In this exploration, I explore the "Estelle Tunnel" just 1.5 miles outside of the old silver mining town of Cerro Gordo in Inyo County, California.
Digging the Estelle Tunnel began in 1908. After 15 years of digging, in 1923, the Estelle Tunnel was driven 8,100 feet into the mountain - through nearly half of the upper Inyo Mountain Range. At about 7,700 feet in, miners cut through the “castle rock” vein, revealing small amounts of silver ore. At 7,500 feet in, a raise was driven 660 feet upwards, and then a 2,200 foot drift was driven toward the Jefferson Chimney.
However, the Estelle Tunnel supposedly never reached the Jefferson Chimney, nor would it ever find any other high-grade ore bodies. The 660-level drift ended up only 400 feet underneath the 1,100 foot level of the Union Mine in Cerro Gordo, but they never connected...
After digging through over 10,000 feet of rock, the Estelle Tunnel only produced a small amount of ore. The record from 1916 to 1926 shows 2,700 tons of lead-silver ore valued at about $80,000.
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