Redneck Swimming Pool and Toxic Waste, Monday, 7/7/14 and Tuesday, 7/8/14

Monday, July 7, 2014

Due to crazy scheduling Cindy had the day off and Chuck worked at Nevada City.  Cindy did three loads of laundry and went to the rehearsal hall to use the internet for a little while.  She packed a lunch for Chuck and took it to him at about 12:45 p.m.  He worked by himself today and was glad to see her as she arrived just in time to help him sell tickets to a bus full of tourists. 

After lunch, Cindy drove over the mountains to Ennis to pick up some prescriptions.  Upon her return home she took a leisurely nap and read a book.  When she emerged from her room she saw Connor standing at the kitchen sink in his bathing suit.  He was filling up a five gallon bucket with hot water.  Upon questioning him about this activity, he replied that he was adding warm water to the swimming pool.  When did we get a swimming pool? 

Libby, Connor, and Daniel all had the day off and they decided they needed a pool as it was so hot today.  They drove to Ennis and purchased a tarp and then used it to line the bed of Daniel’s truck.  They then proceeded to the Virginia City depot and used a hose to add water to the redneck swimming pool.  Since the water was too cold to suit them, they merely added five gallons of hot water at a time until it was just the right temperature.  When Jaimi got home from work she joined them in the pool.  Jeff Foxworthy has nothing on these kids!

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

We both had today off, so after our chiropractor’s appointment this morning we decided to head to Butte for the rest of the day.  We went to Butte the first week we were here, and we thought it was an ugly place with poor shopping facilities.   We have been reading up on Butte and decided we should give it a second chance, and we are glad we did. 

Gold was discovered in Butte in 1864, followed by silver, and then copper.  Butte still produces copper and supplies 25% of all that is used in the United States.  The original mines were dug in the 1870’s and were used until 1979.  The mines are deep vertical pits in the ground with many horizontal tunnels leading off from the sides of the pit where veins of ore were found.  There are approximately 10,000 miles of underground workings in the Butte area—4200 miles of vertical shafts and 5600 miles of main horizontal openings.   

The mines were topped with tall, black, steel structures called gallus frames which contained a hoist house.  The gallus frames used a system of cables and lifts to lower miners to their work, as well as bringing up load after load of ore.  In the early days, mules were put into straight jacket type harnesses and lowered into the mines.  The mules were used to pull ore carts in the horizontal tunnels, and once they were in the ground they spent the rest of their lives there.  There have been over 2300 recorded miner deaths in Butte since they started keeping such records. 

In 1955 it was decided that open pit mining would be the easier way to go, so now there are two ugly gaping holes on the north side of Butte where there used to be mountains.  The Berkeley Pit was closed in 1982 and is now filled with billions of gallons of toxic wastewater which the city is attempting to manage.  They have installed noise makers around the perimeter of the pit in an attempt to discourage birds from getting in the water as it kills all life that is unlucky enough to come in contact with the contagion.  The Continental open pit was begun in 1986 and is still operating today. 

We took an hour and a half trolley tour around town and stopped at the Berkeley Pit to view the monstrosity and take a few pictures.  It was an interesting tour and worth the time.  We also took a tour of the 34 room mansion built by “Copper King” William Andrews Clark in 1884.  It no longer belongs to the Clark family, but the current owners have turned it into a Bed & Breakfast with prices ranging from $75 to $125 per night.  The plumbing and bathroom fixtures are still original, so one shouldn’t expect too much luxury in that department by today’s standards. 

After our tours, we stopped in at a local dive and tried a meat pasty (pronounced passtee).  This is what the early miners usually packed in their lunch boxes.  It is a type of bread dough stuffed with beef, potatoes, and onions and then baked to a golden brown.  The miners ate their pasties plain, but we had ours on a plate served with gravy on top.  It wasn’t bad fare, but it seemed rather bland to our taste buds.   

After a quick stop at Wal-Mart, we headed southeast over the mountains and arrived home about 7:00 p.m.