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July 28, 2023

Empire Pass

So today, I went and did Empire Pass in the Jeep. Last time, I was on the Africa Twin. The view from up there is really spectacular. The elevation is reported to be 8,786ft, but you're looking down at Georgetown, and it looks like you could easily fall several hundred feet.

The Mile High Jeep Club is camped out up there just west of Empire. This is their annual pilgrimage, and I've run into them a few times this week.

Then, after Empire Pass, I went and hit Jones Pass. Still can't get across the summit, as it's still snowed in pretty good at the top. Now, when I'm sliding down the continental divide backwards in the Jeep, I pump the brakes, and cut the wheel so, if I do keep sliding, I'll slide into the mountain, instead of tumbling off the trail and rolling down the continental divide.

So, those were my passes for today: Summited Empire Pass, and attempted to summit Jones Pass.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 28, 2023 at 9:31 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

Clear Creek Mines

Today, (Thr 7/27/23) I decided I'd try again to get access to the mines of Idaho Springs.

First, I went by Walmart, and got some eye-glass straps that float. That way, my glasses are much less likely to fall off, but worst case scenario, at least they wouldn't sink into the creek. Then, I stopped by Safeway in Idaho Springs and got some zip-lock sandwich bags so that, worst case scenario, my iphone wouldn't get soaking wet and cease to function.

Then, I parked my Africa Twin in the parking lots off of Miner Street in Idaho Springs, and prepared to cross Clear Creek near the Charlie Tayler Waterwheel. The creek was flowing pretty good, but I managed to walk across the creek without falling. On the north side of the creek, I observed that one of the mines was locked with a steel gate. The other mine was only a hole that went in about 6 feet. So, I wasn't really able to access either of the two mines, as I had hoped. But, at least I didn't drown, lose my glasses, or ruin one of my iPhones.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 28, 2023 at 4:37 AM : Comments (0) | Permalink

Idaho Springs, Empire

So yesterday (7/27/23), I decided to go check out two mines on the south shore of Clear Creek just downstream of the Charlie Tayler Water Wheel. I bought a band/strap for my glasses at Walmart, so if they fell into the creek they would float. And I bought some large, ziplock bags to put my iPhone in, in case I fell into the creek.

Then, I parked my motorcycle in a parking lot in Idaho Springs. I was able to cross Clear Creek without falling. But the two mines/tunnels that I found were somewhat disappointing. The first one was locked up with a door and a padlock. The second one only went into the mountain about 6 feet. So, I struck out on both mines, really.

Then, it started to rain on me, so I went to Carl's Jr. for lunch. Then rode home.

After I got home, and the rain cleared up, I decided I needed to go for another ride. This time, I decided to go up a mountain road above Empire, Colorado. I've been up there before, though I couldn't say when. It's really pretty dramatic view, once you get up there. You end up on Bard Creek Road on Empire Pass (Elevation 8,750 feet). Like...you could fall a thousand feet very easily.

My ride looked something like this.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 28, 2023 at 3:35 AM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 26, 2023

Clear Creek Mines

Today, I decided I'd try again to get access to the mines of Idaho Springs. These two are just on the south side of Clear Creek and I-70, but I'm having a hard time crossing the creek. It's pretty fast from the rain and melting snow, and I'm afraid if I slip when I try to cross it, I could lose my glasses and get my iphone and my wallet soaking wet. So my plan is to leave my wallet behind, take only my iphone, sealed in a couple of plastic zip-lock bags, and get some eyeglass retainers so my glasses won't get washed down the creek.

Then, in theory, I could walk across the creek, and even if I slip and fall, I won't have my wallet, my iphone will be sealed in plastic zip-lock bags, and my glasses will be strapped around my neck. So, in theory, I should be able to cross the creek, and explore the mines on the south side of the creek.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 26, 2023 at 9:03 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 25, 2023

Reviewing iPhone Photos

https://www.icloud.com/photos/

So far, I've reviewed the photos back to April 5th, 2021. 8,747 out of 11,187, but I'm going backwards in time, starting with current photos. So, I've gone through about 2,440 photos so far. I'm thinking I need to copy the images down and store them locally.

