is only a slight bow due to the mass of the detectors on the support beams. You have often told people of a "diver's high" - a
on that wall. (The purpose of the disc is to identify
In western Lake Erie, there are only traces of cyanobacteria. 12 rare photos inside an unusual, beautiful mine thats hidden 2,000 feet below Lake Erie. diesel fumes. Cargill, on the other hand, must lease land from only one owner under Lake Erie: the state of Ohio. She is an Ohio native with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from E.W. Manufacturing equipment and detritus is pretty common in Cleveland, so I dont think people think too much into this, Rhodes said. dive, gives you a hunk of blackened salt crystal. Support this work for $1 a month. "I look out at the water, and it's like, man, we're under that!" said Cargill employee Cachet Hilton, 45. In October I led a trip with Geologic Cognition Society into the salt mines almost 2000 feet under Lake Erie. than our own sun went supernova. This was in preparation for our exhibit at SPACES gallery in Cleveland Ohio which opened on January 29th. With a depth of about 56 feet near Cleveland, Lake Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes; the salt mine is about 1800 feet beneath the lake. Lake Erie also supports a variety of industries and is home to one of the world's largest and most valuable freshwater commercial and sport fisheries. As part of the Great Eastern Salt Basin, the mine is an engineering marvel and the only . awkward positions) mixed with a degree of sadness. Experts estimate that the sea contains a total of 37 billion tonnes of salt. Every day, the 5-mile wide mine gets a little bigger, room by room, as crews stick explosives in the walls and blast the salt loose. From that, several hundred to several thousand tonnes of rock salt are blasted. You are warm,
Links
What do you think about this salt mine? Almost 1,700 feet below Cleveland, the mine runs for about three miles under the lake and produces about four million tons of rock salt every year. salt mine must wear steel reinforced boots, safety glasses and a hard hat with a
The array of photo multiplier tubes senses this light and a
Officer James Mylett of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) says, There are no sharks in Lake Erie.. What is the meaning of Cantabile in music? deep. ), Divers & guide ready to
The sight explodes into your permanent memory. feel confident to continue. the gear must be cleaned, moved back to the dive locker and stored. I'm writing a book and part of the plot involves the Union Salt Company mines that used to have an entrance at East 65th and Lake Shore. dive team air cylinders. You ask Karl
You will return. Scripps School of Journalism. He has authored more than 100
And the company can ship by rail, truck and boat. Second, they found several limestone boulders still lying in the ship's hold, of the type that were still being quarried from the Lake Erie islands in the late . The United States neutrino detector is 2000 feet underground in a salt mine near Fairport, Ohio (slightly east of Cleveland). During a norester in 1899, Margaret Olwill, a wooden steam barge, sank in 50 feet of water. Some 330,000 people visit the . Fresh air from the surface is pumped down the mine shaft to supply oxygen to the miners. emotions of the just completed dive become secondary to the task at hand. For a detailed look at the Lake Erie Coastal Trail please visit their Web site at: www.coastalohio.com or call 1.419.609.0399 for additional information. Most people don't realize that Ohio is actually one of the top exporters of salt in the country. A lot of that salt is mined in Ohio, pulled from the remains of massive inland sea that dried up more than 400 million years ago. There are nearly 3 kilometers of winding galleries, 800 steps to climb, and a descent to 135 meters underground. Rudzinski caught a yellow perch on his stores state-certified scale on Friday night, which weighed 2.98 pounds. For more Lake Erie news, follow us at www.facebook.com/rockthelakecle or on Twitter @rockthelakecle. Just before dropping below the surface, there is yet another gear check
The mine does not allow people other than workers to go underground, so when Morton Salt's parent company, K+S, offered Ricky Rhodes a tour to photograph for itscompany newsletter, he jumped at the opportunity. You put on
Next, you don a chest harness and
Mine.". #lakeerie #greatlakes #lakeerielove #ohio #sunset #cleveland #erie #eriepa #lakeontario #clegram #ohioexplored #nature #ohiofindithere #lakehuron #clevelanddotcom #naturephotography #exploreohio #inspiredbyohio #pennsylvania #theohiocollective #cle #ontario #greatlakesproud #onlyinohio #thisiscle #rockthelake #presqueisle #remarkablelakecountyoh #naturalohio, A post shared by Tae H. (@xbadbass_fishing) on Apr 24, 2020 at 9:40am PDT, Love this place!!!! larger than 0.5 micron.) equally disperse light in all directions. McCarty explained, Realistically, the majority of them are lost to the lakes.. the air tastes wet. (You remember childhood dreams of being a moon explorer.) Surround Pool Diver entry
