Ghost Town of Belfort, California

Belfort, at an elevation of 10210 feet was a mining camp in the Patterson Mining District in the 1880s.  Very few vehicles are able to reach this site, and I almost didn't get in or out.  If you try to make it anyway, don't say I didn't warn you!  It's way up on a crazy 4WD road.  We scraped the bottom of my SUV on large rocks, slid down lose rock "scree" wondering if we'd go over the edge and have to jump out, we had to cut a ledge with a shovel to not slip into an eroded crevasse (and possibly roll down the mountain), trimmed trees to get around one large rock in a forest, crossed muddy creeks, and thought me might roll in a couple of places (I let +Lori Hibbett out several times so she could call someone to recover my body).  Then after 5 hours in 4WD low gear, we ran low on gas.  My arms are sore from the adrenaline… gripping the steering wheel and hanging on.  My vehicle has some fresh "redneck racing stripes" from brush.  

The only other vehicles we saw on the trail were 4WD ATVs.  That's probably the best option for access due to the washout on a steep hill that you could roll down, but our neighbor who has multiple ATVs just rolled his last week and broke his collarbone and several ribs, so he won't be leading any excursions any time soon.  It's probably just as well… the descent down steep, narrow roads on loose rock isn't one which should be .taken lightly, or attempted by beginners in any sort of vehicle.  This is one of the few places I feel safe naming and mapping.  It's well protected by its location, and the access won't be improving in the forseeable future.

This was definitely one of those "kiss the ground when you get there" roads.  +Gerard Sanz knows what I'm talking about.  We thought of him, and his rental car, as we passed the narrow section with the dangerous washout.  
#ghosttown  

Ghost town of Belfort, California. Very few vehicles are able to reach this site, and I almost didn’t get in or out. If you try to make it anyway, don’t say I didn’t warn you!

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