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Wilderness Tapes: Volume One
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00:19There is a vast, sunlit wilderness, waiting to be explored.
00:33But, something else lurks beyond the gentle pines.
00:42Feel a dark wilderness.
00:49According to the National Forest Service, more than a million cell phones and other recording devices are lost in the
00:56wilderness each year.
00:58What unexplained phenomena could be preserved inside a forgotten camcorder?
01:04What irrefutable evidence might be locked behind a shattered cell phone screen?
01:10One could only speculate until now.
01:13For the past decade, I've made it my personal mission to retrieve and recover video recordings lost to nature.
01:23And tonight I present them here for the very first time.
01:28Meet prospector Pete Burke, age 35, rockhound, recluse, a bit of an oddball.
01:36Went into an abandoned mine searching for gold and left behind a grainy video never before seen.
01:44What you're about to witness could be mistaken for a nightmare, if it weren't terrifyingly real.
01:51A video recording made for YouTube that never made it that far.
01:56This is the account of a lonely man in pursuit of something shiny, something beautiful.
02:03And he went looking for it in the wilderness.
02:29Just got to keep my voice down.
02:38This landowner is a real piece of work.
02:44Just need to be quiet through here.
02:49Shit.
02:50Shit.
02:51Shit.
02:59That was close.
03:01Sounds back there missing snakes and guns.
03:05Nothing about dogs.
03:08Snakes don't run like dogs.
03:16I think the coast is clear.
03:25This trail doesn't see much action anymore.
03:29Ah, shit.
03:31Gets pretty overgrown.
03:34Yeah.
03:38Yeah, it used to be an old wagon road.
03:40That made it possible to get the machinery and supplies to the mines.
03:48Before that, everything had to be lowered about a thousand feet down the side of the mountain.
03:57Speaking of drop-offs, when I cut my camera, it's usually for my own safety.
04:06This trail gets more and more washed out each year.
04:10In some parts, pretty damn narrow.
04:20Oh, yeah.
04:22You fall down there, you're not getting back up.
04:27Mm-mm.
04:29Wouldn't want to be that guy.
04:42Oh, hey there, little guy.
04:45Looks like I'm not the only one out here.
04:48May have just made myself a new friend.
04:53Oh, that's really beautiful.
04:57Oh, yeah.
05:00I don't know, I see them sparkle.
05:05Wow.
05:07Quartz.
05:08Nickel.
05:09Micah.
05:11Even some iron ore.
05:14Look at that.
05:23Shit.
05:24I gotta check this out.
05:35Now, this is dry creek bed, where gold was first discovered in the area.
05:43A man would stop to water his horse,
05:48look down,
05:50and notice something glistening in the water.
05:57Something like this.
06:05Look at that.
06:08Look at that.
06:10You kidding me?
06:12That is gold, y'all.
06:15Maybe tiny, but sure as shit.
06:17That is gold.
06:19Gold.
06:20Gold.
06:22Gold.
06:29That is like picking a hundred dollar bill right off the ground.
06:33Straight up, better than sex.
06:37Okay, look.
06:38Easy money feels great,
06:41but it can also cloud your judgment.
06:43Make you do dumb shit.
06:45Gold fever's real, y'all.
06:47I mean, look at me.
06:49What the hell am I doing out here in the middle of the night by myself?
06:54Guess I'm insane.
06:55Ha ha ha.
07:07In the 1850s,
07:09men used to carry their lunch inside a metal pail.
07:12They'd light a candle,
07:13heat the food over the flame,
07:15but they never eat the edges.
07:18That's because they would feed those to the mine rats,
07:21who could sense when a tunnel collapse was coming.
07:25Now these here are just cold chicken nuggets.
07:28I may not be a traditionalist,
07:31but why take a chance?
07:34To the mine rats.
07:44Now in this book right here,
07:46Golden State by Joseph Jackson,
07:48there's actually a chapter about the abandoned mine.
07:51This is an amazing book that covers the history of mining in California.
07:55The chapter that interests us, though,
07:57is called A Wedge of Gold.
08:00Originally named the Prosper Mine in 1871,
08:03it was more commonly known as the Warlock Mine
08:06in reference to its eccentric owner,
08:08Reginald Wildman,
08:09a feared practitioner of the occult.
08:12Pale-skinned and ill-mannered,
08:14Mr. Wildman was obsessed with finding what he described as
08:17a wedge of gold.
08:18Convinced the wedge was the next motherlode,
08:21he habitually drove miners to the breaking point.
08:24When they quit,
08:26Wildman replaced them with Chinese laborers,
08:28who were plentiful after the completion
08:29of the Transcontinental Railroad.
