Black Mountain Abandoned House

I found this spot on Google Earth while looking for more mines and structures after finding the Black Mountain Mines.  Originally I thought it was another mine on the other side of the mountain, but was pleasantly surprised to find the remains of a house(?) instead.  I wasn't able to find any more information about this.

 "Danger Acid"

Dangers

Snakes, bees, sharp rusty things.

Path Details

You will start from the Miner's Ridge Tail Loop then take Black Mountain Trail 4. Once you get to the concrete slabs, the easiest route to get here isn't by plowing straight through the middle.  As you can see looking at these pictures, there is a path just west that is pretty well defined.

Let's take a closer look at the path and the house:

 Summary

With the steady advancement of neighborhoods creeping into this area, there may be little chance to see this in the future. Please tread carefully let's keep this trash and cigarette free.

Black Mountain Mines

The mines in Black Mountain were created in the 1920's for the arsenic in these hills which was used to combat a boll weevil infestation at the time.  There is also rumor that they were used at one point to mine gold.  The mines and structures were abandoned by the end of the decade as the infestation died out.

 Various debris.

 A small mine north of the oven.

 A bigger mine north of the oven.

 View from inside the mine.

 These structures date back to the 1920s.

 The long oven.  You can spot this from the north side of the preserve on Trail 4.

Dangers

Arsenic, snakes, unstable mines, bees, tics (not confirmed). Some trespassing required.

Path Details

You will start by taking the Miner's Ridge Loop Trail head to the following route:

You will take the path behind the wooden fence with the no trespassing sign.  It's a very short walk from the parking lot.  This route has already been established and there is no need to plow through the bushes randomly as I have seen some people do.

The trail drops off at the top of the shaft.  Walk down that to the buildings at the bottom.  There are a couple mines further up the hill which you can reach by following the path up. Bring a flashlight for the biggest one.  Further down the path you'll find additional dig spots as well as some more buildings. I've marked the spots below.  You can see the structures on here as well.

Summary 

A unique piece of history that is easily accessible. As always with spots like this, I'm sharing the path to reduce the amount of damage to the environment as well as to provide the safest route.  I've seen videos of people just straight plowing through the bushes when there's no need.  Another website also left some junk from a video shoot. Let's do our part to preserve this almost 100 year old piece of history.

Lawrence Canyon

Lawrence Canyon in Oceanside, CA is a strange little slice of nature tucked away between freeways and neighborhoods. Various fossils have been found here throughout the years including wild horse teeth, megalodon teeth, mammoth bones, and more.  Evidence of water previously through this area can be seen by the shells that litter the sand.

When you enter your canyon, look to your left for the blocks that some taggers have hit as well as some other old remnants.  There is a small hole here that was likely a previous dig site.  As you take the trail around toward the open field, you'll see the cave up on the hill behind you. For such a small area, there is a lot of different geology here it seems and a somewhat diverse population of animals and insects.

 A hill covered with smooth rocks.

 Remains of the road.

This cave was vacant when I checked, but the locals use it. Proceed with caution!

 Most likely this spot was used as part of a dig for fossils.

Bones! Fossils?

Dangers

Vagrants, garbage piles, bees, snakes.  This area is not maintained by the city or the land owner and local homeless often come here to sleep or drink.  Bring a friend or two with you if you are going to explore. In the area by the broken road, there are bees in the tubes near the bottom. Avoid the bushes on left aside from the area with the blocks.  This is where much of the trash is as well as where most of the vagrants sleep.

 Summary

Lawrence Canyon is privately owned and there has been interest by developers over the years as well as a recent push to preserve the canyon.  As the future of this area is up in the air, I'd suggest checking it out sooner than later if you're looking for a peaceful, short walk. Go during the day with a friend.