The mine researchers from IronMiners.com are a group of historians who have been trained in both mine safety and have first hand experience in many of the dangers that can be present inside and outside of any mine. While the field study of abandoned mines can be a very interesting adventure, it can also be a very dangerous one. As many of the old mines have not been worked or maintained for well over 100 years, there can be no guarantee as to their safety. Hazards such as low oxygen, unstable rock and winzes can exist. On the surface, many mines have shafts which are nearly or completely vertical and may descend hundreds of feet into the earth below. The rock walls of these shafts as well as open pits are many times weathered and eroded. As a result, much like standing at the edge of a cliff at the Grand Canyon, standing near the edge of a shaft or deep surface working can result in rock giving way which would cause certain injury or death. Extreme caution should be given while near any small pits or holes in the ground. Never enter any type of mine pit no matter how small it is. Standing in small depressions in the ground which are as little as 5 feet wide and a few feet deep in an area which was known to have prior mining activity should be avoided. Many of these depressions could be former vertical shafts which collapsed and self sealed, or simply a test pit to prospect for ore. Many shafts were originally cribbed or lined with wood timbers for support. As the timber support rots, the walls of the shaft could give way and form a plug towards the top of the shaft. Many years later in present day times, these plugs eventually loosen leaving a seemingly bottomless hole from the surface that descends to an unknown depth. Do not attempt to enter any underground mine on your own, and never alone. The IronMiners.com mine researchers are trained and exercise safety precautions with every expedition. The safest way to view a mine is either from the outside or from this site. Return to Top