08:32These skilled but low-cost workers
08:34were deployed in around-the-clock searches
08:36for gold pieces no smaller than one inch in diameter,
08:39or roughly the size of a shooter marble.
08:44Locals marveled at the Chinese miners' speed,
08:46while toiling in the dark,
08:48calling them the Shadows.
08:50After a quarrel between an injured miner and Wildman
08:53over unpaid wages,
08:55a fire broke out in the processing mill.
08:57Suspect and foul play,
08:59Wildman purchased a sizable insurance policy
09:01before sending his crew back into the mine.
09:04On October 20, 1874,
09:07a blasting accident occurred.
09:0975 miners perished.
09:11Their bodies were never recovered.
09:14A vague newspaper account cited worker incompetence
09:18as the likely cause of the disaster.
09:19The mine was shuttered,
09:21and Reginald Wildman collected
09:23the second-largest insurance payout
09:25in California history.
09:29Shocking.
09:31But you gotta hand it to Mr. Wildman.
09:33He still managed to get that bag.
09:41No cell signal for GPS.
09:44And it's too dark to spot the mine below.
09:48Looking for familiar landmarks on the trail.
09:53You know, I hiked right past it last time.
09:57It's been an hour on the opposite ridge.
10:04What the fuck?
10:05What's with these dogs?
10:07They sound big.
10:12I don't really like dogs.
10:14I had a bad experience.
10:23At my weekly meetings,
10:25they encourage us to find some kind of a hobby.
10:29Distraction or outdoor activity.
10:33Yeah, when I show my sponsor these videos,
10:36he doesn't really like that I'm coming out here alone at night.
10:39Said it could be triggering.
10:42Shoot, I don't think it is.
10:44I think it's therapeutic.
10:48Besides, I got y'all here with me to keep me company.
10:55Ah, before the old road washed out,
10:59a bunch of hippies trying to homestead out here.
11:03Thought I saw someone standing on top of the deck
11:05the last time I was here.
11:07Then I just realized it's my mind playing tricks on me.
11:14Nope.
11:15I don't like it.
11:27Almost there.
11:28I can smell it.
11:37Plenty of folks might think I'm crazy
11:38for coming out here like this.
11:41But those folks
11:43don't know Prospector Pete.
11:52Not expecting that.
11:53Right to the face.
12:08Not expecting that.
12:09Right to the face.
12:22I was saving this fatty for the end of the night.
12:26But shit, I made a wrong turn.
12:29Now I'm on the opposite side of the mine.
12:32Again.
12:34So.
12:36Fuck it.
12:38When in doubt,
12:40smoke it out.
12:45Okay, this is good.
12:47This is what I remember.
12:54Probably the last car to drive down here
12:56before the old road washed out.
13:00Just had to abandon it.
13:06I'm guessing.
13:08I'm guessing.
13:09The 40s.
13:1250s.
13:14I'm not really a car guy,
13:15so maybe you can let me know
13:17in the comments.
13:18Oh.
13:31The wind, I guess.
13:36Let's see if we can find anything good.
13:50Oh, great.
13:52More dogs.
13:55Well,
13:56still might be worth something.
14:11Chinese good luck, pal.
14:16Guess this one's defective.
14:18Probably belong to someone working this claim
14:21in the later years.
14:25Did you hear that?
14:33Miners are a suspicious bunch.
14:35We often get twitchy
14:36about the things we hear
14:37and see down there.
14:39After the cave-in,
14:40plenty of folks tried
14:41to reopen the warlock,
14:42but nobody stayed long.
14:45Miners would often complain
14:46about knocking,
14:48whispers,
14:50and worst of all,
14:51the shadows.
14:54Always the shadows.
14:56When people would go down
14:57into the mine,
14:57they'd say,
14:58you don't have a China man's chance,
15:00which basically just meant
15:02no chance at all.
15:04But hey,
15:05I've been in there,
15:05and I'm still here,
15:07and I don't believe in bells
15:08or shadows.
15:11I believe in gold.
15:21Try not to bust my ass.
15:25I see if this old warlock
15:27left us anything good.
15:32there she is.
15:34That's the hopper
15:35where the ore goes
15:36before crushing.
15:38This is all that's left
15:40of the processing mill.
15:42Wildfires deformed the steel.
15:45Earthquakes brought it all down.
15:48This entire area
15:49is known as Earthquake Valley
15:50because the fault line
15:52runs right beneath us.
15:54It's just another reason
15:56these old claims
15:56are so dangerous.
