Mine Camp in Western New Mexico

Another Mine Camp in Western New Mexico

I came across this old camp while doing a Google Earth "flyover" of the country north of I-10 in western New Mexico. Getting to it was just as interesting as walking through the buildings and equipment at the site. GE showed three possible access routes. As usually is the case, it took us three times before we were able to get to the camp--locked gates can do that to you. The route that worked was the one that had appeared least likely from the aerial views. The GE view made it look like it would be necessary to drive through a corral at a ranching operation. There appeared to be a house with several vehicles parked in the yard. We were not hopeful that we would be given permission to cross, but when we actually got there, we found that the house was abandoned and the vehicles were part of an old boneyard! We were the first to travel on the road from the corral on to the camp in a very long time.

The original mine dates back to the very early 1900's. Early reports state that it produced gold, silver and copper ore primarily from a 300 foot shaft. Tailings from the original 50 ton concentrator can still be seen. There does not appear to be any of the original mine equipment or other structures still in place. The stuff that is there seems to be from the 30's through the 50's. This camp seems to be rarely visited.

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