Our tours provide the experiences that will become the highlights of your vacation. Nothing else even comes close! Whether you love history, nature, mining, geology or just watching your child's face glow with excitement, our experiences are second to none!
General Tour Information
Our tours are as authentic as you'll ever find. No fancy lights or modern marvels here, just real mining the way it really was! All guests are furnished with a hard hat and headlamp. There are no other lights underground, period. Trails underground are sometimes rough so wear appropriate footwear. The temperature in the mine is 48 degrees regardless of outside air temperature. A light jacket is recommended. Cameras are always welcome! Tour specific details are listed below. There are no set times for tours to start, we offer tours on a first come, first serve basis. Generally we can get you tour started within 15 minutes of your arrival. If you are bringing a large group, we appreciate a heads up so we can plan ahead for you. We also ask that Miner's Tours start before 4:30pm (eastern time).
Trammer's Underground Tour
Enter the Adventure Mine by the No. 2 shaft and experience the miner's life underground. Walk through tunnels and see large rooms where pure copper and silver was removed. View copper still in place within the rock walls of the mine. Participants are provided with hard hats and headlamps. A light jacket and good walking shoes are recommended. Tour lasts 45-60 minutes. No age restrictions on this tour. Questions about children on this tour? Click here.
A stope (a room at an angle) on the Trammer's Tour.
Prospector's Underground Tour
Covering close to three times the length of our Trammer's Tour, this 1-hour 20-min. hike provides experiences you won't soon forget! This tour incorporates all of the Trammer's experiences and much more. Enter by the No. 1 shaft and see solid pieces of native copper weighing hundreds of pounds left behind by earlier miners. Walk through the largest rooms of the mine and past shafts to lower levels. Helmets and headlamps are provided. Some limited maneuvering through low spots is required. Trails are rough with uneven footing. A light jacket and good walking shoes are recommended. Allow at least one and a half hours of time for this tour. We suggest a minimum age of 8 years old. Questions about children on this tour? Click here
One of the larger stopes on the Prospector's Tour. Note the person in the tunnel on the bottom right for scale.
Miner's Underground Tour
For the truly adventuresome, this excursion has no equal. If you want to try rappelling down a mine shaft in total darkness and crawling through low areas and down slopes, this is for you! This tour begins the same as our Prospectors Tour, including all aspects of it, but then parts ways by offering the most unique experience anywhere. Use a rappelling harness and gear to descend 80 feet to a lower level of the mine, crawl through several small areas, and hike through some of the oldest and most interesting parts of the mine, All participants will be provided with harness and rappelling equipment. All guides are trained in safe ropework and will provide all required instruction. Participants will possibly get muddy and wet. Anyone considering this tour must be in good physical health and able to negotiate walking on uneven and steep terrain. A light jacket, good walking shoes, and long pants are recommended. No open toed shoes. Approximately 3 hours in length, depending on number in your group. Suggested minimum age of 12 years old. Questions about children on this tour? Click here
Looking down a stope to the second level after rappelling.
Captain's Underground Tour
Scheduled to be offered beginning in mid-July 2011. Reservations are required. Please call for more information.
This 5 to 6 hour tour will take you on an extensive journey through almost all of the first level and second level workings of the Adventure Mine. A pasty lunch underground is included. Tour requires participants to be in good physical condition, have the ability to complete training exercises, and be approved by mine staff before start of tour. It also requires the ability to walk 2+ miles on uneven terrain, negotiate sloped trails with loose footing, and the ability to climb 150+ feet of ladders with resting platforms every 50 feet. All participants will be carefully screened and the Adventure Mine staff reserves the right to restrict tour participation for any reason that may jeopardize the safety of participants and/or staff. All participants will be provided with needed safety gear and will be required to carry a backpack weighing approximately 10 pounds for the entire length of the tour. A minimum age of 13 years will be strictly enforced. Please note also that there are portions of this tour where you will be a minimum of a 40 minute walk/climb to the nearest mine exit. Any participants on this tour need to consider any medical or other conditions that could create situations where this might be a problem. Maximum group size is limited to six persons and a minimum of two participants is required. As with all our tours, absolutely no mineral or artifact collecting is permitted.
So, is it worth it? Absolutely! This is the most in depth hands-on tour available anywhere that we know of. You will see portions of the mine that have been completely submerged since the early 1900s and still look basically as they did 100 years ago. You will be accompanied by two knowledgeable guides for the length of the tour. The tour begins on the first level of the mine and then descends an interior shaft to the second level where most of the tour takes place. You will see rails, timbers, carts, and many other artifacts not seen anywhere else in the mine. If you have participated in our Miner's Tour in the past, this tour covers entirely different areas and is much, much more extensive. The exit for the Captain's Tour is currently planned via the No. 2 shaft which will require climbing approximately 150' of ladders to the surface. Tours begin at 10:00 am (Eastern Time) and will last for approximately 5 to 6 hours. Currently we are offering them on Monday and Friday mornings only or other times by special arrangement. Reservations are required. Pasty lunch is included. Call (906) 883-3371 for more information. Cost is $105.00 per participant.
Clmibing through a stope on the 2nd Level.
Mineral Collecting Tours
If you love mining and want to add mineral collecting, we have a neighboring company that offers great mineral collecting programs on rock removed from their mine. The Caledonia Mine is right next door to us and actually mined the same ore bodies the Adventure did. Underground tours at the Adventure and collecting at the Caledonia provide a great way to enjoy a day in Upper Michigan. Picnic & rest room facilities available at both sites.
Group and Educational Tours
The Adventure Mining company can custom-fit activities to meet your needs. Boy/Girl Scout groups, college geology programs, school classes and many others can all take advantage of our location and knowledgeable staff. Contact us and we can help. Geology and mineral club groups are welcome, but we do not offer mineral collecting programs at this time. To help expidite your visit please review and have filled out our waiver for each of your group members. These need to be brought with you on your visit.
New Tour Offerings
We are always working on improving our tours and adding new ones. If you visited the Adventure Mine several years ago, things are considerably different now than they were then! We also have lots of fun and unique projects to work on this season. The Adventure contains so much history and old underground workings, we've barely scratched the surface. Check out our Future Tours page to see some pictures of new explorations conducted this past year. These may be parts of our tours next time you visit!
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING!
Prospectors and Miners tours both have a required minimum number of participants of 2. Space is limited on these tours. Please call ahead if you have a large group or strict time schedules. Participants in both of these tours must be in good health and have appropriate footwear. No open toed shoes, sandals, clogs, shoes with high heels, or other non-suitable footwear. Adventure Mining Company reserves the right to limit anyone's involvement in any tour for any reason that jeopardizes the safety of participant or staff.
|
