Strange Discoveries in the Abandoned Mogul Mine

The Mogul Mine produced tungsten and is located in Nevada. The mine consists of several miles of workings with winzes, raises and stopes leading off to other levels. About 3 hours into our exploration, we looked down into a deep stope and saw something very surprising!

[@MinesoftheWest]

To reiterate what is stated in the video: there was nothing we could do to save this rabbit other than to try to give it water (which we did). The rabbit did not respond to the water, and the water quickly evaporated into the air. Keep in mind the distance from where we stood to the rabbit is about 20ft. This may not seem that far, but vertically this is a significant distance. Attempting to reach the rabbit would have been very dangerous, thus we were forced to leave it. It's unfortunate, but it's the reality of life in the desert.

[@Aleiria13]

Mines of the West; Don’t worry, I hope most people know simply wondering into an ol’mine isn’t safe to begin with, so the idea of climbing down that old woodwork to rescue the poor rabbit wouldn’t have been worth risking Your life for anymore than You already did just to create this video. Chances are that the rabbit crawled down there just to die alone anyway.

[@dougsimerly6829]

Sometimes life is cruel, but thanks for the latest vid bro!

[@zeropointwarfare4230]

No way to get to it? 20ft down? Small rabbit so far in? Nonresponsive? Almost like it needed you to come down there to help it? Down the 20ft vertical drop into the bottom of the mine to help the helpless out-of-place living animal? Seems a little too strange when you think about it? Was that the goal? Like bate?

[@MinesoftheWest]

Re-uploaded this video due to audio issues in the first upload. Sorry for the confusion!

[@SuperPeter05]

The flip thing at 7+ min mark, is a fail safe for the carts, they can go up past it, but if it breaks and rolls backwards, it will crash there. not going all the way down the track.

[@wygold]

It finally makes sense. I subscribe to yours & frank's channels and I didn't realize the two of you explorer together. It was the rabbit that gave it away. Great video.

[@MinesoftheWest]

wygold Ha! You got us! Yeah I've been down to California/Nevada three times now to explore with Frank. Good stuff!

[@lennart37746]

The first two minutes of the video are actually the best

[@TVRExploring]

Definitely wasn't expecting that... It's too bad you couldn't have rescued the rabbit. I guess it must have wandered in there and gotten disoriented. Those tungsten mines seem to hold up pretty well and often seem to have interesting features. We explored some great sites in Nevada with Frank earlier this season that had a similarity to this mine, but I think this one was better with the inclined shaft and that huge junction with drifts running off in all directions. Good stuff...

[@MinesoftheWest]

Yeah it was too bad, there wasn't much we could do. I even tried pouring some of my own water down toward him, but he barely even blinked. This mine was pretty cool! It's actually technically the same mine as the 'Saratoga' but they're not connected (as far as I know). I'm a big fan of tungsten mines, they're usually full of really interesting features!

[@TVRExploring]

Yeah, sometimes there's just nothing you can do. That feeling of hopelessness sucks though... Tungsten mines were a new thing to me until Frank introduced us to them, but, yes, I'd have to put my fondness for them way up there as well.

[@AbandonedMines11]

I guess tungsten is a very hard mineral, so the tungsten mines are pretty solid in terms of the rock. At least that's what I'm guessing. Talc mines, on the other hand -- very crumbly and soft!

[@TVRExploring]

Yes, I'm not as much of a fan of the talc mines. I think the dead sound inside throws me off the most - I like that reassuring echo of a hard rock mine. That said, I sure wish that talc mine we fought our way to near Death Valley hadn't eroded shut.

[@liberalmalcontent5906]

Pretty sure they were going after wolframite in that mine-- the black stuff. It tends to be in narrow veins that get wider as they descend-- which is why all the winzes and downward descending stopes.

[@CornishMineExplorer]

Great video, but what a strange thing to find so far in the mine, maybe it was chased in by something and it fell down there? Look forward to seeing more mine explore videos :)

[@MinesoftheWest]

Cornish Mine Explorer That's what we think too. Maybe even thunder. Thanks for watching!

