, though slowly. Natural processes work faster than anything against the mines in places. Many places that were reportedly safe a decade or two ago are no longer.
Where caves stay stable for great lengths of time, mines are always trying to return to their natural state of being closed.
Very interesting places, and potentially dangerous... But a great adventure.