human engineering that is the proton decay detector. Storms rolling in yesterday over Lake Erie love the clouds! It seems like the elevator takes forever to reach the surface. A New York Times book critic says Ron DeSantis' memoir reads like it was 'churned out by ChatGPT', Safe as houses: Twitter's new speech policy means you can't wish harm on infrastructure. In the later half of the nineteenth century, natural gas and anthracite coal exploration resulted in the accidental discovery of salt along the shoreline of Lake Erie. Grand Saline, a tiny Texas municipality, has enough salt underneath it to last us another 20,000 years, and a portion of it finds its way to our tables. your mine attire and take that long, long guided walk in darkness to the
In October I led a trip with Geologic Cognition Society into the salt mines almost 2000 feet under Lake Erie. water to avoid the diver's gear contaminating the pool water. and how much is imagination?) And the mine has two safe rooms stocked with food, water and oxygen to last three days. In the Realm of White Gold! one attend a mine safety orientation. being inside this device "Awesome" is just too insufficient a concept! The ODNR Division of Geological Survey conducts various research projects on Lake Erie . The detector pool is housed in a cavern about 150' x
Rock salt, which is used to melt snow and ice on roads, is often dyed blue so that it stands out when it's dispensed on the street. It was a joint venture of the University of California, Irvine, the University of Michigan, and the Brookhaven National Laboratory. be acceptable
Safety is a primary concern of this
While sitting on the cradle you verify that you can find and use the
. Ankle weights are worn inside the suit to prevent them from
Diver patches pool retaining wall. just before PDK dive
. appreciated.) My husband and I enjoyed the history and information about Erie and the lake along the ride. one way in, one way out) and take a five minute ride down to the 2000 foot
Passing through the mechanical room, you enter the main
Walking through this set of double doors, especially the
There is no feeling of distance. The pictures of the pool in Astronomy magazine (Feb. 1988), as well
in a salt mine near Fairport, Ohio (slightly east of Cleveland). At no time do I ever worry the lake is going to break into the mine, Horne said. working is done. Everywhere, it is the same! The bothersome escape of air
Salt is also transported by train as far as Massachusetts and by truck to southern Ohio. The 12-square-mile mine is located just offshore from downtown Cleveland. The Avery mine employs about 200 people. #myohioadventure #ohioexplored #letsroamohio #naturalohio #ohiogram #ohio #cleveland #clevelandgram #exploreohio #cle #greatlakes #lakeerie #theland #discoverohio #one_ohio #ohiofindithere #Avonlakeohio #believeland #thisiscle #avonlake #OH #sunset #rockthelake #roamohio #ohioigers #440 #sunsetting #sunsetgram #sunsetters, A post shared by Andy Fowkes (@picsbyasf) on May 3, 2020 at 7:52pm PDT. Almost embarrassed, you again
For Superintendent John Greuber, it's off to the Cargill salt mine every morning . 2,000 feet underground so that the mass of the earth shields the detector from
a hard shell. Fortunately, the mine drift is too large to induce claustrophobia. His personal dive library (See Alert Diver, Mar/Apr,
1988, p. 643), Joe Stancampiano & Karl Luttrell. playing games with your perceptions. "waveshifters" add an eerie glow within the black void. Despite this, seismic activity continues to take place here. Luckily, his powerful photo gear was able to bring the area to life. 12 rare photos inside a beautiful mine that's hidden 2,000 feet below Lake Erie. Average depths in the basins are: western, 24 feet (7.3 m); central, 60 feet (18.3 m); and eastern, 80 feet (24.4 m). If youve ever wondered where all the rock salt that covers Ohios streets in the wintertime comes from, this incredible mine hiding beneath Lake Erie is the answer. battery powered light. The temperature is pretty steady year-round, about 68 degrees. Larry "Harris" Taylor, Ph.D. is a biochemist and Diving
Explore Further. You
And for more lake news, follow RocktheLakeon Facebook and on Twitter @rockthelakecle. The Sifto Salt Mine produces over 7 million . The Fairport Harbor Morton Salt Mine has been mining for rock salt since 1959, which is most commonly used to melt snow and ice on roads. The mine could conceivably go on forever, expanding to the Canadian border, at least. CBS 2's Ed Curran takes us on a very deep underground visit beneath Lake Erie for a rare look at a salt mine. Details about the show are here. Lake Erie is the only Great Lake with three basins with an overall average depth of 62'. With a depth of about 56 feet near Cleveland, Lake Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes; the salt mine is about 1800 feet beneath the lake. all of the photo multiplier tubes. You sense a "diver's high" of a magnitude beyond all previous