April 5th, 2021 looks to have some interesting mine photos.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 25, 2023 at 3:00 AM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 23, 2023

Jones Pass in Jeep Wrangler TJ (7/23/23 - Still Snowed In)

The forecast called for rain today (7/23/23), so I figured I'd try to take the Jeep up Jones Pass instead of the Africa Twin. And, I was running late, but I managed to get further up Jones Pass today than I have so far this year. Enough snow has melted that I'm up to the last switchback, I think. But the last road/switchback is still about 1/2 snowed in, and I'd forgotten how steep the last road/incline was. I stopped, carved the date in the snow with my hand, and took a photo of the jeep with the snow/date in the snow bank. 7/23/23. So, I'd say I've still got about 50-100 yards to go to get to the summit.

So, I start backing down, at which point I realize how steep the dirt road is, as the Jeep doesn't have ABS, and I'm literally sliding down the continental divide backwards (towards the next elbow in the next switchback). I was able to get it sorted out, turn around, and come down from the continental divide safely. But that one last section at the top is pretty steep.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 23, 2023 at 10:11 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

iPhone Repair

Today, I went down the hill to the Apple Store at 7301 S Santa Fe Dr, Littleton, CO.

I think that this is the best place to take my phone(s).
Apparently, all cell phones, including smartphones, need SIM cards to connect to a cellular network.

It looks like all of the contact information is stored in the cloud. So, I was able to get my iphone working at the Apple Store. So, that was nice to get that sorted out.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 23, 2023 at 10:02 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 22, 2023

iPhone 6S Plus

So, my iphone quit charging. Fortunately, I have 2 Plus iphones. So, I went down the hill today to get my iphone repaired. However, they are closed today (7/22/2023). So, I came back home, but I figured that one of the phones seems to be working fine, so I figured I'd try to move my SIM card from one iPhone to the other, and see if that got me back in business.

So, I came home, and I followed the directions on this video to swap the two SIM cards using a paperclip.

So, that worked somewhat in that I now have a functioning phone. But I don't seem to have my addresses/phone numbers in the newly working iPhone 6S Plus.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 22, 2023 at 3:10 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 21, 2023

Charging iPhone 6S Plus

So, my phone quit working on me again.

Part of the problem is that it won't charge. Part of the problem is that I don't know what it's supposed to look like when it's charging.

For instance, right now, I'm trying to charge one of my iPhone 6S Plus phones, and what I see is the outline of a battery, on it's side (horizontal), with a sliver of red on the bottom of the battery (far left, as the top of the battery (+) is on the right). But I'm not clear what this image is supposed to convey. Is it charging? Is it not?

I have another iphone 6S Plus, but I can turn it on. Has the apple logo. Then it turns on. Says "No SIM" at the top left. Battery at top right indicates about a 50% charge. It charges when I plug the charging cable into the charging port. You can tell because the screen wakes up, and in the upper right corner, it shows a little battery with a lightning bolt over it.

The other iPhone (the one with issues) is just pretty much bricked. Like pushing the buttons on the iphone pretty much does nothing. If I hold down the power button (top right side), and the button in the bottom center of the front face of the iphone, I see a flashing red battery, a little lightning bolt, and an image of a charging cable at the bottom. So I'm assuming that the battery is basically dead and not charging.

If I got to Settings - Battery, it says "Last Charged to 63%".

It also gives this same information on the home page. Like, if I just push the button on the face of the iphone at the bottom center, it shows the date and the time, and at the top right, it shows a lightning bolt over a battery as a charging icon/indicator. And, right beneath the time (6:38) it says 66% charged.

I just tried to turn on my iphone that's charging. Now, it's showing me the Apple logo, but the phone never boots up. It just keeps showing me the Apple logo. Not sure what the purpose of this is. There. Now, it just disappeared. When it disappears, it flashes for a moment and then goes away and it just bricks. If I hold the power button, it flashes briefly showing lightning bolt, charging cable, and a battery with a single line of red at the bottom flashing on and off. Then it goes black. So, my guess is that this means it isn't charging.

Now, I'm charging my other iphone...the one that's working.

I'm thinking that tomorrow, I'll take both phones down to:

And see what they can do for me.


Posted by Rob Kiser on July 21, 2023 at 6:18 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 16, 2023

SD Memory Card in Gamecam

I'm trying to get my gamecam working. I have charged AA batteries in it. Now, I need to get a functioning SD memory card in it. But it's a not as easy as it might seem.

First thing is I figure...stick the SD memory card in the SD memory card slot on my laptop, and see how it does. So, I put the SD memory card into the SD memory card slot on my laptop.

