We took a trip to Stibnite Idaho just past Yellow Pine. My mother lived there when she was a teenager. Her mother was a cook for the miners. All we found of the place was some old foundations. Some homes have been moved to McCall and are still in use. The big deep hole in the ground with a lake in the bottom is where they mined for Tungsten and antimony. It has always been called the Glory Hole. These elements were used for hardening steel. Stibnite produced more tungsten than any other mine during WWII. There were around 8 thousand people living there during the war.
We also drove ATV's in to Cinnabar. It is an old mining town but these buildings are still there. The US Forest Service will soon be burning them down. It is a shame because this is where my Grandfather and my Great Uncle Tom worked. The US Forest Service has burned down hundreds of old cabins in this area. Some of them were still useable and they destroyed them. Another thing the US Forest Service is doing is not posting the milage on trail signs and road signs. If a person wants to hike into a lake, the distance will not be posted. It is as if they are discouraging people from using the wilderness. I also know of areas where they are taking down signs when you come to junctions in a trail. This is getting people lost. It is as if the rangers are saving most of this area for themselves to us because they know where all the trails go and how far it is to get to things like lakes, rivers, lookouts, ranches. waterfalls and many other scenic destinations.
We took the trip with my brother Merrill, his wife Nikki and my niece Cami. Cami likes to goof off with Zach and Rachel as you can tell by the pictures.
We actually got snowed on at about 8500 feet. It was cold but still lots of fun.
We also had to stop and pick some huckleberries to make a pie.
Thank God my brother Merrill knew how to get to Cinnabar because there were many junctions in the road and there was never a sign that led us to Cinnabar.
Our next post will be about our trip to Roosevelt Lake. I will also try to get Maria, Zach or Rachel to write about the trip.
