Bayhorse Ghost Town

We had toast or banana bread before our short walk with dogs on BLM land. As we walked, we picked up more rocks for potential tumbling.

Bayhorse ghost town

When we returned, we had a cold cereal breakfast and packed for trip to Bayhorse, an old silver mining ghost town. We made a quick stop at the transfer station. The key wouldn’t work in the lock, so we kept the garbage in the back of the pickup. Cindy called the waste company and was told that the problem would be looked into soon. We dropped some mail at Ellis Post Office before heading south to Challis. From there we took ID-75 along the Salmon River to the Bayhorse Road.

Bayhorse ghost town

We stopped at the abandoned town, which is now a state park, and picked up a pamphlet guide to the remaining buildings in the town and mining area. Mining started in the town in the 1870s, but the most productive years were from 1882 through the 1890s as the technology for extraction improved. However, the prices for silver and lead dropped at the beginning of the 20th century leading to a cessation of mining operations. In the heyday of the town, the population was over 300. It is said that the area was named Bayhorse because a man with two bay horses told prospectors of a rich silver ore in the area.

Building shingled with tin cans

A lot of buildings from the town and mining operations are still standing. We were impressed by a remaining stone structure that was used in the refining operation. A large structure used in silver and lead extraction was built on the slope of the mountain, taking advantage of gravity to carry the ore through the process of extraction to wagons below. Residents of the town had a unique approach to weatherproofing their building. Shingles on the roof were tin cans that had the top and bottom removed, cut and flattened. Siding was done with the same technique but with larger containers such as lard cans. It seemed like a practical way to reuse the cans that would otherwise have been waste. We walked up the path toward the mines. A short distance away were to the beehive charcoal kilns, where wood would be converted into charcoal for use in smelting the ores. As we were looking at the kilns, Cindy found a prairie rattlesnake crossing the road and headed for cracks in the brick kilns.

Prairie rattlesnake at Bayhorse ghost town

As we returned to the parking area, we met the ranger on duty, who answered some questions and seemed happy to have us visiting the area.

We drove further out the one lane gravel road that was deeply rutted to Little Bayhorse Lake. A few people were fishing, and there was a campground with a few campers. Mark said that he fished this lake last year and had some success catching trout. We had a cracker, peanut butter, and snacks lunch in the truck then walked around the lake. The weather had turned breezy and cool. The path around the lake was swampy in some areas and muddy where cattle had been. We collected a few rocks that might polish well as we walked. About halfway through the walk, a rain started and the wind became colder and more intense. We got back in the truck to drive to Big Bayhorse Lake. As we were leaving, we noticed the group fishing in the lake was also walking toward their vehicles.

Little Bayhorse Lake

Big Bayhorse Lake wasn’t far, but the road was even worse. The sun was out, but the temperature had dropped to 52. We decided to forego a second walk.

Driving back down to ID-75 we saw a squirrel with long, black-tipped tail and a turkey hen with 5 small chicks. The turkeys appeared to be the same species as our eastern wild turkeys.

On our way back to May, we stopped for groceries at Lamb’s Foodtown in Challis. We were back at the house around 4:00, where the temperature was in the low 70s with a light breeze.

Dinner was Smithfield teriyaki pork tenderloin, rice and salad which was very good. We were cold, tired and hungry.

After dinner, Carron, Dean and Mac Morgan stopped by to get chicken food for their other chickens. Mac, Carron and Dean’s grandson, is 11 months old.

Watched two episodes of Madame Blanc Mysteries on Acorn TV before turning in. Mark and Cindy seemed to enjoy this show.

Day 2 - Summer 2014 weekend in Laneville

After a great night sleep, we woke a little after 7 am.  It isn't often that we sleep beyond 5:30, but the sound of Red Creek was very relaxing and we were tired.  The neighbor’s rooster crowing didn’t even disturb us.  We had yogurt and muesli for breakfast as well as tea made from bottled water that we brought with us.  We left the cabin around 8 am and drove to the Seneca Rocks Discovery Center where we took a quick look and decided to come back in the afternoon when the rocks weren't backlit by the sun. 

