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.
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The Chemung Mine tells two stories, and neither one ends well. The first is about phenomenally rich gold ore that someone discovered in 1909 – ore so valuable it ran "several hundred dollars per ton" in an era when that meant real money. The second story is about a
May Lundy Mine
Just northwest of Mono Lake lies Lundy Canyon, home to a Mono County campground, a large lake, and a small resort with a few cabins and campsites. Most visitors today come for the fishing, hiking, and fall color, probably unaware that this quiet area was once home to a booming
