silver cliff hikers finding gold rods

[milehieagle]

I read this legend here recently and now it's gone.

2 hikers were hiking somewhere west of Silvercliff CO. A storm came in and they found shelter in a cave they stumbled upon. Inside the cave was human bones and gold rods. When the storm passed, they grabbed as many rods as they could, went back to Silvercliff and showed off their treasure they stumbled onto. Only told people they were hiking west of Silvercliff (many trails exist west of the Silvercliff / West Cliffe area) when they found the cave. Also said they would be back, but no one had heard from them since.

I only read this once and I believe this is the whole story as I read it. I wanted to go over it again and the link I had doesn't work and I can't find it anywhere. Anybody know of this story and why it disappeared? Was it a hoax?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Minelab PRO-FIND 35 Waterproof Pinpointer Metal Detector for Experts with Tone ID & Adjustable Sensitivity - Grab it through Amazon!

[coincutter]

I read this legend here recently and now it's gone.

2 hikers were hiking somewhere west of Silvercliff CO. A storm came in and they found shelter in a cave they stumbled upon. Inside the cave was human bones and gold rods. When the storm passed, they grabbed as many rods as they could, went back to Silvercliff and showed off their treasure they stumbled onto. Only told people they were hiking west of Silvercliff (many trails exist west of the Silvercliff / West Cliffe area) when they found the cave. Also said they would be back, but no one had heard from them since.

I only read this once and I believe this is the whole story as I read it. I wanted to go over it again and the link I had doesn't work and I can't find it anywhere. Anybody know of this story and why it disappeared? Was it a hoax?

i couldnt find anything on it
but considering the lay of the land (family has 160 acres there where I detect) finding it would be a big project
lots of mining ops and blow holes (and rattlesnakes)

mountain range is huge
if its a ground cave - desert is huge
nothing is friendly
i carry down there but feel under armed
lots of critters

you could get killled and ate!

it was a silver mining area
if the gold was in rods it was brought in
who would be so stupid as to share info about discovered gold
especially hikers in the town of westcliffe not knowing anyone
flaky story i think

 

[chrisb5401]

The only similar story I know of is from about 1880. And it was Gold ingots not rods.

Dead Man's Cave


In the winter of 1880 three prospectors – E.J. Oliver, S.J. Harkman and H.A. Melton were prospecting two miles north of what would later become known as Dead Man Camp. As they were working, the sky threatened an oncoming blizzard and they quickly looked about for shelter.



Spying a small opening in a shear rock wall across the canyon, they made their way through the opening, lighting several crude torches. Though the passageway was narrow and less than four feet high, it opened up into a large 20-foot long room.


Shining their torches around, Oliver found the first of five skeletons scattered around the dusty, dark cavern. While exploring the cavern, they found several tight passageways extending into the gloom of the mountain. Choosing one, they followed the tunnel deeper into the mountain until it too, opened up into a large vault-like chamber. Shining their torches around, Melton noticed shelves on the western wall that had been carved into the stone. Bringing his torch closer, he saw several odd-looking stones stacked on one of the shelves and picking one up, he was surprised at its heavy weight. When he and his partners scrutinized it more carefully, they were astounded to discover that the stone was actually a crude bar of gold!



After the threat of snow had passed, the three excited men gathered up five of the bars and headed over the pass to Silvercliff, in the Wet Mountain Valley. Immediately, they had the bars assayed, which proved to be worth $900 apiece. Becoming instant celebrities in Silver Cliff, the men were questioned by all whom they encountered about the source of the gold bars, but all three men steadfastly refused to divulge the location, making plans to return to Dead Man's Cave in the spring.



In the early spring, they made their way back to Dead Man Cave. They thought the cave would be easy to find again but when they returned, there were many places that looked like the area in which the cave had been found. Over the years, they frequently returned to the area but they never again found the cave.



The story of these three prospectors was reported in both The Fairplay Flume and The Denver Post in 1880. To this day, the gold has never been found.

 

[BuffaloBob]

Deadman Camp, Saguache County, Colorado, USA - Maps, Photos, Weather, Local Links

[h=1]Deadman Camp[/h]

Locale in Saguache County, Colorado, USA.
Latitude: 37.85333 : Longitude: -105.81083
[h=2]Local Links[/h] Blogs and Websites Near Deadman Camp, Colorado - GeoURL
[h=2]Maps and Photos[/h]Deadman Camp Map - Multimap
Deadman Camp Street Map and Satellite Photo - Google Maps
Deadman Camp Aerial Photo and Topo Map - Terraserver
Deadman Camp Map - MSN
Environmental Hazards, Flood Area Maps, Boundaries - EPA
Deadman Camp Area Map - MapQuest