[@AltbergbauReviersteiger]

Nice Videos and very interesting abandoned mines! Like it!

[@MinesoftheWest]

Altbergbau Reviersteiger Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoy the videos!

[@RobFarrowATV]

Awesome! I see at 2:48 that all the upright timbers are hacked out and looks like maybe someone dragged a tank or something wider than the timbers out of there? Man, lots of workings in that mine! Thanks for the great tour!

[@MinesoftheWest]

Yeah that's what I'm thinking, they must've had some large equipment in there somewhere, maybe we missed it. Thanks for watching!

[@Frenchylikeshikes]

It is sad to see the rabbit lost in the mine, but honestly going out of your way inside an abandonned mine to save an animal probably already half dead might not be the smartest choice. He would most likely have struggled and bite anyway.

[@AbandonedMines11]

Nice dynamite box at 9:06! It's almost fully intact. I didn't know you discovered that. Cool seeing that footage of the stope that you went into. Still curious as to what's up that raise at 13:47.

[@MinesoftheWest]

Yeah that was a cool find, the box looked almost brand new. Yeah, I can't remember why we didn't go up it...Maybe there wasn't a ladder up to the first platform or something...

[@BackyardProspector]

love old mines

[@mattcartia1]

In one of your videos you have a respirator and put it on midway through the video. How were you able to tell you needed to use it?

[@MinesoftheWest]

Matthew Cartia I put it on when we entered a lower level of the mine. Lower levels tend to accumulate more dust. It wasn’t really necessary, but better safe than sorry I guess!

[@denisrohan146]

How did you get in the entrance is covered in boulders now

[@Meekerextreme]

What is with the wind noise? Is that the audio problem issue?

[@MinesoftheWest]

Meeker Extreme That is natural airflow from the mine.

[@chrisackerley1842]

I suggest you read the book "Coarse Gold" by Edwin Corle. It was published in 1938 or 1939, and I don't think it has ever been reprinted. Profound story about an old hermit living in a ghost town in Southern Nevada [the town is Rhyolite, but he never names it]. I don't want to spoil it for you, but the story has a direct connection to this video!

[@672egalaxie6]

@9;14 sounds like a person whistling in the background? Also heard it earlier, @8;28. Frank?

[@user-yw8sr3uj1w]

Shout out to my man Frank!!

[@672egalaxie6]

Frank! great video!

[@michaelcoker3197]

See any square set timbering?

[@virus_In_Lullaby]

great video ... hope the Bunny's OK

[@CANControlGRAFFITI]

Yea he’s good.

[@1uptospeed]

no rubber boots needed in this one eh.if thats the frank i think your with your exploring with the best !

[@MinesoftheWest]

1uptospeed Definitely no rubber boots in this one! Yep that's Frank, always a great time down in NV!

[@nettyvoyager6336]

whats strange about that this is what you expect to see in a mine !

[@rodneydaub3812]

I just wonder why you didn't try to grab the rabbit? Sad ..

[@jacoblenting3742]

No offense..but i kinda liked the video with music at the beginning

[@ginoeinfachgino8053]

I swear that i would die if he put's a jumpscare in one of his videos :D EDIT: Poor Rabbit ..

[@ozzyoswald2590]

Frank from Canada frank?

[@platformstrange1794]

Gnawed timbers. ..... maybe a desert beaver?

[@CANControlGRAFFITI]

What on earth are you talking about?

[@riplink]

Awesome video, that rabbit is so sad though. Your voices were the last sounds it probably ever heard, and the light from your torches was the last light it ever saw, maybe. Just sad you weren't up to the challenge or under equipped to help him.

[@michaeladams906]

Not a fan of the music I'd rather hear the cave ext

[@MinesoftheWest]

Michael Adams The music covers 1/7 of the video...

[@dennisdavis8649]

I wish you would buy yourself a better flashlight

[@MinesoftheWest]

Dennis Davis Lucky for you this video is several years old and I have bought several new lights.

