I Found A Gold Mine Full Of Treasures!

DISCOVERED: The Lost Mill & Secret Workings of the Silver Tip Mine
Today we’re heading deep into the rugged Cascades of the Mount Baker Mining District to rediscover the Silver Tip Gold Mine. Hidden on the edge of a massive "chute of doom," the Silver Tip was a thriving operation in the 1940s until a catastrophic avalanche in 1950 wiped the mill off the map.

In this episode, we track down the original foundations, explore the underground workings, and find evidence of a "mystery" cabin site that hasn't been seen in decades.

⚙️ The Ghost Mill in the Woods
Nature has reclaimed almost everything, but we managed to find:

The Rake Classifier: A massive piece of vintage milling tech used to sort crushed ore by weight and size.

The Aerial Tram: Remains of the cable system that bypassed the steep terrain to deliver ore to the mill.

Hidden Artifacts: From 1940s Pepsi cans to a beautifully cast "Pioneer Stove" door hidden in a flat spot the forest tried to hide.

🧪 Geology & The "Fault Zone"
I’m standing right on a major fault line. This structure is the "conduit" that allowed mineral-rich fluids to deposit gold, silver, and copper into the host rock.

The Rocks: On one side, we have Darrington Phyllite; on the other, Metasedimentary Carbonates.

The Evidence: Inside the mine, we found Slicken sides—polished rock surfaces that prove the fault has moved under immense pressure.

🔦 Inside the Silver Tip Mine
The northern adit stretches 240 feet and cross-cuts four distinct shear zones. We head up a sketchy 45-degree stope (a "rat hole" if I've ever seen one) to find the high-grade ore shoots the old-timers were chasing.

💎 The Rock Shop: Listwanite & Microscopic Gold
Back at the shop, we slab up some incredible specimens of Listwanite (a green, nickel-rich ore also called Garnierite) and put the Silver Tip ore under the microscope.

The Results: We found beautiful pyrite cubes and even a tiny, undeniable speck of free gold hiding in the sulfides!

⏱️ Video Timestamps:
0:00 – Finding the Mill Site in the Avalanche Chute

2:45 – Inspecting the Rake Classifier & Infrastructure

5:10 – The "Discernible Trail" to the Secret Cabin

7:30 – Relics of the 1940s: Blackberry Jam & Cast Iron Stoves

10:15 – The Fault Line: Darrington Phyllite vs. Carbonates

13:40 – Entering the Silver Tip Portal

16:50 – Exploring the "Rat Hole" Stope & Shear Zones

20:15 – The Mystery Cabin Site & Artifacts

23:30 – Slabbing Listwanite in the Rock Shop

26:00 – Microscope Reveal: Finding the Gold!

⚒️ Support the Exploration:
If you want to own a piece of the Silver Tip’s history, I’ll be putting a few of these slabs and artifacts up on eBay. Check the link in the bio!

What do you think? Should I have taken that cast-iron stove door for the museum, or was I right to leave it for the next explorer? Let me know in the comments!

#GoldMining #MountBaker #SilverTipMine #Exploration #HardRockMining #Geology #GoldProspecting #MiningHistory
For more info please email or call:

Email: info@MBMMLLC.com
Phone: 360-595-4445
Website: http://www.mbmmllc.com/
Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/MBMMLLC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MBMMLLC
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mbmmllc/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MBMMLLC