We drove east toward some places than we had never visited.  When we picked up a cell signal, we had to put out some fires at work.  I needed to finalize a submission to IRB for a grant proposal we are preparing, and Mary needed to make some work calls.  We parked at the McDonald's in Petersburg and used their WiFi to take care of some small tasks for work.  We drove on through Grant County and into Hardy County through Moorefield.  We saw a flier earlier for Trout Pond Recreation Area near Wardensville which is considered the only natural lake in the state.  The park was very nice and had a beach area in the small two acre pond.  There were picnic areas and walking paths.  We didn't stay long but just drove through and moved on.

Our next stop was to Lost River State Park where the headwaters of the Lost River are located.  Lost River eventually goes underground in a sink near Baker, WV, and travels underground for two to three miles before emerging near Wardensville, WV as the Cacapon River.  The facilities at Lost River State Park were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) from 1934 to 1937. There are 26 cabins than can be rented, a swimming pool and many well marked trails with CCC bridges and rails.  Within the park was a house owned by “Stonewall” Jackson’s father Henry “Lighthorse Harry” Lee.  The house was built in 1800 as a summer home for the Lee family.  The Lee Sulphur Springs house has been restored by the CCC in the 1930s and was in very good shape.

A sulfur spring was nearby that was considered very healthy in generations past.  The Lee summer home was likely built in this location because of the cool summer weather and the presence of the spring.  The water in the spring had the strong rotten egg odor that is so characteristic of sulfur springs.  We both smelled the water but neither of us was tempted to have a taste.  We had a nice lunch of peanut butter, crackers, carrots and grapes while sitting at a picnic table in front of the Lee cabin. 

We left Lost River State Park and drove the 90 minutes back to Seneca Rocks to take a GigaPan photo of the rocks, hopefully while climbers are visible on the rock face.  We set up the GigaPan and took a panorama of the rocks that should stitch up to a GigaPanimage that is over a gigabyte in size.  There were several groups climbing Seneca Rocks, making their way up the Tuscarora Quartzite rock face on the many routes to the summit.  There was also a group visible on the observation platform along the walking path near the top of the rock outcropping.

We drove up to one of our favorite places, the Bear Rocks Nature Preserve at Dolly Sods.  This area, owned by the Nature Conservancy, is well used by a number of tourists and provides a great view from the Appalachian Plateau into the valley below.  The sky in the area typically holds a great deal of mist and softens the view of the valley and surrounding countryside,  The air is always cool and refreshing at that altitude, and we enjoy just sitting on the lichen covered rocks and watching the clouds roll by.

We left the Bear Rocks area and started down the mountain through Laneville toward Davis.  As we drove the bumpy gravel road at around 4000 feet we saw something move in the road.  Turns out it was a timber rattlesnake.  She was a gravid female that was just under a meter in length but was swollen in diameter because of the babies she was carrying.  Perhaps the most remarkable thing about her was her color.  She was almost entirely black.  Except for the part of her body where the bulk of offspring in her stretched her skin, she was coal black.  Most of the rattlesnakes that I have seen in the mountains have been dark, probably an adaptation to the lower temperatures.  However, this snake was unusually dark even when compared to others in the area. She was stretched out in the road in a sunny spot.  

We were concerned that she would be hit by a car, perhaps intentionally, so I got a stick from the side of the road and moved her into the wooded area a few yards from the gravel road.  She wasn't very happy about having to move from her sunny spot but hopefully she will survive to deliver her young.

After coming down the mountain and arriving at Davis, we had another wildlife encounter.  Near some of the homes on Laneville Road toward Canaan Valley, we saw what we thought was a black cat playing near the road.  We were already driving slowly on the bumpy, narrow, winding road, but we slowed more to avoid hitting the “cat” in the road.  Turns out, it was a young skunk!  We moved by very slowly to not get a spraying before our dinner.  The skunk ambled away, and we drove on to Sirianni’s Café in Davis for our dinner.  Mary had the Rosa’s special which is spaghetti with grilled chicken, mushrooms and broccoli covered in a clear wine sauce.  I had angel hair pasta with marinara sauce and Italian sausage.  Both of us enjoyed our meals.

We drove back to the cabin after dinner and read while until I fell asleep in my book around 9:30 so I decided to just go to bed.  A slow rain started that night and tapped on the roof as we slept.

  

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