This mine doesn’t have much to do, but it’s a big mine. Living on the Maine coast doesn’t leave many options for mineral collectors either. Most of the major mines, with the exception of the Callahan mine, are in northwestern Maine. This mine is located in the town of Edgecomb in Lincoln County, Maine. This mine has not been worked for a long time. There are two open wells that I have found, both of which are full of water. The first room is smaller than the second, but it is still quite large. Mounds of Talise can be found around this quarry and on both sides of the road. A dirt road skirts the quarries and then the trail turns into four wheeler trails. The second and oldest quarry is back in the woods. Talise piles are scattered throughout this quarry. Judging by its size and depth, I’d say they pulled a lot of material out of this second pit. I believe this mine was originally in operation for its Muscovite mica. I really didn’t find too many fantastic minesweepers from this mine. I only came away with a few samples of smoky quartz, muscovite mica, and some orthoclase feldspar. The minerals that can be found here are almandine garnet, beryl, biotite, muscovite, microcline, milky quartz, and smoky quartz. I did find some samples of almandine garnet, but they were small crystals. Unfortunately I couldn’t find any beryl. I found examples of all the other minerals that can be found here. Here are the instructions to locate the mine:

Driving from the Route 1 junction with Route 27 in Edgecomb, drive south on Route 27 for 3.10 miles. Make a sharp left onto Old County Road and drive 0.75 miles to where the driveways turn left and right. From this point, continue straight for another 0.30 miles on a logging road, driving carefully over the rough patches. This is a dirt road. Turn right into the CO Schmid Preserve parking area at the entrance to the side street and park on the left side of this street. (avoid private property on the right hand side) Walk south on the wooded road about 900 feet to the clearing on the ridge. The quarries and dumps are located in forests on the south side of the clearing. (Maine Mineral Localities 3rd EDT. by WB Thompson, DL Joyner, RG Woodman, VT King)

Be sure to wear a sturdy pair of boots, preferably waterproof. There are some swampy areas on the way to the mine. I would also recommend that you bring some bug spray. Black flies and mosquitoes abound there. You don’t have to worry too much about sun protection, because the area is quite wooded. There was a lot of shade when I was there. A sieve screen will come in handy here as the talise piles haven’t been worked in a long time. If you want to find something, the best thing to do is examine the talise piles. I dug through the piles for a while and found only quartz, mica, and feldspar. I usually only visit this mine when I feel like going mineral hunting, but I don’t feel like traveling too far. I recommend visiting this mine alone because you never know what you are going to find. Just because I haven’t been lucky doesn’t mean you won’t.