The following folders appear:

SD Card (I:)
......DCIM
............100MEDIA
............100STLTH
............MISC

When you click on the 100MEDIA folder, it says "This folder is empty."
When you click on the 100STLTH folder, it says "This folder is empty."
When you click on the MISC folder, it has one file in it, ".dropbox.device."

I'm not sure what the dropbox.device is, but this offers some explanation.

So, all 3 subfolders are essentially empty, for all intents and purposes.

Now that I'm thinking about it...it's possible this memory card was formatted to work in my MacBook Air. I dunno. Not sure there is even a difference.


OK.So, I put the memory card in the laptop, and now I see some photos. I created a new folder and copied over the photos of Rory, Kili, and Fili.

U:\_2023\06_Rory

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 16, 2023 at 9:16 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 14, 2023

Today's Motorcycle Ride (7/14/23)

So today, I focused most of my travels between Idaho Springs and the Downieville-Lawson-Dumont area. I think that I found some new mines.

I went up North Spring Gulch Road, and found lots of mines on North Spring Gulch Road (North of I-70).

I also found another locked mine south of I-70, just west of exit 238 off of the frontage road. Marked by a natural gas pipeline.

There is also another mine on the north side of I-70 across from the climbing apparatus/amusement park.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 14, 2023 at 9:51 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 13, 2023

Devil's Thumb Fire

I stumbled onto the Devil's Thumb fire on July 4th. Since then, it's grown from 4 acres to about 80 acres at this point. Not sure why they're not taking it seriously. I saw it on the first day, and there wasn't a single helicopter fighting the fire. Hopefully, they'll get it put out at some point, even though they don't seem overly concerned about it.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 13, 2023 at 10:19 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

Today's Motorcycle Ride 7/13/2023

So today, I tried to ride up to Jones Pass again. Still snowed in at the same switchback, above treeline, about a mile from the summit.

The mileage looks something like this:

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 13, 2023 at 9:17 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 11, 2023

Today's Motorcycle Ride 7/11/23

So, today's motorcycle ride looked something like this.

I tried again (unsuccessfully) to access the abandoned mine up near the east entrance to the Moffat Tunnel. I keep thinking I'll get up there and find the trail up to the mine, but I never find any trail. At this point, I think I would need the drone to go do some initial analysis of the mine opening.

Then, on the return trip, I went down Golden Gate Canyon, and this time I stopped, and tried to gain access to the open mine 3 miles from Highway 93. However, the mine appears to be collapsed and I was not able to gain access to the mine.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 11, 2023 at 9:35 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 10, 2023

Today's Motorcycle Ride 7/10/23

So, today's ride looked something like this.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 10, 2023 at 9:17 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 9, 2023

Today's Motorcycle Ride 7/9/23

So today, the forecast didn't call for rain, so I took the Africa Twin for a little ride. I rode up Hwy 119 to Rollinsville, then went west to Tolland, and up to the east portal of the Moffat Tunnel. I was going to try to hike up to the open mine on the south side of South Boulder Creek, but I was short on time and I didn't see the path on the south side of the creek I was expecting to see. So, I'll try again tomorrow, assuming I have more time and no rain.

When I came back, I went through Black Hawk and did manage to find a new mine. Although it's hard to see, there's an abandoned mine here behind the black fence.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 9, 2023 at 10:18 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 8, 2023

Today's Jeep Ride - 7/8/2023

So today, I went for a little Jeep ride (too much rain in the forecast to ride the motorcycles). I rode up through Central City, then up Gilpin County Road 3 by Chase Gulch Reservoir to Apex Valley Road. Then up Apex Valley Road to 46770 Upper Apex Road. Here, I found my first abandoned mine of the day. The mine is on the east side of the road, but is covered with a locked metal grate.

Continued on up to Gilpin County Road 4N at the ghost town of Apex, CO. This is an old mining town from the 1800's and still has some buildings standing.

Here, I turned left, and went approximately 1 mile west up a dirt road (Gilpin County Road 4N), then turn right going north at Kingston Peak Road (but still on Gilpin County Road 4N). It's about 3-4 miles north down a rocky road. Fairly rough. And eventually T's off at Tolland, Colorado on Gilpin County Road 16. Here, I turned left, going west on Gilpin County Road 16, headed towards the east portal of the Moffat Tunnel.

