Kennecott Copper Mine - Bingham Canyon, Utah [No Visitors]
N 40° 32.133 W 112° 08.893
12T E 402757 N 4487834
On 4/10/2013 a massive landslide totally destroyed the Mine Visitor Center. Because of advance warning everything at the Visitor Center had been removed to a safe location. A new Visitor Center will probably not be available until after 2014.
Waymark Code: WMBF09
Location: Utah, United States
Date Posted: 05/13/2011
Views: 11
Kennecott Cooper Mine is one of the highlights when visiting Utah as people come from all over the world to see the mine. Throughout the day there are tour buses and school groups visiting as it is an amazing place to visit.
Standing at the overlook within the Bingham Canyon Mine, you can see, hear, and feel the breathtaking and awesome magnitude of the of more than 100 years of work. From the overlook, you can watch 240 and 320 ton capacity haulage trucks deliver copper ore to the in-pit crusher, where the material is reduced to the size of soccer balls before being loaded onto a five-mile conveyor that carries the ore to the Copperton Concentrator.
Located 28 miles southwest of Salt Lake City, the Bingham Canyon Mine Visitors Center is Situated on the edge of the three-quarter-mile deep Bingham Canyon Mine, the Visitors Center is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Salt Lake County. In addition to spectacular views, visitors can enjoy exhibits, displays, interactive information kiosks and video presentations. The Visitors Center features everything from historic mining artifacts to presentations about how Kennecott’s modern-day operation produces metals and minerals essential to everyday life. Visitors can also enjoy a 19-minute film detailing the mine’s history and the process used to produce copper.
Kennecott is the second largest copper producer in the United States, providing approximately 25 percent of the country's copper needs. Kennecott produces approximately 275,000 tons of refined copper each year. This copper is used in electrical wiring, plumbing, roofing, coin making and more. In addition to copper, the mine also produces about 400,000 ounces of gold, 4 million ounces of silver and 25 million pounds of molybdenum.
Amazing interesting facts:
* Kennecott's Bingham Canyon Mine has produced more copper than any mine in history - about 18.7 million tons.
* The mine is 2-3/4 miles across at the top and 3/4 of a mile deep. You could stack two Sears Towers (now known as the Willis Building) on top of each other and still not reach the top of the mine.
* If you stretched out all the roads in the open pit mine, you'd have 500 miles of roadway - enough to reach from Salt Lake City to Denver.
* You could lay the soccer field at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah end to end more than 38 times across the top of the Bingham Canyon Mine before it would reach both sides.
* The elevation of the Bingham Canyon Mine drops from 8,040 feet above sea level to 4,390 feet above sea level. The Visitors Center is located at 6,440 feet above sea level.
* The giant electric shovels in the mine can scoop up as much as 98 tons in a single bite -- about the weight of 50 cars.
* The newest electric shovels each cost more than $20 million and weigh 3.2 million pounds.
* The trucks that haul the ore are larger than many houses and weigh more than a jumbo jet. They stand over 23 feet tall and can carry from 255 to 360 tons of rock.
* The truck driver rides about 18 feet above the ground -- nearly two stories high.
* Each tire on these big trucks costs from $18,000 to $26,000 and lasts just 9 months.
* The crusher in the pit takes in about 140,000 tons of ore every day and grinds it into chunks smaller than the size of a basketball.
* At 1,215 feet tall, the Kennecott smokestack is the highest structure in Utah.
To get to the mine take Highway 111 toward the southwest part of the Salt Lake Valley. (12800 South State Route 111) This will get you to the main entrance and toll booth, follow the road 4 1/2 miles to the visitors center. Here you will see the mine, signs and displays of items from the mine.
The "Official Tourism" URL link to the attraction: [Web Link]
The attraction’s own URL: [Web Link]
Hours of Operation:
Due to monitored geotechnical movement of the Kennecott Utah Copper Bingham Canyon Mine over the winter, the Visitors Center and overlook plaza will not reopen as scheduled April 1. Short- and long-term plans are underway to relocate the Visitors Center. Follow Kennecott Utah Copper prior to your visit on facebook, twitter or at Kennecott.com/visitors-center for updates on a reopening.
Edited by Groundspeak.
Admission Prices:
Entrance fees are $5 for passenger vehicles, $25 for mini tour buses and $50 for tour buses. All entrance fees are donated to charity and are tax deductible. Motorcycles are not allowed on Kennecott property for safety purposes.
Approximate amount of time needed to fully experience the attraction: Half of a day (2-5 hours)
Transportation options to the attraction: Personal Vehicle Only
|
Visit Instructions:As a suggestion for your visit log, please make every effort to supply a brief-to-detailed note about your experience at the Waymark. If possible also include an image that was taken when you visited the Waymark. Images can be of yourself, a personal Waymarking signature item or just one of general interest that would be of value to others. Sharing your experience helps promote Waymarking and provides a dynamic history of your adventures.