Hidden in the mountains just northwest of Mono Lake lie two of the most beautiful canyons in the Eastern Sierra, Lundy and Lake Canyons. Perched high on the wall of Lake Canyon, in a seemingly unreachable location, sits the remains of the Big Emma gold mine. This adventurous all-day hike will lead you up an old mining road into spectacular Lake Canyon, then through the woods to a spotty mine trail which climbs up to the mine. Along the way you can visit two century-old gold mills as well as the ruins of a stone cabin. Adventurous hikers can continue 500 feet past the Big Emma Mine to the Little Emma Mine, although serious caution is advised.
History
The Homer Mining District was founded in 1879, when gold was discovered in Lundy Canyon. By the turn of the century hundreds of claims had been filed. The most productive mine in the district was the May Lundy Mine in Lake Canyon, a hanging canyon which drains from the south into Lundy Canyon. The May Lundy was worked intermittently from 1880 until 1942, when it was closed as a non-essential mine, never to re-open. Several smaller mines, some in almost inaccessible locations high on the canyon walls, contributed to the district's output until the early 1900s.
Two of the least accessible mines in Lake Canyon were the Big Emma and the Little Emma. Despite their similar names and close proximity, they were unrelated: the Little Emma was discovered in 1880, the Big Emma in 1894. Production records from that era are scarce, but it appears that both produced some of the richest ore in the district. Ore from the Little Emma was processed in an arrastra on the floor of Lake Canyon, while the Big Emma's ore was processed at the Pierce Mill, a small custom mill on the banks of the south fork of Mill Creek (see the map below).
Today, what little remains at the Big Emma is succumbing to time and the elements. Two small piles of weathered wood indicate the location of a blacksmith shop and a doorway which once protected the portal. Inside, the single adit leads to a couple of short drifts and a winze with a windlass still in place.
A few other workings are scattered across the nearby slope, but they don't appear to be substantial, and are difficult to access. The Little Emma appears to be in slightly better shape, but I was unable to reach it on my two visits to verify this. Despite being called the "Little" Emma, it was actually more substantial than the "Big" Emma. A weathered cabin and shed, visible from the floor of Lake Canyon, still stand at the entrance of the mine.
