With the mainline of the Slate Creek open, it’s time to start seriously planning where the various industries will be located … and for the Slate Creek, one of the biggest is the mines it serves.

It has always been my intention to have a mine on the railroad… possibly more than one… that in addition to providing ore for the railroad to haul, would have an operating mine tram.

Finding resources that describe this sort of thing is generally difficult, at least for what I want to know… so… for our experts-in-residence, some mine ops questions:

1.) My understanding is that while using gasoline engines underground is not allowed, for obvious reasons, that diesel engines are allowed, in some cases. True/False? Special requirements?

2.) Powered by any means, I understand that there may be some kind of restriction on mine mules PUSHING cars ahead of it, as opposed to pulling them. I’ve heard this also changes based on whether you’re hauling ore, men, or (gasp) explosives… For all of the underground pictures I’ve seen, I have yet to see an underground passing track, wye, or turntable… and could get away with a lot less real estate on the surface if I didn’t have to have similar facilities there. So what are the rules? If you have to lead with the mine mule, how is the requisite switching accomplished? If not… do they generally push loaded cars, or empties?

3.) Uncrushed ore is hardly shovel work. Once loaded… how were gondolas of ore unloaded at the crushing/refining plant?

4.) Assuming the ore is being hauled to a central crushing/refining plant from the various mine tunnels, other than an office type building at each site, what other facilities (if any) would be found above ground at the mine entrance?

5.) Finally (for now) … I understand that for a long time now, that most mines have been required to have more than one exit to the surface. Would it be conceivable that the mine tram could make entrance at one portal, and exit at another? (obviously this would modify the answer to #2 above, as the tram would be either pulled or pushed halfway, and then the opposite for the second half!)

While I’m not trying to be “perfect” about anything, I certainly would like to take a reasonable stab at an operation that might have happened… kind of like the railroad itself, except that I have no personal experience with mining ops whereas I do with the railroad ones, and know where I can make adjustments and still be somewhat plausible.

Matthew (OV)