The Monstead Tunnels

/ The Monstead Tunnels/
The Monstead Tunnels

The Monstead Tunnels in Joshua Tree National Park aren't any kind of secret, they're just not listed on any maps. Nor are they listed in any of the hiking guidebooks for J Tree. There is scant information to be found regarding their years of operation or production. Nothing much of historical significance is left on site and the tunnel openings have been "bat-gated" by the NPS for safety reasons. If you asked a Ranger about them, he'd probably reply, "what?" So why on earth would anyone even bother hiking a couple miles to visit them? 

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Queen Mountain Mine

/ Queen Mountain Mine/
Queen Mountain Mine

Yes, I made that name up. I needed something for the title of this post. But it seemed appropriate, as the site is on the side of Queen Mountain. And as my research proved fruitless regarding the mine's name and history, I'm going to stick with Queen Mountain Mine until I can uncover some hard rock evidence that says otherwise.

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Iron Door Cave

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Iron Door Cave

There are two stories. One relates that a local rancher installed the iron door, creating a prison cell where he kept his "deranged" son locked up. Another claims that Bill Keys built the enclosure to store dynamite. Some believe it could be a combination of the two stories. My guess is that it was used to store something of importance, something that needed to be kept safe from animals and weather.

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