Warlock Mine

The Warlock Mine

We Recently took a Hike down The Old Banner Road Trail, also known as The Wilcox Toll Road. It was originally built by Horace Wilcox, who would charge a toll for its use. Later it was purchased by San Diego County and after 1925 The name was changed to The Old Banner Road. We hike down it on a cooler, Cloudy day as to avoid some of the heat. The road is mostly trail and when we hiked down covered in Wildflowers.
This Small Mine possibly The Gardner Bluehill Mine, is on The way down The Old Banner Road Trail. Stuck my head in a few feet and crawled over the first obstruction few more feet and i saw the board propping up the ceiling, time to head back out. This tunnel at least at the entrance is only a few feet high

Looking Down from The Old Toll Road Trail from above, Visible are the Processing Plant and some of the foundations

A little over a mile down the road and The Warlock Mine comes into view. Some machinery and foundations are visible as well as the trail down to it.

Walking Down The trail, that branches off of the Old Banner Road Trail, down to The Warlock Mine. There are signs of the old mines workings, including this old car buried in the brush

Looking behind some brush I find an entrance to one of The mine tunnels. Starting to show it's age.

Inside the Mine shaft, there are some old pipes that were most likely part of a ventilation system and some rocks that have fallen from the ceiling.

The Processing Plant from above, below stretches The Banner Valley

The processing plant from below

One of The Foundations

I apologize for not give out directions to most of my trips, trails change and I do not have the time to keep the site always updated. My hikes also span from the easy to the extreme, a lot of places do not even have trails, as well as extreme conditions. Some sites need to be protected as they are fragile and historically sensitive. So if you decide to hike some of these areas, do your research and know your limits, have the proper provisions .Every year many hikers die from not understanding these Simple Rules. San Diego County and surrounding areas are diverse in climate and terrain. Remember if you do decide to Hike do your research, carry the essentials and do so at your own risk. An alternative is to join one of the many hiking groups such as meetup or on facebook ,as well as other social sites. Not only is there safety in numbers but a pooling of knowledge.