old mine is now mapped and recorded :)

[Hunting the yellow]

hi dean ill help you dig it out again I've dug out a lot of entrances to old mine/tunnels myself

 

[G0lddigg@]

The main drive you are looking for I am pretty sure was blasted sone years back. The drive is in very good condition otherwise and hugh enough for a horse.

The blasted drive would be in the left hand corner of the fenced off area ? This would be just the entrance. Most of the tunnel would still be there ? Here is a photo of the shaft I believe you are talking about. The drive would pass underneath the main tunnel ?

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj539/dean6500/P1000080_zps74598eb2.jpg

That looks like the one its about the right size yes on the fsr left. Also if you park at the lookout and head down the path near the picnic bench you will see a large quartz load about 1/3 way down. If you climbe around the ledge onyo the cliff side there is a decent adit there

 

[dean65]

hi dean ill help you dig it out again I've dug out a lot of entrances to old mine/tunnels myself

Thanks for the offer. However, by the sound of things the entrance may have been blasted and is currently under tonnes of rock. Will keep you informed. In the meantime this one is at Little Bendigo and needs digging out. There seems to be a shaft at the back of the entrance that goes down on a steep angle.

 

[Jaros]

Black Hill

Interested in hearing from anyone that has information regarding Black Hill. Trying to find the entrance to the main drive that runs underneath from south to north. The notes attached are from The Star Nov 7 1861.

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj539/dean6500/1862-circa_Black_Hill_Quartz_Mining_Compy_Limited_Ballarat_by_Herman_Deutsch_zpsfad7e25a.png

The new crushing
mill is being built on a platform, excavated
from the rocky side of the hill, and nearly
half-way up the hill, reckoning from the
creek level, and from this elevation there
Fix this text
will of course be a capital off-run for the
debris from the batteries, while the batteries
will be supplied with stone by tunnels and
shoots, also worked with ease, on the still

higher levels above the batteries. The new

At
the back of the batteries the depth of the
excavation in the hill side varies from 25 to
35 feet, chowing a solid wall of sandstone,
whose original line of cleavage has been
tilted up from a horizontal to a vertical
position. Above the top of this excavation
the shoot in course of construction to supply
the hoppers passes up to another platform
excavated at a depth of 123 feet from the
summit of the bill, at which level the main
tunnel enters the bowels of the hilL Blocks
of reef from the tunnel are here utilised in
thc shape of a wall, serving as a secure face
to the front of the platform, and support to
the timbers of the mouth of the shoot. This
shoot will have several branches with doors
at the bottom, by means of which the quartz
may be turned on, so to speak, at
any part of the range of batteries, east or
west. we will enter with Mr Pritchard,
the compauy's manager, the main tunnel
from the platform supported by the wall of
sandstone blocks aforesaid. This tunnel is
cut out, as are all the rest, of the solid sand
stone reef, traversed as it 6 by interlacing
veins of quartz, narrowing out in some places
to a mere thread, and thickem'ng in others
to solid bodies of gold bearing stone. The
tunnel is 7 feet wide and 7 feet bigb, and is
rounded at the top, and perfectly dry, ex
cepting in one or two places where a little
moisture creeps down, per favor of the
quartz veins running down from the sur
lace. Tlie " country" being thus free from
moisture there is no timber U6ed in the
tunnel, except at those places where the
drip has rendered the stone liable to dis
placement. After providing ourselves with
lights, we traverse the first 400 feet, and
then tome to a crypt-like double arch, where
the tnnnel divides into two branches, a tri
angular pillar block standing in the fork,
behind which a short tunnel connects the
two lines of tunnelling, and will serve even
tually as a shunting place for changes of
trucks. The main tunnel we have traversed
entered the hill in a northerly direction, at a
depth of 123 feet from the hill top, and at
the branch one line goes off to the west to
the company's main shaft, the other proceed
ing along the eastern boundary of the Inde
pendent Company's claim to the centre of
the company's crown claim, at th foot of
what is known as Fisher's shaft, being the
claim bought from Messrs Fisher, Walker,
and Deighton. This claim is on the
very apex of the hill, and the dis
tance we have walked under tbe hui
is 800 feet. The whole of this tunnelling is
well-ventilated by the two shafts mentioned.
Leaving these runnels and ascending the
bili to Fisher's shaft, we have in view the
open cutting before mentioned. This cut
ting 35 feet deep, 25 feet wide at the toi
and io feet wide at the bottom, and 1
entered from the west ide of the hillrunnin
m a straight line to Fishera shaft. This i
the excavation which is eventually to cot th
bul in two, Fisher's shaft being reserved a
a hopper, down which the stone wai b
thrown to the main tunnel below, the shat
itself being cutaway as the excavation pro
ceeus in its course of bisection. Paasini
nt , of "this cutting westward int
Black Hill Gully to a depth o
75 feet from the hui top, we come t
another .tunnel running in from th
side of the gully through the solid rock, j
durance of 317 feet to the company's mab
shaft already mentioned, down which tfai
stone wai be thrown to the main tunnels, ii
tile same way as from the open cutting a
Fisher's shaft on the higher level This last
mentioned tunnel has a very pretty appear
ance from being'cut through the transverse
section of the sandstone, and being wei!
lighted from the mouth. In all the tunnel:
and cuttings the company has laid down
rails with a 4} feet guage, rails weighing
30 lbs to the yard, and traversed by regular
railway looking trucks, holding each three
tons of stone. The gradient in the tunnels
is I in 100, by which the loaded trucks tra
verse the lines by their own momentum,
horses being employed to draw back the
empty trucks. All the tunnelling and cut
ting has been done by contract, the former
at an average of 11s per lineal foot, and the
latter, from which 3000 cubic yards have
been taken, at a cost of 14d per cubic yard.
Four gangs of tunnellers were at work simul
taneously, driving to meet one another, and
this accounts for the rapidity with which
the work has been executed.