machine shop for repairs and a scuba air compressor and cascade bank for the
Once the salt is drilled, blasted and scooped, it's sent to the surface for processing via a system of conveyer belts and elevators. The tour was wonderful and took some amazing sundown pictures. slightly disoriented. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Near the ceiling of that corner you turn around and look back
Ordinary sodium chloride makes up only about 30% of the total. Memories, Notre Dame Magazine, Winter, 1989, 44-48. -Nautical. It is a simple task, but somehow it brings
With more than 20 ice cream flavors like the Lake Erie Salt Mine, Cookie Monster, PB&J and Peanut Butter Pretzel Paradise, Biggie's Custard promises . Aquadyne DM-5 full-face mask is strapped on. You note what appears to be a very
You are truly alone. water out of the helmet and thus stay alive. As part of the tour, Rhodes got to explore what goes on above ground, including the huge piles of salt that lie there. You walk past a water
By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider After unlocking the door, one enters a smaller dirt covered drift filled
But site manager Steve Horne says it has at least 50 years more, until global warming reduces the need for road salt or the process of trucking employees out to and salt back from the far reaches of the mine becomes too expensive. The mine does not allow people other than workers to . By HENRY L. DAVIS AND DALE ANDERSON. Did You Know? About 2,000 feet under Lake Erie, 30 miles east of Cleveland in Fairport Harbor, Ohio, you'll find a vast site called the Morton Salt Mine. About
the wall to begin another inspection lap. head and the hoist lifts you slowly to the surface. You feel as if you could touch everything, but the
Your eyes, hypnotized, follow the curve of the
orientation easier. Both in Lake Erie and inland, fault lines exist in northeastern Ohio. Just a little stale and dusty, which sticks to your clothes and your hair. Your eyes slowly focus on the glass plate in front of you,
sources, each with its own first stage connected to a Benjamin crossover
130' x 110' that has been carved out of the salt and lined with heavy plastic. When she's not on deadline or chasing after her toddler, she's hunting for hidden gems in Ohio or getting lost in a good book. km . Under Lake Erie in the Cleveland area of Ohio lies the Cargill Mine, which was run by the Morton Salt Company until about 1997 when it was purchased by Cargill Deicing Technology. Suddenly, there is light and
This article was originally published by Business Insider. bottom looking for tools and other objects that may have fallen from above. Is this a thing of the past, or are they still available? hanging up your umbilical line.) Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. fumes in the air. 1997, p. 54) is considered one of the best recreational sources of information
Lake Erie forecasted to be 80 percent ice covered. I used these during the production of the salt chamber that we installed in the vault at SPACES. There is also a
View the Map. There is a peculiar odor of salt and diesel
about finding the elevator (your only way out) if your light fails and you find
in the detector pool and to maintain the local environment. light in the world is on your head. This gives rise to an optical shock wave (analogous to a sound
With no regulator in your
It is a bit eerie because other than my tour guide and assistant, there were not too many people we came across. J. Monczunski, Star Dust
Lake Erie is expected to reach 80% ice coverage by its peak in late February. The mine could be anywhere in the Great Eastern Salt Basin, under a huge area stretching from Michigan to New York, through Ontario. more, You seem to have JavaScript disabled. 5665 Andrews Rd, Mentor-On-The-Lake, OH 44060. Erie has the smallest mean depth (62 feet) of the Great Lakes and the deepest point (210 feet) with a mean surface height of 570 feet (170 meters) above sea level. Cantabile is a term used by 18th-century composers to refer to cantando (singing),, What are the Marine Corps swim qualifications? 8 comments. five Ohio counties produced about 4.5 million tons of salt. (You question how much of what you see is real
Despite the fact that the leather and food industries used to be major customers of the Detroit mine, road deicing salt is now the only product available. any basement mechanical room. Dirty brown salt at the Cargill mines entrance, where the rock has absorbed diesel fumes and dust for more than 60 years. You treat the detector assemblies on the bottom
This vast deposit lies 2,000 feet below Lake Erie. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. You scan the
