Expedition of 6/18/2013

   Well I finely made it back to Sycamore Canyon. One of my neighbors that I had told of my hunting lost mines had made some time to go when I invited him and three weeks after we planed to go we went. A solar upgrade, goats being born and fathers day held us up but when it when it was over we ran for it. weekends  where not working so we went on a week day.

   The road was not very recognizable and no other traffic sign and the rocks had been getting larger it seemed. We found a good place for camp looked off the side canyon rim that was close to Sycamore to let Tom see the canyon and the route we were to take. We then went for a walk to the old cabin and did some metal detecting. Found a few nails, some parts of an old stove, old rusted tin cans and an old lead bottle cap buried in the dirt and leaves.
   The next day we set out early after cheesy eggs and coffee for breakfast. Heading west along the rim of the side canyon watching the other side for a place to get up to the top of that ridge. We had walked past the cabin long before we crossed. It being a cool morning we had sweaters we were taking off and stuffed them in to the back pack. In a forest like this you are stepping over dead rotting trees and to walk around or over rocks and go around or through  bushes. We were getting close to the end so we worked our way down to where we saw 3 dear. Moving farther east we came up on a cliff so we had to climbed back up to the top. Walking to nearly the end we found a way down to the point. Working through the bushes and trees we were getting scratched up pretty bad.
   We walk out on the point as far as we get across the point a cliff puts a stop at going any further but Tom is determined to go on so he starts down the side of the point in to pushes so thick he had to crawl through them. Only to end up atop a cliff and having to back back out up through the bushes. I was walking around the top looking for a spot to get down and taking pictures. No way down this is the store of most adventures always so close but just no way. We got out on the point around 11:00 AM and left it around 1:00 PM after lunch and searching around for a way down. It took over 5 hours to get there and will take that to get back to camp or more if we do some photography and looking off the edge for any sign which is what we did sense it was early enough for us to do. Working up to the top again we went toward the side of a cliff I wanted to look off of and that took nearly an hour alone.
  Getting to the top of the cliff I took some pictures and looked all along the canyon side and not understanding how any thing could be down there. We head off for camp stopping for water and taking pictures. I found a way to cross the side canyon half a mile from where we crossed in the morning. We were getting pretty beat and were glad to find a short cut that cut about 1 mile off our hike.
More to come.
See pics on the sycamore photos page.

Bigfoot

   I was contacted By one of you asking for other adventures I had so here is some strange things that happened out in sycamore canyon and yes I am talking about the post title (Bigfoot).

   I have had 2 Bigfoot encounters in sycamore canyon south west of Flagstaff Az. The first 1 happened around 10 years ago Near little low pocket with a hiking partner (Tom) after using a large stick to brake the limbs off a dead tree laying down on the ground. After dark the second time of beating the limbs off the dead tree we herd a sound that was like a deep gergling growl type of talking. Neather one of us could recognize the sound. When we got back to Cottonwood Az Tom had talked to a Native Indian about it. She had told him that it was a Bigfoot and that pounded on trees with a stick was a way that they communicated with them.
   The second time I was on the opposite side of the canyon and a mile or so south of the firsts time. My exwife and I were camping 2 years later and I was doing the same limb braking only I was using the back of an axe to brake off limbs after dark we herd the same sound in the trees about 100 feet behind us. I got up to get a hand gun from the truck for protection though we were not afraid but just to be safe. As I stood at the tailgate to get the gun I could smell an over welming stench that resembled an old blanket that was urinated on. The truck was in front of us not were the sound came from (behind us). From what we could figure there was 2 Bigfoot visiting us that night. I had taken some pictures with my digital camera of the woods around the camp the next day.When I was going through the pics I could see in 2 pics An object standing upright in 1 had moved to a different position in the other.
   I had been trying to get the pics off the hard drive this year but can not get the drive to work. I know that other people have had their own encounters because on a paved road from Williams to Perkinsville some one had painted Bigfoot prints crossing the road in 2 separate places. There are many canyons in the area other than sycamore and is very heavily wooded through out the region. There has also been a Bigfoot movie made in the area a couple years ago.

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Next Trip to Sycamore

  I have been talking with 1 of my hunting partners about going back out to Sycamore Canyon in early May. I have been going through aerial photos to see where we were going to hike for the next hunt for the Lost Village of Coconino. I found some nice sign that you can see in the pics below.

  As you can see I have marked some things that I would think what they could be. A smelter up against a cliff wall with what looks like a smoke stained wall and an X carved on a rock. The other pic it looks like a building ruin. These two places are about 1/2 mile apart. The legion talks of these but they are near each other not apart like this. I have also found other things that look kind of suspicious but they are over 1 mile away from these others.

You can see what I mean in the pics below.

I call this one the head map.

And I call this one the little village and big nose.

 This is the location of the Lost Mine with the Iron Door.

   The mine on the left is the Iron Door it would be the first one you walk up on if you stay on the cliff side of the rock pile. You will see a metal rectangle plate low on the cliff. And on the right is the one that the pics I show in the Lost Mines Found post.

Prospecting around ARIZONA

ARIZONA Prospecting;

   I have been prospecting in Arizona sense 1991 most of it near Prescott along Lynx Creak. Other places are out behind Mayor, Jerome, Rye, Congress, Pine, Bloody Basin, Verde River Oak Creak and along the Aqua Fria River. The map below shows the area that I have going around prospecting. Lost mine hunting Has been done north east of Perkinsville. Other mines are all over from Chino Valley down to Congress and east toward Camp Verde.

   At a point I started to multitask: prospecting and mine hunting. Prospecting for not only gold but gems too.

