obie's mine
obie's mine
this question is for joe......have you ever been to obies mine over by second water?......i was there about 10 years ago and it someone had started to fill the tunnel above it with trash....also i was wondering if you had ever checked out the silver mines up the canyon that he talked about?...or the gold mine on the mountain behind the second water mine....he also said he found spanish mule shoes on that mountain...but he said it was very dificult to get to when it cools down i thought i might take a stab at checking out the mountain where the mule shoes were found
-
Joe Ribaudo
- Expert
- Posts: 5453
- Joined: Tue Sep 17, 2002 10:36 pm
Obie's Mine
Dave,
I went to Obie's mine once. It was probably close to thirty years ago. I took my uncle's son, Tom Ribaudo with me. We had my dog, Juno for night watch. We spent the night on the mountain above the mine and worked our way down the east side into Boulder Canyon the next day.
Juno had become a "desert" dog by then, and stayed out of the cholla.
He had his own pack and carried his food. Really good memories. Thanks for the nudge into the past.
Obie had an old Packard that he used to camp out in. The entire top had a water tank built onto it, and we spent the first night sleeping at First Water. The day before we went in, Obie had given me the directions to the Spanish mine on the east side of the Apache Trail and I got my first look at it.
My answer to all of your other questions is no. I did not have a lot of faith in Obie's stories as he was fairly crazy. Aunt Olive was another story, and you could believe whatever she said. It's not that Obie hadn't been there and done that, because he had. He led a life that read like a story from Hemingway, but he left a good portion of his mind on the battlefields of Europe. I have always been amazed at the number of people Obie could talk into working and financing the "Question Mark Mine".
Like the many stories of the LDM and the Superstition Mountains, I don't dismiss everything the man said. A lot of the things he told me proved out. I have a manuscript that Obie wrote telling his life story. It is difficult to get through, but interesting. He was big on letter writing and I have a small mountain of his efforts.
Good luck in following his footprints. Few people could keep up with the old man in the mountains, so he really covered some ground.
Respectfully,
Joe
I went to Obie's mine once. It was probably close to thirty years ago. I took my uncle's son, Tom Ribaudo with me. We had my dog, Juno for night watch. We spent the night on the mountain above the mine and worked our way down the east side into Boulder Canyon the next day.
Juno had become a "desert" dog by then, and stayed out of the cholla.
He had his own pack and carried his food. Really good memories. Thanks for the nudge into the past.
Obie had an old Packard that he used to camp out in. The entire top had a water tank built onto it, and we spent the first night sleeping at First Water. The day before we went in, Obie had given me the directions to the Spanish mine on the east side of the Apache Trail and I got my first look at it.
My answer to all of your other questions is no. I did not have a lot of faith in Obie's stories as he was fairly crazy. Aunt Olive was another story, and you could believe whatever she said. It's not that Obie hadn't been there and done that, because he had. He led a life that read like a story from Hemingway, but he left a good portion of his mind on the battlefields of Europe. I have always been amazed at the number of people Obie could talk into working and financing the "Question Mark Mine".
Like the many stories of the LDM and the Superstition Mountains, I don't dismiss everything the man said. A lot of the things he told me proved out. I have a manuscript that Obie wrote telling his life story. It is difficult to get through, but interesting. He was big on letter writing and I have a small mountain of his efforts.
Good luck in following his footprints. Few people could keep up with the old man in the mountains, so he really covered some ground.
Respectfully,
Joe
obie
i heard alot of stories about old obie...even heard he had a pic of him and teddy roosevelt at the opening day at roosevelt dam....i was told he had reciepts where he had sold the gold from the second water mine...close to $10,000....someone i know said he saw the reciepts...so who knows?...maybe old obie found something in that mine b4 it caved in....quien sabe?
-
Joe Ribaudo
- Expert
- Posts: 5453
- Joined: Tue Sep 17, 2002 10:36 pm
The Question Mark Mine
All,
In Dec. 1973, Obie Stoker gave me his copy of "The Story Of Superstition Mountain........" By, Robert Joseph Allen.
There were notes written on a number of pages and directions to the LDM on the back inside cover. It is a bit difficult to read, but if any of you are interested, I have placed a scan of it in Member Archive with the early trip to the ?Mark Mine pictures.
Those directions will take you nowhere near the LDM, but a good many Dutch Hunters believed it was in that immediate area, including John Chunning.
Hope you enjoy the little trip down memory lane.
Joe Ribaudo
In Dec. 1973, Obie Stoker gave me his copy of "The Story Of Superstition Mountain........" By, Robert Joseph Allen.
There were notes written on a number of pages and directions to the LDM on the back inside cover. It is a bit difficult to read, but if any of you are interested, I have placed a scan of it in Member Archive with the early trip to the ?Mark Mine pictures.
Those directions will take you nowhere near the LDM, but a good many Dutch Hunters believed it was in that immediate area, including John Chunning.
Hope you enjoy the little trip down memory lane.
Joe Ribaudo