Fairbanks Activities Continued

Gold Dredge No. 8

All over Alaska, we have encountered "gold rush history"!  There were gold strikes in almost every part of the central part of the state back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and in fact, some of the mines are still producing gold.  A look back at our post from the Kenai Peninsula shows Tam, Betty, and Ray panning for gold up near Independence Mine.

In the Fairbanks area, the gold rush was started by Felix Pedro who found one or more gold nuggets in a creek to the northeast of town.  Fairbanks barely existed then, but the gold rush swelled its population quickly around the turn of the 20th century.  Most of that early mining was done by panning for gold in the streams or digging into the earth to find a gold seam.  It was hard work with often no rewards.  But folks streamed up into Alaska seeking their fortunes in gold!

Eventually, mechanized mining came into the forefront.  Instead of sinking shafts into the earth--down through the perma-frost which might extend for 30 feet or more below the surface--a form of "open pit" mining was introduced (of course, it wasn't called that back then!).  First a mining operation had to strip off the permafrost layers.  This was frozen ground, so many different approaches were used to thaw--actually, melt--the ground so it could be removed.  Rather than digging it out, it was melted by injecting steam into the ground and then hosing off the unfrozen gravel with power nozzles of water.  This required months of labor to relieve the claim from what was called its "overburden".  Once down to bedrock, the true mining could begin, whether is was to dredge up the rocks in the seam or to dynamite the bedrock and scoop up the loosened ore for grinding and refining. 

Out to the northeast of Fairbanks, in the direction of Felix Pedro's first claim, is a tourista tour destination--Gold Dredge No. 8.  We did go out to ride the little train through the claim to learn about the practice of gold mining by dredge!

OK, here we are in the 'cattle car' ready to ride the train through Gold Dredge No. 8!

Earl was our on-board entertainment...he fronted for Johnny Cash on several of Cash's Alaska tours!

The train took us through the mining property with a tour guide who explained all about the claims history, the early mining techniques, and the final dredging operation which produced the gold.  On this claim, the mining company had invested $15 million in preparation costs before they were ready to begin recovering the gold!!  And this was $15 million back in the early part of the 20th Century!

A replica of an early shaft mine.

Our first stop was at a working replica of an early mine.  Digging down through the permafrost, which was very difficult because it was frozen ground, a miner on his claim dug a shaft into the earth like all of us know about mining!  Using a wood-fired boiler [left in the picture to drive a steam-powered wench [right of the shaft frame], he hauled up the dirt and piled it off to the side of the mine.  Once to the gold-seam, he would dig during the winter, piling up the dirt, and then when the thaw came in the Spring, he would wash--sluice--the dirt pile to recover whatever gold was there!  Winter under ground digging--summer washing the dirt pile!  Pretty hard-scrabble life, I guess!

Our tour guide showing us a power washer extraordinare!

With the advent of more mechanized mining into the second decade of the 20th Century, removing the "overburden" became one of unfreezing the permafrost and washing away the gravel.  Here you can see both the injection hoses into the permafrost and the tour guide holding the "nozzle".  Pipes were hammered--literally--into the permafrost, hoses were attached [see two to the right in the picture], and water or steam was injected into the permafrost.  Once it was thawed sufficiently, it was hosed off into piles to get on down to the next layer.  Note the big pile of gravel in the rear of the picture.  All over the valleys to the northeast of Fairbanks, one can see big berms of gravel from this process.

This is Gold Dredge No. 8

Once the "overburden" had been excavated, which might take months, a big dredge was assembled on the site and began digging the gravel/bedrock.  It was scooped up by the bucket fulls, hauled up into the dredge innards, and washed down sluices to recover the gold flakes.  Eventually, there was enough gold to transport it to Fairbanks--under armed guard!!  This dredge recovered over 430,000 ounces of gold during its operation some 90 years ago!

Once we had reached the "Main Camp" of this gold mining operation, we stopped so that all of us could do our own "gold panning"!  As we walked off the train, each of us was handed a "poke"--a little sack of dirt and gravel!  Could there be some gold in that poke???  [Nah, the tour company wouldn't 'seed' these pokes, would they?]  Well, of course, we all grabbed our pokes and headed for the panning troughs!  Here we are, dumping our pokes and washing out the crap to see if we had any gold in them thar hills!

Jack thinks he sees gold already...he has just dumped his poke and thinks he sees a fleck of yellow!

Ray and Tam dump their pokes into their pans, hoping to find a nugget or two!

Jack still has a lot of rocks and pebbles in his pan!  Wash it down, guy, wash it down!

Betty and Jack check their little canisters to see if they have much gold!

"No, Betty, look!  There's one!  You missed it!"

"Oh, look, Ray, I found three more flakes!"

So we had a fun and educational time at Gold Dredge No. 8.  And we came away with about $12 to $15 each in gold flakes!  I had mine put into a small locket which was then glued to a very small gold pan magnet and now resides proudly on my refrigerator in Camelot House!!

Alaska cannot be explained adequately...it has to be experienced!  We have done tourista things, explored museums big and small, and wandered hither and thither on our own.  We are all enthralled with this wonderful state and what it has to offer!  Come up here, if you haven't!  Return, as I will, if you have!

All our best from almost the Arctic Circle!

The Alaska Odyssey!