[@aaronsmith5600]

Please buy some better flashlights that ring of death sucks

[@isacchris1]

Looks like it would have been easy to just pick the rabbit up and carry it out with you. It won’t hurt you it’s probably not even entirely conscious. I guess it’s just the point don’t leave something to die if it’s ten feet away and only weighs a pound or two put it in your backpack.

[@emory7467]

he said it was 20 ' straight down and it went further than that beyond the rabbit. human life is not worth the risk

[@ChrisNobodySpecial]

When have you lived in the remote desert? How do you know that rabbit does not have rabies or the hantavirus? Or ticks carrying Lyme Disease. If the animal is in distress or sick, there is s good chance it has a parasitical condition. By the way, I and another person transported a wild 'spike' blacktail deer in the back of a 4-Runner I owned in 2006. The young deer was hit by a car and was on the roadside. It had a broken leg. We transported the conscious deer over 70 miles. I even pulled into a Shell Station to get gas on the way. We took it to the Wildlife Way Station and they refused to help us, I mean, flat out said no and did not help us find an alternate remedy. We ended up at a small convenience store in Sylmar, CA to scan the phone book for ideas, smart phones we barely around then. Now it was 5:00 in the morning. Two young LAPD officers asked us what we were doing. We told them of our mission of mercy. They acted like we were criminals. At the time, I was a retired military officer and was the general manager of a golf resort and was dressed like any golf professional as I was just leaving the resort when I was flagfed down for assistance.. A police sergeant arrived on scene and told his two subordinates to help us find a vet or some place to take the injured deer. The sergeant specifically, at my insistence told the two cops to not call L. A. County Animal Control. The Sgt. and I were becoming buddies as both of us were at one time in the Marine Corps and he was a hockey player like myself(I had my sticks and equipment bag in my SUV). We told war stories to pass the time. Then sure as shit, the dumb ass coos had called Animal Control. The Sgt. was pissed off and yelled at his two subordinates. The Animal Control officer said she had to know kill the deer. She would not give us a chance to save the deer. She was si screwed up. I will not tell you how she botched everything, but she finally killed the animal with a total of five shots from a 22 pistol. The Sgt. was appalled as was I and the poor young man who's idea it was to try to save the dear. He sat with the deer on the roadside and flagged me down and requested that I help him out. We actually probably drove 75-89 miles with that alert, but unbelievably calm deer in the back if my SUV. Everything I told you is the Gospel Truth. It was a night I rarely talk about, but I will always remember. I felt so bad for that poor young man who wanted to save that injured animal.

[@riplink]

@@ChrisNobodySpecial that's really sad 😔

[@alexdavinci9533]

Frank is always winded :\

[@Bedfordmdb]

tungsten must have been valuable to put in all this work.

[@tes420]

Mountainguy - Thanks for the insight captain obvious....😂

[@awomanmotherw2kids393]

Hard to believe that you just left the rabbit to die, it saddens me that you didn't take it or try to give it some water . you was it's last chance to be rescued and you did nothing to help it.!!! I understand that it was just a rabbit but it was still a life that you could have possibly saved! Poor thing didn't even have a chance!😩🐇🐰💔⁉️

[@MinesoftheWest]

Dawn Dowell We actually did give the rabbit water, however it did not respond. I think it was explained in the video that attempting to rescue the rabbit would have put our lives severely at risk. The rabbit was located on a ledge 20ft vertically down from where we stood, beneath the ledge was an even deeper pit. Is a rabbit’s life worth a human’s life? No. To say that “we could have done something” is not true. Believe me it was hard to see this in person, so please do not accuse me of “leaving it to die”...

[@mayolson2]

Sheesh you do what you have to do and that is to stay safe. I agree with your reasoning.

[@niknikbik]

dawn dowell = moron

[@emory7467]

youre definitely not thinking of the bigger picture . a couple of human lives are not worth a rabbits life. that rabbit got there on its own. part of nature

[@andrewuk184]

How would you have gone about saving this rabbit precisely?