Bobtail Mine - Mohave County

 

Where: Cerbat Mountains Near Mineral Park

 

Travel Conditions: Unmaintained dirt requires a high clearance vehicle.  Location is near the Mineral Park Mine in the Cerbat Mountains. 

 

Operation Dates:  1900 to 1948

 

Mining District: Wallapai Mining District

 

Description: The Bobtail Mine was discovered about 1900.  The most productive period was between 1923 - 1942 which produced about $80,000 worth of ore. (http://www.blm.gov)

 

A former Ag-Au-Pb-Zn-Cu-U mine operated from 1901 through 1948.

 

Mineralization is a vein deposit. Precambrian schistosity strikes N30ºE. Veins, fissures and dikes strike NW to NNW regionally. The host rock unit is the shinarump member of the Chinle formation, conglometatic sandstone in channels. There is a prominent shear down the center of the vein. (http://www.mindat.org)

 

There is very little information on the internet regarding this mine.  I have found some references to this location to describe other locations in the vacinity of the Bobtail Mine.  Several prospects are evident in the surrounding hillsides but the tailings are small leading me to believe the findings were minimal to none. 

 

 

What you will see today:  As I approached the Bobtail Mine there was evidence of a collapsed old wooden structure amongst some large trees near a wash.  Several locations can be seen along the hillside showing evidence of mining with minimal piles of tailings.

 

There is still an old tin building standing along the side of the wash with workings all around the canyon. Inside the building is a make shift bed and wooden shelving with a wooden floor.  Just outside the building is another building that has collapsed over time with one wall still holding up against time.  Above the tin building on the hillside is an ore shoot and at the bottom is a concrete slab.  The concrete slab just below the ore shoot has a "V" shape formed in it as part of the ore processing.  A water tank fed by a spring sits on the hillside near the ore shoot which had water flowing into it from a spring further up the hill.  The tank was about 1/2 way filled with clear water on the day visited.

 

Walking up the canyon there was a tunnel in the side of the cliff at the base.  The tunnel was filled with sand from the wash and rocks from above.  A portion of the opening was marked with exposed timbers and a small opening in the corner to the tunnel. The opening was big enough for a small animal to enter but not a person.

 

Continuing up the wash toward the lower edge of the largest tailings pile I noticed and old pipe fitting amongst the rocks shown in the photos. At the top of the tailings pile was a mine shaft which was fenced off.  Further exploration showed signs of prospects in the cliffs which were fenced off with Danger signs.

 

Comments:  This was an interesting area to walk around and well worth the ride to get there.  Many other mines are evident along the route to explore on another day.

 

Minerals Mined: Copper, Lead, and Zinc were the primary minerals minded at the Bobcat Mine.

 

Acknowledgement: mindt.org, www.blm.gov