Consolidated In Dahlonega

Camp is all set up in Cleveland, GA at the LDMA Loud Mine property. But after two days of setting up and settling in, rain was in the forecast. Last time we were here we visited the Crisson Mine, and we stopped by there again today. The stamping plant is always fun to see but maybe not as much in the pouring rain. So because of the rain and because we didn't see it last time in town, we went a couple miles over to tour the underground lode mine at Consolidated Mine. In its heyday it was the largest (22 feet wide) gold laced quartz vein ever discovered- anywhere! With the downpour happening outside, torrents of water ran down the path into the mine and rushed below our feet as we descended. It just served to make the exploration more intense and vital. Tiny bats rested upside down on the dry spots on the otherwise wet ceiling as we worked our way downward.They have had a representation here from the time of its origin I am sure. Ore carts, and drills that stopped working a long time ago lined the pathway and spoke of times passed.

At the end of the path down, an air drill, still hooked up and begging for a test run stood ready and waiting. The guide fired it up. The sound of the several second blast showed full well why miners lost their hearing early on in their ususally short careers. We took a turn holding onto the big gun. Talk about a blast from the past. The experience was a great one. We took the tour with Stonewall Gene and Julie, so the company was great too. At the end of the tour we got our little paydirt bags and headed off to the troughs to pan out our golden riches. We skipped the panning lessons under the circumstances. In fact we wound up standing at the troughs helping others recover their gold from the pans full of sand. Chicken Deja Vue! Consolidated gold is fine gold obtained by crushing white quartz, so the gold needs to be separated from what looks like white sand rather than from the customary black sand that placer gold is usually found with. The basics of panning are the same, but there are some nuances that make it a bit different. It was a neat new experience. Daddy like!