While hiking way out in the backcountry wilderness of Joshua Tree National Park, my friend JP and I stumbled upon an old prospector’s mining camp. Hardly anything is left at the camp: a few cans, wood debris, a rock-stacked wall, and fireplace. Hidden nearby in a pile of granite boulders are an old mining pick and a few boards of lumber. The old prospector must have stashed them here for safekeeping until he returned. He never did.
I haven’t been able to find any history on who this long-lost prospector might have been. I’m guessing the camp dates from the 1930s Depression era, but some of the artifacts look older. I talked to the NPS archaeologist, and he couldn’t offer any more information on the place.
If you have any information on this camp and prospect, please let me know. I left everything out there as you should too.
