Saturday, October 13, 2018

Iron Mountain #1 via Gold Dollar Mine

HPS Star Emblem Peak
Hiked: 10/12/2018
Distance: 16.6 miles round trip on trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 8007'
Elevation Gain: 8223'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 6.57
Round trip time: 16 hours
Recommended water: 216 oz.
Parking/Fees: Adventure Pass at Heaton Flat
Difficulty: Very Strenuous

Gold Dollar Mine is one of the most inaccessible mines in the San Gabriel Mountains. It was built near Iron Mountain about 500' below San Antonio Ridge, high on a very steep slope. "Hardcore" Henry and I planned to start at Heaton Flat, take the unmaintained trail above Widman Ranch, go cross country to Gold Dollar Mine, loop over the spicy part of the San Antonio Ridge up to Iron #1, then return down the south ridge trail.

We met at 4:00 AM and started out in the dark, reaching Allison Saddle just about sunrise. From the saddle, we took the unmaintained Coldwater Trail on the right. The first mile was Washout Alley, with several somewhat dangerous washouts that must be passed. Then, the trail got much better passing above Widman Ranch with notoriously unfriendly residents. Dima Kogan and other people have trimmed back the yucca in places, but I managed to get a yucca needle broken off in my pinky toe. At the end of the trail, we dropped about 40' into Dry Gulch using a hand line someone had left there a long time ago. The rope wasn't in great shape, but we tested it and used it to aid our descent. Dry Gulch was relatively open without many obstacles. We continued up the gulch until we found a slope on the Gold Dollar Ridge that looked relatively free of brush. The slope was surprisingly steep and we spent a fair amount of time on all fours (mountain climbers) to make progress. Fortunately, the soil was soft and full of pine needles so we didn't slide back as much as we would have on hard dirt.


One of many washouts on the Coldwater Trail




Widman Ranch


Henry dropping in to Dry Gulch




Climbing the slope to Gold Dollar Ridge


Iron Mountain with an amazing vein of white rock


Looking back into Dry Gulch

We had Ze's GPS track (from the San Gabriel Forum) which showed us where to head toward the mine. We didn't follow the track exactly, going parallel a little higher on the ridge along an old trail. Where we intersected Ze's track was the first site of Gold Dollar ruins. Part of an ore hopper was there and some equipment I couldn't identify. Steel cables ran up and down the mountain from the site. From reading Dima's report, another major ruin site was below. The Garmin GPS had marked the mine higher up than our location. We decided to follow the steel cables up looking for the mine and more ruins. We used the cables in some places to assist our climb. About 300' up, we found a second site of ruins. It had some kind of sorter and mine car rails. The GPS mark for the mine was east of our location and we had to decide whether to head toward the Garmin mark or continue following the cable up. In the end, we decided to follow the cable. It was slow going but we followed it to the origin, anchored to a large dead tree. We didn't find any more ruins along the way. We were left wondering if anyone had found the mine. It is possible the mine itself is east of the steel cables or maybe all the adits have collapsed.


First ruin site




Henry following the cable up


Second ruin site








Origin of the steel cable that runs about 1000' down the mountain

On the way up to San Antonio Ridge, we got intriguing views of Gunsight Notch and Big Iron. There is a huge vein of white rock running down from Iron that is not fully visible except from below. We took a break to fuel up before tackling Gunsight and the ridge for the second time this year. Henry and I were in agreement that the second part of the notch is the most difficult, even though the exposure is not as great. The rock on the second part seems much more loose. I took a few more photos of the third scrambling section consisting of white rock, sometimes called the Witch's Backbone. While it demands full attention, the ridge didn't seem as scary as the first time I did it. When we topped out on Iron, my stomach wasn't feeling great. I think maybe something in the sub sandwich I bought the day before had gone bad. In any case, I couldn't eat anything but a few cheezits and a butterscotch. Because of the cool weather, I had plenty of water and the descent was uneventful if slow, ending in the dark. We picked up 4 mylar balloons for the day. There may still be some missing pieces to the Gold Dollar Mine story.


Gunsight and Iron


Almost to San Antonio Ridge


From below


From above





Looking up from the Witch's Backbone


Big Iron




One of three tarantulas we saw on the way back




2 comments:

  1. i think the goons at widman ranch dymamited sections of trail on purpose

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    Replies
    1. beasthiker,

      Haha, you may be right. Every story I've heard about them is unfriendly and sometimes involves guns.

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