The radioactive zone of Temple Mountain, a dangerous mountain exploration in Utah

There are places that are very spectacular and seem ideal for explorers, but it's good to do some research before visiting them.

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One of these places is in a remote area of ​​Utah, in the United States, specifically in Emery County. It is an impressive 2,080-meter rocky mountain called Temple Mountain. The area is interesting not only for what we can see from afar, but also for the fact that this mountain has hundreds of old tunnels that provide access to old mines that have been abandoned for many years.

If we were talking about other types of deposits, the risk would be smaller, but Temple Mountain was a major center for uranium and radium mining. In fact, some sources indicate that the famous Polish scientist Marie Curie was here with her husband, Pierre. The extraction of these radioactive minerals, as well as vanadium, began here in the late 19th century. During the Cold War, Temple Mountain produced enormous quantities of uranium for weaponry, so a mining town known as Temple City was established in the area, of which only ruins remain today.

Last Saturday, Foresty Forest published an interesting video exploring this area, using an FFP2 mask and a radiation meter, as the radioactive dust in the area can have severe health consequences. The video's creator warns: "Be very careful if you decide to visit this area and DO NOT enter any open-pit mines". The video is in English but has a Spanish audio track, which you can activate in the bottom bar of the player.

You can see some screenshots from this video here. We start with a view of Temple Mountain from the south. Below we can see some of the houses of the old mining town.

An entrance to an old mine. I have rarely seen an abandoned mine so well sealed. They certainly had reason to take these precautions.

An image of the radiation detector used by the author of the video, during one of his readings near the entrance to the old mine we just saw.

An old gem from World War II: an abandoned M-3 half-track. It was likely used for mining, having been painted yellow, although this paint, as it faded, has revealed the white star and even the serial number of this vehicle when it was in service with the US Army. The vehicle is located on a road in the southwest area of ​​the mountain.

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Main photo: Greg Willis.