I crossed the railroad crossing, passed the Tolland School house (built 1902), crossed South Boulder Creek, passed under the railroad trestle, crossed South Boulder Creek again, and then ran into a couple of guys stopped on the side of the road, so I stopped to check on them.

We talked briefly about the condition of Rollins Pass Road, Yankee Doodle Lake, etc. Then, one of the gentlemen points out some mine tailings on the side of the mountain above us. Said that he'd personally been in the mine and it was wide open. So, I made a note to check out this new mine, on the south side of the creek, but I turned back for home as I've got to make sure the cats are indoors before dark.

My ride today looked something like this.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 8, 2023 at 8:48 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 6, 2023

Today's Jeep Ride - 7/6/2023

So today, I went for a little ride in the Jeep. I think my ride was something like this.

Then, at the intersection of US Hwy 6 and Colorado State Hwy 119, I turn north and ride up to the southern city limits of Black Hawk. Here, I park the Jeep, cross North Clear Creek, and climb up to the Pewabic Mine entrance.

The mine was open and reads "PEWABIC TUNNEL". The mine is open for roughly 80 steps into the mine and then it ends at a crack. It is probably possible to continue, but I turned back.


Continue reading "Today's Jeep Ride - 7/6/2023"

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 6, 2023 at 9:24 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 5, 2023

Today's Ride 7/5/2023

So today, we had another gully-washer. Margie was kind enough to take me down the hill to pick up the Jeep (had some brake work done), so I took the Jeep out for today's ride (instead of the Africa Twin).

On US Highway 6:

  1. At Mile Marker 258.0, on the south side of Clear Creek is an old abandoned mining town composed of several separate buildings that have fallen into disrepair.
  2. At Mile Marker 258.2, on the north side of US Highway 6 is an open mine.
  3. At Mile Marker 258.5, on the south side of US Highway 6 and the south side of Clear Creek is an abandoned mine, but it has a padlock keeping the door from opening.
  4. At Mile Marker 259.9, on the north side of US Highway 6 is an abandoned mine, but the entrance has been bricked in.

Then, US Highway 6 dead-ends into Colorado State Highway 119. Here, I turned left going North and headed towards Black Hawk, but took my first right onto Douglas Mountain Drive (Jefferson County Highway 60). I ended up going through Golden Gate Canyon which was a very scenic drive I've not done in a long time.

My route today looked something like this.

It rained on me some, but I didn't get wet because I was in the 2001 Jeep Wrangler TJ (which I just got out of the shop today thanks to Margie and John). The brakes were squeaking/grinding before I dropped the Jeep off at Brakes Plus 5800 S Kipling Pkwy Littleton, CO. So they did some work on the brakes and hopefully we won't have any more brake issues in the immediate future.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 5, 2023 at 9:57 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 4, 2023

Today's Ride - 7/4/2023

So Jennifer is in Hawaii and asked me to take some photos of the snow in Colorado, so I headed up to Jones Pass. It's always snowed in, even into August. So, sure enough, I tried to ride up there today, and got about 1 mile from the summit before the road was completely snowed in.

Then, down from Jones Pass and up Berthoud Pass. I was surprised to see a forest fire burning north of Berthoud Pass. It looks like firefighters were battling 50-acre fire burning northeast of Fraser in Grand County.

Then, I decided to run up to Lower Chinn's Reservoir.

I was watching the mines on Fall River Road fairly closely. This time, I didn't go up York Gulch, which has more open mines. But Fall River Road has some as well.

The road up to Lower Chinn's Reservoir (Jeep Road) is a fairly rough road, and I haven't been up it in a while. But I made it up to the lake and back down without any problem. Then, I headed back to Evergreen, but by the time I got to Evergreen, it was pouring, so I stopped at Wendy's to dry off and let it blow over.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 4, 2023 at 9:47 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 3, 2023

7/3/23 - Still More Mines (North Clear Creek and York Gulch)

So, today, I figured I'd basically took a similar route to what I took yesterday. But this time, I dressed so that I could cross North Clear Creek if I had to. So, I took a bathing suit and some tennis shoes. I was able to cross North Clear Creek at the southern city limits of Black Hawk. The mine was open and reads "PEWABIC TUNNEL".

Obviously I would never go into an open mine, but I shined my flashlight in there and it seemed to go on for about 100 yards.

