Tramway Headhouse
by Robert Bales
Title
Tramway Headhouse
Artist
Robert Bales
Medium
Photograph - Photo
Description
We spent several days seeing some of the sites of this wonderful tour.
Mackay�s Mine Hill Tour is a self-guided tour of a number of historically productive gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc mines in the Knob Mountains adjacent to Mackay, Idaho, about 30 miles north of Arco. This is a cool riding area because it features riding across high trestles and ATV-width trails in a forested environment. Several loop trips ranging from 20 to 24 miles in length are available to tour the mines, and 20 interpretive sites can viewed along the way. The mine tour takes from two to four hours for an ATV or motorcycle, depending on the speed of travel and stops along the way.
Mackay�s Mine Hill Tour is a self-guided tour that includes most of the historic sites and structures that make up Mackay�s mining heritage. Some sections of the tour are accessible for all vehicles, and other sections are only accessible to high-clearance vehicles, all-terrain vehicles, motorcycles, horses, mountain bikes or hikers, All of the routes climb from about 6000 ft. to 8000 ft. elevation and may take 2-8 hours. The route to the renovated Shay railroad trestle is an 8-mile round trip and some of the route is a narrow, single lane without turnouts. Please use the map and know the routes best suited for your vehicle. Most routes
are narrow and have blind corners. The Tour is not passable for motor homes or RV trailers.
This structure, located at the 700 ft. level, was the upper terminal and loading station for the gravity powered aerial tramway system that connected the mines with the smelter below. Placed in operation in 1918, the system replaced the Shay mining railroad, in operation since 1905. This aerial tramway consisted of ore buckets traveling on a sixmile- long loop of 1 1/4" steel cable supported on 36 wooden towers. Ore was delivered to the top of the HEADHOUSE structure from a nearby tunnel. Today what remains of the HEADHOUSE loading station is still a formidable sight. Look closely to see examples of expert timber joinery and craftsmanship done almost a century ago.
Uploaded
July 31st, 2014
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Viewed 1,217 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/12/2024 at 5:03 AM
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Comments (20)
Christopher James
One of your peers nominated this image in the 1000 Views on One Image Group's Special Features Nominations For Promotion #25 . Please help your fellow artists by visiting and passing on the love to another artist in the the 1000 Views on One Image Group....L/F/Tw
RONALD MILLS
Very cool history in this old building! Nominating for a special feature in the 1000 Views Group!
Cathy Anderson
Congratulations your wonderful image has been featured on the homepage of Anything Architecture Buildings and Bridges! Please archive your image on the discussion board!
Vanessa Bates
What a wonderful structure. I love how you caught the lighting and especially love the fact you processed it as a sepia.