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VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP TO THE KEWEENAW PENINSULA, MICHIGAN - KEWEENAW WEEK 2002

     Keweenaw week is a week of field trips to the various waste rock dumps of mines on the Keweenaw peninsula (two field trips each morning and afternoon for six days) and underground collecting in the Caledonia mine; lectures on various topics of the mines, their minerals and history (for a selection of mineral slides from Dan Behnke's talk on the Microminerals of the Keweenaw); trips to view the historical remains in the area; a rock swap (local collectors selling specimens) and a weekend rock show; a twilight tour of the Quincy surface plant and underground via an adit; and a keynote address and auction. The club is able to secure permission to enter rock piles which are normally off limits to collecting.

 


The week starts out with registration at the Seaman museum (a good time to view one of the better University mineral museums, meet old friends, and make new ones).


The mine dumps are bulldozed to provide fresh rock to search for minerals such as copper, datolite, and micro mineral specimens  (This is at the Caledonia mine).


The rocks at the National mine were washed off.


People would search the piles visually (here one of the minerals sought was datolite nodules) and about two thirds of the collectors were using metal detectors to search for the copper specimens. Connecticut mine.


The Kearsarge #4 poor rock pile is very large ( but is being rapidly processed for gravel).


The National mine was an extension of the Minesota mine, one of the more productive fissure mines.


Attendees of the Keweenaw week 2002 had the opportunity to collect underground at the Caledonia mine.


Attendees could also choose to go on historically oriented trips to the remains of mines, mills, towns, and cemeteries. The cylinder is the last section of the original wooden pipe which carried water from the Victoria dam to the hydroelectric plant and water powered air compressor.


Mechanical mucker - Coppertown USA museum. This machine was used in the underground mines to load rock into the tram cars at an active drift face.


There are many lighthouses on the Keweenaw peninsula. Bete Grise lighthouse.

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