15:59Now,
16:00the portal to the mine
16:01is just up there.
16:03The last time,
16:05I found a nice,
16:06juicy nugget
16:07in the waste rock.
16:07So let's do a quick scan
16:09of this area,
16:11then head on over
16:12to the mine.
16:15Now,
16:16at one point in time,
16:18there was a small home
16:20over there,
16:22an office here,
16:25and of course,
16:26the processing mill.
16:30There could still be
16:31some gold in the tailings
16:33here,
16:34or relics from the 1700s,
16:38or absolutely nothing.
16:41But hey,
16:42you're not going to find
16:43nothing just sitting at home.
16:45That's why you've got
16:46to get off your butt
16:46and have yourself
16:47a little adventure.
16:49Oh,
16:51that's a pretty good hit.
17:09Oh,
17:10yeah.
17:17huh.
17:19This
17:21is called
17:22a tombak button.
17:24See that
17:25cool little engraving
17:26right there?
17:28Kind of like a pyramid.
17:31It's a fancy one.
17:34I'll put this up
17:35on my ebay
17:36if anyone's interested.
17:53Whoa.
17:55What is that?
17:59All right.
18:00Let's a little bit more
18:05of that.
18:08I'll put this inside
18:10and I'll put it in
18:10a little bit more
18:10of that.
18:10Let's a little bit more
18:16of that.
18:16Let's a little bit more
18:24of that.
18:25whatever it is it is highly conductive see if I can take some of this off come
18:41on now big money hold on your relics how about some gold where'd it go silver
18:57maybe ring oh shit can I get a hell yeah this is freaking insane what a find
19:12hard to believe this ring was last worn over a hundred years ago
19:18sure as hell beats the tombak button I'm keeping it
19:28okay guys this is the portal looks like a natural cave so it's easy to miss in the dark
19:37you can see it's super brittle due to erosion don't hit my pack on the ceiling
19:46ah shit it's dark let's bump this up that's better this is nocturnal mode on the light
19:57it's actually a perfect time for me to give a shout out to my sponsor night beam
20:04this all-purpose flashlight is waterproof has multiple power settings and can easily be used
20:10as a charging station so head on down over to nightbeam.com slash miners using the promo code
20:16prospect to get your special 10 discount all right now back to the show
20:24you can see some of the old ventilation pipe along here is junk now need a 10-inch shot just
20:32from
20:32looking at it now right off the bat we are into some of that rich buttery ore this mine was
20:42a big
20:42producer in its a day people would travel from all over the country all over the world hoping to strike
20:52it rich the warlock himself traveled from Europe to stake his claim it's rumored that he was a disgraced royal
21:00and aristocrat but it's hard to say where the facts end and the tall tales begin
21:07hundred thousand dollars worth of gold came out of this place before the tragedy about five million dollars in today's
21:13money
21:16oh now that's the tits some of the best gold i've ever seen came out of a crevice just like
21:23that
21:24never underestimate a nice tight crack
21:29you don't need to be a geologist to recognize gold when you see it
21:33it's just a matter of how far you're willing to go
21:37to take it
21:40now my ex-wife she thought i was crazy for coming out here and doing this
21:45said she couldn't see the attraction
21:48i thought she was talking about the mine
21:53oh well i guess i'm better off without her anyways
21:58i like to consider myself one of them acquired tastes
22:01like anchovies or one of them stinky cheeses
22:08if there's any uh single ladies watching this though
22:11why don't you drop old pete comment below
22:22oh man
22:25is this what i think it is
22:29yeah this isn't something you want to mess with unless you're professional like myself
22:37good old-fashioned dynamite gets real unstable over time the nitro leaks out of the stick
22:45crystallizes can explode on contact
22:48it's fucking dangerous to touch
22:51until it isn't
22:53but there's no way to know
22:56and this
22:59let's be delicate right here
23:02these
23:02are the blasting caps used to detonate the dynamite
23:08also a good way to lose a hand
23:10collectors love these little tin boxes though
23:13great ebay item
23:18good no caps
23:26i think it's part of the same photo
23:30you gotta be shitting me
23:31look
23:32look right there
23:35that's the same ring
23:36sure as shit
23:37that's the same damn ring
23:39oh this is good
23:40this is a provenance i need to accurately date the object
23:44now let's try to make out some of these markings
23:48blasting caps
23:50dangerous
23:52handle with care
23:54western cartridge company
23:57score