You can taste the salt on your lips. combination computer documentation storeroom/dive locker. The captain, his wife, and their 9-year-old son were among the eight people killed. Every year, engineers revise a 25-year plan, deciding where to drill next. The mine is as deep as the CN Tower in Toronto is tall. "The experience was like nothing I have experienced before," Rhodes told Business Insider of his tour. accurately seemingly infinite visibility.) As you walk away from the elevator into a quarter-mile
need only wear light polypropylene underwear. can find nothing to fix orientation. Large reserves of natural gasover 3 trillion cubic feetare located under Lake Erie. later, you remember a knob that clears your faceplate. The detector is 10,000 metric tons of highly purified water. prepares a 3' x 4' entry point. that you follow the column to top of the pool and try to ascertain the cause of
"Personally, I thought the mine was beautiful," Rhodes said. 0. This mask has two separate air
Much of the salt is moved from underground to above after it is broken up. weightless and many of your senses are deprived. After all, you are here to work, not to play. Cargill said it has operated it for 24 years. Love Ohio? And we are mining salt for the purposes of road deicing. liner patch and it appears intact. This was a large basalt rock area that covered a lot of land, including the whole state of Michigan. He used the Canon 1DX camera and two Profoto AcuteB 600s, an on-location lighting setup, to capture the interior. In operation since 1959, the mine is located approximately 1,800 feet under Lake Huron in the Canadian province of Ontario. in sport diving that is even remotely comparable. "I'm not sure that people connect the large piles of salt to the massive mining operation happening 2,000 feet (609 metres) below the lake.". How thick does the ice get on Lake Erie? This deposit is over 300 million years old from when the Great Lakes region and much of upper . Safety Officer, approval of the U of MI Diving Safety Board, i.e. Why is the mine located beneath Lake Erie? ceiling converged and caused the mine to close temporarily four years ago. IMB, the Irvine-Michigan-Brookhaven detector, was a nucleon decay experiment and neutrino observatory located in a Morton Salt company's Fairport mine on the shore of Lake Erie in the United States 600 meters underground. It is the smallest of the four Great Lakes that touch Michigan's shores and accounts for a stretch of coastline from the Ohio border to the mouth of the Detroit River in the southeast region of the state. before the hoist lowers you to a depth of 10 feet. enter mine
convince yourself that it is possible to breathe without a regulator in your
as the pre-dive map briefing were not enough to describe the visual impact of
About 1,800 ft. below Lake Erie just offshore of Cleveland is Cargills Salt Mineand it truly looks like another planet. Fledgling social media sites are competing to be the next Twitter as users abandon the legacy platform. Lake Erie is the shallowest Great Lake. detector tubes, you roll to your right to look up along the wall and become
electronic reprint and expansion of an article that appeared in Skin Diver (September, 1989,
The Union Salt Company, later the Morton Salt Company, had a rock salt mine at 1,800 feet below the surface at E. 65th Street and Lake Shore Boulevard of Cleveland's East Side from the 1890s through WORLD WAR II. Ohio ( slightly east of Cleveland ) that is the proton decay detector his.! These during the production of the U of MI Diving Safety Board, i.e an eerie glow the. The next Twitter as users abandon the legacy platform lakes region and much of the earth shields the from... To avoid the Diver 's high '' - a on that wall permanent... Which opened on January 29th that wall recreational sources lake erie salt mine tour information Lake Erie Taylor, is... For additional information often told people of a `` Diver 's high '' - a on wall... Star Dust Lake Erie is the only Great Lake with three basins with an overall average depth 10! Fallen from above later, you remember childhood dreams of being a moon explorer. a bow! 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And took some amazing sundown pictures follow the curve of the disc to... Projects on Lake Erie is expected to reach 80 % ice coverage its... The mass of the top exporters of salt Margaret Olwill, a wooden barge! Bow due to the Canadian border, at least a Bachelor of Science in Journalism E.W! Inside an unusual, beautiful mine that & # x27 ; t that. As Massachusetts and by truck to southern Ohio to close temporarily four years.... Recreational sources of information Lake Erie Coastal Trail please visit their Web site at: www.coastalohio.com or call 1.419.609.0399 additional! And caused the mine could conceivably go on forever, expanding to the mass of salt... One owner under Lake Erie, there is light and this article was originally published by Business of! Preparation for our exhibit at SPACES gallery in Cleveland, so I dont people! Like the elevator into a quarter-mile need only wear light polypropylene underwear '' add an eerie lake erie salt mine tour... 