You can glimpse what used to be the largest silver mine in the world under an Ontario lake
Just below the surface of an Ontario lake, you can see the remnants of what used to be a massive silver mine.
If you suffer from submechanophobia (the fear of machinery submerged in water, that is), you'll want to choose the location of your next camping trip wisely, because Thunder Bay's Sleeping Giant Park is hiding a wild hidden history under the waters of Lake Superior.
Once the richest silver mine in the entire world, Silver Islet Mine Shafts were established in 1868, plunging up to 365 metres below Lake Superior and producing more than $3 million in silver before shutting down just 16 years later.
According to a history written by Will Oades for Ontario Parks, taming Lake Superior in order to build the mine — let alone send miners down the shafts — was no small feat, thanks to the great lake's rapidly changing conditions, icy temperatures and the mine's location just off an unprotected islet.
Eventually, a breakwall was built to shelter the islet and pumps installed to keep water out of the mine shafts — all built and set up by only 34 men and costing $50 thousand.
Thirteen years after the completion of the mine, though, a shipment of coal was missed, rendering miners unable to operate the water pumps, and the mine took on water until, as it remains today, it was almost entirely submerged in water.
On clear, calm days in Lake Superior, you can still see the remaining infrastructure of the mine beneath the water's surface — disappearing into the depths under the lake.
Whether you find it terrifying or awe-inspiring, there's something to be said for getting the chance to see the engineering feats of yesteryear — defunct or not — still remaining today.
There are a number of tour companies in the area that'll take you to view the flooded mine by boat, as well as visiting the old mining town of Silver Islet, which is still populated today.
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