IS THIS THE IPHONE 7 TEXT SCREEN--MARGINS PLSE

 

[dean65]

IS THIS THE IPHONE 7 TEXT SCREEN--MARGINS PLSE

It was taken from an old newspaper and I was not able to justify the text for some reason.

 

[dean65]

"That looks like the one its about the right size yes on the fsr left. Also if you park at the lookout and head down the path near the picnic bench you will see a large quartz load about 1/3 way down. If you climbe around the ledge onyo the cliff side there is a decent adit there"

This must be the adit you are talking about. Do you know if it goes in far or is the shaft blocked ?

 

[dean65]

Last Saturday Steve and I visited a quartz mine in Little Bendigo. We had to crawl through a collapse at the base of a shaft. It was worth the effort. We found a series of tunnels with a very low roof.

 

[G0lddigg@]

"That looks like the one its about the right size yes on the fsr left. Also if you park at the lookout and head down the path near the picnic bench you will see a large quartz load about 1/3 way down. If you climbe around the ledge onyo the cliff side there is a decent adit there"

This must be the adit you are talking about. Do you know if it goes in far or is the shaft blocked ?

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj539/dean6500/IMG_3352_zpsce371bad.jpg

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj539/dean6500/IMG_3558_zps476c96e6.jpg

Yes mate you fpund it I havent neen in yet but I know this mine crushed very profitably compared to four other mines in the hill on this side.

Please be careful mate as the hill has leaned significantly in the past 10 years. You can see where they have releveled tye flag pole at the lookout.

 

[Hunting the yellow]

those mines above look like shallow because of the tree roots coming down id say you wore only 4 to 12 meters under the surface in that tunnel

 

[dean65]

Please be careful mate as the hill has leaned significantly in the past 10 years. You can see where they have releveled tye flag pole at the lookout.

The lookout is no longer level. Water is leaking downwards through tunnels in the hill causing the troubles. Rocks are falling from the sides all the time.

 

[dean65]

We managed to climb down into a tunnel under Black Hill today. Only had my iPhone so the images are not too good. The tunnel is large and goes for about 25 metres and is then blocked by a large fallen rock. It may be possible to get around this point. However, it may also be very dangerous. Perhaps one for the too hard basket.

 

[stoyve]

Great photos again Dean,
You and Damp sure had a great day,
more power to you and keep the pics coming.
Cheers Steve :lol:

 

[dean65]

Hi Steve, this is the tunnel we spoke about on the phone south of Ballarat.

 

[stoyve]

Wow, some unusual cutting/tunnel shapes
in pic 6.
Looks like a rabbit warren.
Unreal system Dean.
Cheers Steve

 

[Hunting the yellow]

try exploring balaclava gold mine at whroo vic then you'll see rabbit holes lol they left just 2 meters of rock between tunnels its just like a bees nest there gota get back there one day and show you guys you'll both love it

 

[dean65]

This is the inside of the adit at the top of Black Hill. This one is very old and hand dug. You could see signs of pick marks on the walls. It does not go in very far and it's hard to see whether it went further at some stage and joined the shafts nearby.

 

[Hunting the yellow]

thats a great hand dug tunnel the roof of it is perfect

 

[dean65]

Hi Steve, Found a couple of adits in the same area you visited on Friday above the slag heap on the far wall. Was on my own so I did not venture inside. We will have to investigate these at some stage.

 

[stoyve]

Hi Dean,
I'm up for it, looks interesting mate, I don't
know how I missed it.
I think I had heat stroke last Friday.
Ha haa

 

[dean65]

Hi Steve, Had a look at the tunnel below the large slag heap. Very interesting as you can see from the photos. After being buried for a long time the mine is starting to reappear. The last two photos are taken from the north side of the road. Thought I had found a nice tunnel, but instead we seem to have a collapsed shaft. Original fittings including wooden frames and tin are still in place. Dean.