24:01now you can see
24:03some of these big pieces
24:05are rigged up to the ceiling like this
24:09looks a little unstable
24:10if you ask me
24:14now here's another
24:18that is a lot of rock overhead
24:22pretty dangerous
24:27we
24:27are heading to the collapse section now
24:30there is a vein of the most beautiful gold you have ever seen
24:34runs through blue quartz
24:36like butter
24:37like a wedge of gold
24:40it's just so beautiful
24:43so precious
24:46exactly what i need right now
24:54these are all that's left
24:56of the mine cart tracks
25:08you can see
25:10they were chasing gold in every direction down here
25:14now these
25:15are exploratory tunnels
25:18looking for pockets of treasure
25:20now the treasure
25:21goes in my pockets
25:26it's easy to get spooked
25:28the closer you get to the collapse
25:31knowing the history of it
25:33one day
25:34a bunch of men walked down this shaft
25:37and never came out
25:40wonder how long they survived down here
25:43in the dark
25:45behind all that rock
25:48eventually
25:49all the yelling and banging would stop
25:52guess you just finally accept your fate
26:06there it feels
26:07a little heavier now
26:11wow
26:12that is like hitting a wall of moist air
26:15came out of nowhere
26:20yeah i don't love this
26:22moisture is the reason most of these old mines collapse
26:26this poor timbers rot
26:28then the roof falls in
26:37wait a minute
26:40i don't remember this
26:42the shape though
26:43it looks familiar
26:46wait
26:46you hear that
26:50i hope the camera's picking this up
26:55i think it stopped
27:01yeah i don't know what that was
27:05bats maybe
27:09we're up to the collapse section now
27:12getting close
27:15sure is foggy in here
27:20that was no fucking bad
27:24hello in the hole
27:26if you can hear me
27:28just shooting a little video
27:30about the history of the mine
27:35if it's an animal
27:37this will scare it off
27:48for a minute there
27:50i thought someone was behind me
27:53see this is what i'm talking about
27:55the heebie jeebies
27:57god damn
28:04what the fuck
28:06yo
28:09that is really weird
28:14fuck it
28:15it's all my
28:18let's keep going
28:26i don't remember it being this far
28:33been walking straight now for like
28:3515 minutes
28:41oh okay
28:42see the bend
28:45that looks familiar
28:48the wedge of gold
28:49is right beyond that
28:52i think
28:55fuck
28:55better be
29:09yeah
29:10yeah
29:10okay
29:11this is it
29:13end of the line
29:17see all these timbers
29:18i'm in the collapse section
29:28i'm in the collapse section
29:29oh yes
29:31fuck yes
29:33so beautiful
29:53there's probably even more back in there but
29:57too dangerous
29:58too dangerous
30:12okay let's just see if i can
30:15snake back in here a bit
30:32old carbide miner's lamp
30:38hate to say it
30:40hate to say it but whoever dropped this
30:43it's probably still back there
31:07it's probably still back there
31:12yeah
31:13sometimes kids work in these mines
31:15because of their size
31:17be able to fit through tight spaces
31:20be able to find the gold others might have missed
31:29it's partially mummified
31:32bodies don't really decompose like they do on the surface
31:43no way
31:47holy shit
31:48this can't be real
31:50it's warlock gold
31:52bigger than an inch
31:55bigger than a shooter's marble
32:09now i don't have a scale
32:10but this is nearly two ounces
32:14five six seven thousand dollars worth of gold
32:18that is more money than i have made so far this year
32:21oh shit
32:30right you go
32:41trying to throw it away now
32:47whoa
33:10I'm fucking losing it.
33:12Wait, wait, no.
33:17No, no.
33:24What do I do?
33:27Where did you go?
33:33Okay, I am definitely losing it.
33:36I need to get some fresh air.
33:43Okay, little guy.
33:45Give me back my...
34:11Oh, almost there.
34:15I'm close.
34:17I'm getting close.
34:19It's just up ahead.
34:22I don't know what I saw back there.
34:25I think...
34:28I think someone's living back there.
34:38What the hell?
34:41I was just here.
34:44This doesn't make any sense.
34:47I must have gone turn around in the fog.
34:50Walked in the wrong direction.
34:55I'm not lost.
34:57Just disoriented.
35:00There's only one way in, one way out.
35:04I just gotta keep going.
35:08Oh, damn it.
35:15It's...
35:16I've been here before.
35:17It's not that complicated.
35:19Okay.
35:19Okay.
35:49I don't think
35:50I can keep walking like this.
35:53My feet are all fucked up.
35:57I've been walking in this direction
35:58for
36:00three hours now.
36:05Battery's getting low.
36:09Not much water left.
36:13I wish I saved a couple of those chicken nuggets.
36:18Fuck.