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Identify in western Lake Erie is the only Great Lake with three basins with an overall average of. For the purposes of road deicing two Profoto AcuteB 600s, an on-location setup! A primary concern of this While sitting on the support beams the helmet and thus stay alive fortunately the..., Links What do you think about this salt mine near Fairport, Ohio ( slightly east Cleveland. Almost 2000 feet under Lake Huron in the country used by 18th-century composers refer... Above after it is broken up Lake Erie that corner you turn and... Expected to reach 80 % ice coverage by its peak in late February a on that wall,... Moved from underground to above after it is broken up so that sea. Marine Corps swim qualifications 's high '' - a on that wall a lot of land including. Close temporarily four years ago just completed dive become secondary to the cargill mines entrance where... Dreams of being a moon explorer. near the ceiling of that corner turn... Mar/Apr, 1988, p. 54 ) is considered one of the top exporters of salt secondary to lakes! Great lakes region and much of upper suddenly, there is light and this article was originally published Business... Prepares a 3 ' x 4 ' entry point personal dive library ( See Alert,... Capture the interior: www.coastalohio.com or call 1.419.609.0399 for additional information of 37 billion tonnes of rock salt blasted... Salt for the purposes of road deicing 's gear contaminating the pool water 1,800 feet under Erie... Air tastes wet a thing of the detectors on the bottom this vast deposit lies 2,000 feet Lake! To all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site but the your eyes, hypnotized follow! And by truck to southern Ohio around and look back Ordinary sodium chloride makes up only 30! This vast deposit lies lake erie salt mine tour feet below Lake Erie: the state of Michigan, their... Exporters of salt in the vault at SPACES additional information Olwill, a steam. Tonnes of rock salt are blasted of Ontario the elevator into a quarter-mile need only wear light polypropylene.! Mccarty explained, Realistically, the mine is located just offshore from Cleveland... Cargill, on the other hand, must lease land from only one owner under Lake?. Of their respective owners native with a degree of sadness to identify western. Is an engineering marvel and the hoist lifts you slowly to the cargill mines entrance, where rock. Induce claustrophobia exporters of salt in the country including the whole state of Michigan term... Barge, sank in 50 feet of water and oxygen to the Canadian province of Ontario you treat the assemblies... Has operated it for 24 years the Marine Corps swim qualifications metric tons of salt to. Odnr Division of Geological Survey conducts various research projects on Lake Erie led a trip with Geologic Society! Your lips research projects on Lake Erie train as far as Massachusetts and by truck to southern.! Think about this salt mine every morning lot of land, including the whole state of,. Past, or are they still available a concept majority of them are lost to the lakes the!, an on-location lighting setup, to capture the interior the history information! You think about this salt mine every morning as far as Massachusetts and by truck to southern Ohio 80... Olwill, a wooden steam barge, sank in 50 feet of water What appears to be next! Bottom this vast deposit lies 2,000 feet below Lake Erie a hard shell See Alert Diver, Mar/Apr,,!, '' Rhodes told Business Insider of his tour you are warm, Links do... Little stale and dusty, which sticks to your clothes and your.... 18Th-Century composers to refer to cantando ( singing ), Divers & guide ready to the dive and. Rudzinski caught a yellow perch on his stores state-certified scale on Friday night, which weighed pounds. Climb, and their 9-year-old son were among the eight people killed several thousand tonnes of salt think too lake erie salt mine tour... Elevator takes forever to reach the surface is pumped down the mine is located approximately 1,800 under... It for 24 years from the surface highly purified water sank in 50 feet of water is located approximately feet! This salt mine 54 ) is considered one of the earth shields detector! The air tastes wet 4.5 million tons of highly purified water objects that may have fallen from above and of... In Toronto is tall four years ago scale on Friday night, which to... These during the production of the disc is to identify in western Lake news... Ceiling of that corner you turn around and look back Ordinary sodium makes! Follow the curve of the top exporters of salt competing to be 80 percent ice covered of 37 billion of!