Widow's Mine

The area of the mine is in an area rich in Spanish activity. Symbols on the trees pretty much lead you right up the canyon to the mine area. Sometime in the 1950's, if I remember right, a prospector from the Uinta Basin, found a number of sink holes, all in a line running along the top of the ridge. They can still be seen today. After a little work and research, he found that what he had found was where an old mine tunnel had caved in.

After more searching, he got a good idea of the layout of the tunnel and found where the original entrance once was and realized the length of the tunnel. He decided it would be impossible to try to reopen the full length of the tunnel , so he determined where the tunnel ended and dropped off the hillside and started a tunnel in hopes of connecting with the old workings.

Doing the work almost all by himself, he ran a tunnel around 250 or 300 feet through solid rock, using an arch style ceiling. The only timber needed was at the entrance. There is no sign of loose ceiling rock to this day. However for some reason, at the end of the tunnel, he moved back about 5 feet and started a side drift on the left wall. After going one shot, or about 4 feet, the holes were drilled for the next shot and a drill bit got jammed, and it is still there poking out of the wall. Giving up for the season, he packed up for winter, planning to come back when the snow thawed in the spring. However this wasn't to be, he died of a heart attack that winter.

I guess his work must have been a thorn in the Forest Rangers sides, because as soon as they heard of his death, they beat foot up there as soon as they could and blew the entrance shut with dynamite, even though there was still a valid claim on the mine, held by his widow. (That's how I came up with the name of the mine.) After seeing this, and unable to hire men to continue the work, she gave up.

The mine sat abandoned for years until ___ found it. After doing some prospecting and research, he went and filed claims on the workings. Using modern day sonar, it was found that if the widow could have continued in the direction her husband had turned, they would have broke into a large room in 20 feet or so. Now just what might be in that room is why I’'m not telling where the mine is exactly or the claim name. You'll have to check this page for an update next winter!

Besides what might be in that room, there is an unanswered question that will probably never be known, and this is it. Back in the time that the widows husband was digging, there was no way to "x-ray" the ground like we can now and find tunnels, faults, and fissures that lie below. So how then did he know where to turn that put him in a straight line to the large room?--from the Oro & Plata website

I believe this mine is in the vicinity of an old gravel pit at the top of Brownie Canyon. Take the first road to the right once it seems you are at the top of the canyon. There is a gravel pit there. Go to the right of the gravel pit and follow the road to the edge of the hill.