   The best consistent results for gold was along Lynx Creak. Though many people have been up and down the creak with gold pans and metal detectors the rains always stir up a little more gold to find.

   There is a silver mine near the top of Oak Creak in a canyon that feeds in to it but I have not been to it Though there are many that have.

   I had found some quarts rocks containing platinum (so I was told it was) out side of Congress.


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   Flynnite a black crystal I discovered in sycamore and only found in the northern half of the canyon wall.
   More about these in ( Lost Spanish Mines in Arizona )  below.
   If I ever get down in that part I will get a collection some mite be sold.

   Spinel or Topaz in eastern AZ.
   More about these on ( DIAMONDS ??? ) page.

( UP DATE had the stones sent to lab see report.)



 Panning a side creak near the top  that flows in to sycamore.

   

Aerial Photo of Southern Sycamore canyon

This is an aerial photo of southern Sycamore canyon. The red X mark locations of interest.

The X the top right side is Sycamore Point.

The bottom center X is Iron Gate Mine.

I have marked trial heads that enter sycamore but the one to get to the iron gate mine is ware sycamore joins the Verde river just off the photo on the bottom. A road from Clarkdale, and Cottonwood is kind of ruff but well worth the drive.





















There are photos of some of these locations in the stories in other parts of this page and the Sycamore Photo page.

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Lost Mines Found

In researching lost mines of the south west US, I have found that most information that you find will be misleading for the person that has the real info does not want any body else to find their treasure so they will lie to keep them looking some where else. Like the Lost Dutchman. Yes that one too, h
How many people know about another spire that resembles Weavers Needle out side of Phoenix. I my self learned about it and it is tucked back in some canyon where no one is looking to my knowledge. But let me get on with the ones that from my research and exploration are most likely found. Yes I have been to these and took the photographs or one my hunting partners took them.

Lost mine with the iron door has been found ??

   In hunting for the lost padre gold mine in Arizona I like many others (hikers included ) had come upon a cave with an iron gate at the entrance that was for the most part filled in, and another cave that had been walled over but broken in to. Though it is not visible from the creak it is only 40 feet away. There is an old foundation on top of the ridge over the caves and an old native ruin on the west cliff wall that is hard to find. Forest Service has recorded these and I have a copy of the record.
   This place is a nice hike up along sycamore creak. The creak runs along the trail with the trail crossing the creak 4 times before you reach the mine. There are some nice camping and swimming spots along the way. there are a number of springs that pop up here and there for fresh drinking water.
   There is a story of two men that worked the mine back in the late 1930s through the early 1940s before going to war. To my understanding only one returned. He placed a plaque outside the entrance of the mine in memory of his partner. Than he got back to mining it until the forest service kicked him out. He later found the vein at another place and dug into it there for some time.

   This is a photo of the mine entrance the door is open from the old miner but the mine is filled in the rocks are from forest service blocking it.

   This photo is the entrance to the cave next to the mine. A lot of rock had to be moved from it and the mine to get to them.

   This is the in side of the cave next yo the mine. Some body had to of dug this out with it all being rock and the way the tunnel is shaped.

   This photo is of the in side of the cave farther up sycamore. One of my favorite camping spots is this place the out side ledge has a cooking place and water holes above and beside the cave. The oval dark spot in the center is the entrance or in this case exit. from the looks of the wall it was an under ground stream long long ago.

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   Lost Geronimo's gold mine ??

   If I remember correctly Geronimo's gold mine was a spring that contained nice nuggets and would fill back from the spring water kept the material in the spring moving. If so well then this mite be it.

We had come along this spring and the funny thing about it is that there were logs laid out near it that seemed that some one had a system to run water down to separate material and an old foundation to a cabin was also very near.

So then this mine was found and worked also and it to was not claimed to be found but kept secret. The Forest Service most likely knows about this one too but do not want people out there digging up the forest.

Forest Service checks on these from time to time and people have been caught. do not be foolish and do the same.

Lost Spanish mines In Arizona

The lost padre gold mine of Arizona.

   Hunting lost Spanish gold mines for me started back in 1992 when I moved back to Sedona Arizona. I had been prospecting out of Prescott AZ.

   There are quite a few lost Spanish mines in Arizona the Lost Dutchman is the most famous of them but there are the Lost Padre, Geronimo's lost mine, Lost Mine with the Iron Door just to name a few.

    My story starts out after I moved back to sedona and has been quite an adventure for many years.

   A person that I worked with at a print shop approached me and told me about lost Spanish mines in sycamore canyon south west of Flagstaff, and west of Sedona. We met after work and talked about doing a little research.
   Looking through the book stores and libraries to find stories and maps of the area took months. Most books on the subject turned out to have the same stories with some differences. It was like everyone was copying the same information but changing some little facts to mislead the reader. Even though there where some stories that had some information that was not in most of the others they to left out much of what most people where wanting to learn about.
   We had started the hunt for the lost mines in sycamore canyon at an off branch called volunteer canyon. What a challenge! I had not known what the canyon was like and had in store for any person that did not stay on some the trail. But the things you find when you go were few have gone be for if any for there is a lot of canyon in those canyons.
   On one expedition I was walking up a wash that dumped in to northern sycamore ware the canyon is 500 feet deep not 1500 feet deep. In the wall of the wash wall I saw a black crystal, So I dug it out and took it with me to Sedona. I had taken it to many rock shops and got no ware but in one his Father had retired but now every rock there was, he said. He took it and 3 days later I went back. He said "Hi how are you, Well my dad does not know what they are but we will talk all you can bring us." It sounded like I had discovered a new crystal. I had been back in that area but did not find the same wash. In the creak bed I found them but not as large nore whole. this may have been ware the pocket collapsed and broke them.