36:25I don't know.
36:26Maybe I'll just
36:28close my eyes for a minute.
36:31Save some power.
36:34And make another push.
36:46I did not mean to sleep that long.
36:51I just checked my phone.
36:54It says it's nine o'clock.
36:58I mean, I guess that's right.
37:01I'm not really sure.
37:06See, the light should be coming in right now.
37:09But it's just dark in here.
37:12Everywhere.
37:17This is starting to feel like some kind of a test.
37:22Like, how long can I survive down here?
37:26You know?
37:30Is that it?
37:33Some kind of a game?
37:38Is that it?
37:45I don't know exactly what I saw back there.
37:52Was it real?
37:53Was I dreaming?
38:03Is that something is seriously wrong with this place?
38:11Time to move.
38:19Man, why can't I walk out?
38:23Why can't I just walk the fuck out of here?
38:26Everything looks the same.
38:28It's like a maze.
38:30It's like that goddamn maze in The Shining.
38:32Here's Johnny.
38:36I just keep walking straight.
38:39But it's like I'm going in circles.
38:42Shit.
38:44Shit.
39:21I've been walking all day.
39:25And I always end up
39:27right back here.
39:33My phone crapped out.
39:35Last I checked
39:36it was almost three o'clock.
39:41I'm not going to have power much longer.
39:45There's some
39:47juice in the camera battery.
39:49I still have that.
39:54And the flashlight.
39:55I'm
39:56only using it now when I have to.
40:01There's a penlight on the metal detector.
40:06And a lighter.
40:10Fuck.
40:17I reckon there's still a few hours of daylight left.
40:23My best shot.
40:28My only shot is to find the portal
40:31before all the lights go out.
40:45Make me happy.
41:03Oh, I think I see daylight.
41:06Yes.
41:08Oh, yes.
41:09Thank God.
41:14No.
41:17No.
41:45What is this?
41:46I was out.
41:48I was out.
41:51Why are you doing this to me?
41:54Why?
41:57Shit.
41:59Shit.
42:01Shit.
42:03Shit.
42:04Shit.
42:06Shit.
42:07Shit.
42:16Shit.
42:21Shit.
42:24Shit.
42:24Shit.
42:26Shit.
42:29Shit.
42:30Shit.
42:31Shit.
42:32Shit.
42:34Shit.
42:34Shit.
42:34Shit.
42:35Shit.
42:36Shit.
42:36Shit.
42:59What is it that's not possible
43:04It can't, it can't be
43:06It looks like me
43:13But it's not
43:14I don't know, it can't be
43:18No
43:20No
43:22My name is Pete Burke
43:29You don't understand
43:33I'm not him
43:36I'm not the warlock
43:42Please, I'm not him
43:43I'm not the warlock
44:04I should have never come down here
44:09But on this stupid ring
44:17I'm sorry
44:20I'm sorry about what happened to you
44:24Down here
44:34I just want to go home
44:40Please
44:45What do you want
44:50What do you want from me
45:04Why won't you let me go
45:14The ring
45:17The ring
45:23It's gotta
45:24It's gotta come off
45:29Oh shit
45:30Come on
45:32Fuck
45:35Come on
45:41God damn it
45:58Fuck
46:01I'm not gonna die down here
46:07God damn it
46:11Fuck
46:17Fuck
46:21Fuck
46:48I won't come off
46:53It won't come off
46:55It won't come off
46:57Come on
47:02Motherfucker
47:13It won't come off
47:17It won't come off
47:19It won't come off
47:30Fuck
47:32Fuck
47:33Fuck
47:34Fuck
47:35Fuck
47:37Fuck
47:38Fuck
47:38Fuck
47:38Fuck
47:49I don't want to remember this
48:16Is that enough? Are you happy now?
48:22We're at you. This is it
48:55Shadows, they come and go with the hour of day
48:58The angle of the sun
49:00Or in this case, the position of a flashlight
49:03A fleeting part of the natural world
49:07But not all shadows are transitory
49:09Some linger in a perpetual twilight state
49:13To watch, to warn, to punish
49:18As for our friend, Prospector Pete
49:21He collected more than rocks on his trip to the wilderness
49:24Leaving behind a shadowy account with no forwarding address
49:29Mr. Peter Thomas Burke
49:31A peculiar man, never to be seen or heard from again
49:37As we say goodnight
49:38I leave you with this simple warning
49:42If you enter the wilderness
49:44Be sure it doesn't enter you
50:12I leave you with this simple warning
50:19That's a view that we do
50:21And take that view
50:40When we take that view
50:46For us
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