Rock Outcrop (Eigg Mountain Settlement History)

This is a site that Charlie and I investigated as a possible abandoned gold mine.  Charlie had heard a story from someone who said an old-timer had showed him the mine entrance.  Charlie had decided that a white area that showed up on an aerial photo in the right general vicinity was a likely candidate.  The Geological Survey map indicates a silver mine further upriver, but no goldmine in the vicinity.  I was skeptical about the gold mine.  It sounded like an attractive myth, maybe confused in the re-telling with the silver mine.  We found a beautiful rock outcrop and I climbed down to the base but found no openings.  Charlie was convinced he saw workings along part of the outcrop.  What I saw was consistent with rock-fall caused by erosion, and I told him so.  Besides, there was nothing that would show up on an aerial photo.  Despite my skepticism I kept exploring further and further down the cliff as if being drawn by a call.  What I found was probably not a mine, but amazing nonetheless.

Figure 1 – Looking over the rock into the gully.  This is a stereo image designed for cross-eyed viewing. May 12, 2018.

Figure 2 – Looking up towards the rock outcrop.  May 12, 2018.

Figure 3 – Looking up.  It is shale with vertical strata.  May 12, 2018.