From here, I rode through Black Hawk and then Central City, onto Bald Mountain Lane. Then, up Bald Mountain Lane to York Gulch Road. My path looked something like this.

And, of course, once you get on York Gulch Road, there are just countless open mines. Like a bad Lassie episode. Again, I would never go in these mines, but I was able to look in and get some photos. There were approximately 6 open mines on York Gulch Road that I didn't go into, obviously.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 3, 2023 at 9:27 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 2, 2023

7/2/23 - More Mines (Clear Creek and York Gulch)

So, today, I went for another motorcycle ride. I found so many mines I lost count. But, I'll try to document my ride so I can keep track of where the mines are.

This is where I rode today.

So, I started out inspecting a mine that I found the other day on U.S. Hwy 6 at Mile Marker 258.50. So, I was able to gain access to the gated entrance to the mine, but it was locked up fairly well. So, I decided to move on and look for other mines.

Down U.S. Highwy 6 to Hwy 119, then north on Hwy 119 towards Black Hawk. At the Black Hawk City Limits, I found a new mine on the west side of the creek (North Clear Creek). I was not able to gain access to this mine, although I could see it. The mine has a cement face on it. It is approximately 60' above the creek. The trick is you've got to be able to cross the creek to get to it. And we've gotten a lot of rain lately. Also, there's a big drop from Hwy 119 down to the creek. I was able to ride my motorcycle down a trail to get to the creek, but once you're at the creek level, you can't see the mine at all anymore. So, I think you'd need to plan your ascent on the other side of the creek before you dropped down to creek level and waded across (if possible).

So, no pics of this mine, as I wasn't able to access it. Then, I continued up 119 to Black Hawk, then up to Central City, then I followed the signs to Columbine Campgrounds. Just before the Columbine Campgrounds, I turned left onto Forest Service Road 739.1 and took that up to Pisgah Lake Road. Then left on Pisgah Lake Road, which immediately turns into Clear Creek County Road 277 (York Gulch Road).

I didn't see any mines once I got into Black Hawk/Central City/Columbine Campgrounds, Forest Service Road 739.1. Once I got to York Gulch, the number of open mines was just like a bad Lassie episode. Open mines every 50 yards or so.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 2, 2023 at 9:38 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink

July 1, 2023

Today's Ride 7/1/2023

So today, after we walked the goats, I decided to go for a little motorcycle ride.

What I failed to realize was that today is Saturday, July 1st, and it was a circus on I-70 westbound. So, I stayed off of I-70 and at the top of Floyd Hill, just came down the frontage road there until it T's off at US Highway 6, where I turned east and went down the canyon.

So I'm following US Highway 6 east down the canyon when I see an open abandoned mine across the creek at Mile Marker 258.50. Now, I'm not clear how to get access to the mine, as there is a walking path on the other side of Clear Creek, but I'm not clear how to cross Clear Creek, as it's pretty much flooded from our rains this Spring.

So, I ride on. Turn left at the red light onto Hwy 119 to Black Hawk/Central City. At Black Hawk, I turned left onto Gregory Street. Then left again onto Central City Parkway. At this point, I noticed some storm clouds moving in and I was afraid I'd get rained on. So, I decided I'd head to McDonald's in Idaho Springs, which is what I did. Took the Central City Parkway to I-70 to Idaho Springs for McDonalds.

Then, I wanted to ride up to Upper Chinns and Lower Chinns Reservoirs so I drove in that direction and took Rainbow Road to head towards Upper Chinns, Lower Chinns, and Fall River Reservoir.

But I missed a left turn, and ended up at Fall River Reservoir, which isn't even comparable to Upper Chinns and Lower Chinns, IMHO. At Fall River Reservoir, you can't even drive to where you can see the lake. So, I turned back and started coming back down towards Idaho Springs. I did see some old mining equipment just above Loch Lomond Road. Stopped and got some photos of that.

Then, coming back down Fall River Road, I stopped and got a photo of a small open mine near Luciana Gulch.

Then, I went up to the Phoenix Mine, and found a new mine before you get to the Phoenix Mine. It's on the south side of Trail Creek Road, and there's even a little dirt turnout for it. So, I parked at the little dirt turnout and climbed up the hill to find another unexplored mine.

My ride looked something like this.

Posted by Rob Kiser on July 1, 2023 at 9:05 PM : Comments (0) | Permalink