Rural Mysteries of the North Fork Polygon

Trackless Train Tunnel Number Zero

Are Humanoids Living Underground?

There are many weird tunnels, sink holes, caves, and mines to explore in the "North Fork Polygon". One of the strangest is an abandoned train tunnel in the Clipper Gap area.

Unlike other train tunnels, 'Tunnel Zero' is more rough-hewn, shaped like a horseshoe or keyhole, and is missing the rails and ties! Not even Central Pacific Railroad can confirm why it was constructed in 1873, 4 years after completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869, and then abandoned at an unknown later date. This is also the first tunnel that Thomas Stevens encountered in his 1887 bike ride around the world.

Also, we've been lead to beleive that, following its abandonment, it was used for a while as a growing garden for mushrooms! However, that venture was not successful... financially.

Our Rural Mystery Mountain Bike Field Unit (RMMBFU) conducted a series of investigations between April 2005 and April 2006 in an attempt to make contact with humanoids reportedly dwelling underground in this area.

April 10, 2005: Initial Fly-by

Operation Mercury: While on patrol in the Clipper Gap/Lake Theodore Vortex, Jeff, Jon, and Mark first surveyed the east portal of the mysterious trackless train tunnel.

They found evidence of recent primitive humanoid habitation and excretions at the northeast tunnel entrance and made plans to eventually return with the necessary safety equipment and attempt a traverse of the entire tunnel.

Note: No track fires were observed on this day.

January 22, 2006: Tunnel Insertion

Operation Gemini: Phase II of our investigation began with overcast skies, cool weather, and no wind. In other words: Earthquake Weather.

But an abandoned train tunnel is no place to loiter when the ground moves. With only slight hesitation, and slightly less safety gear, Thayrn and Jon rode their mountain bikes into the tunnel. They had left their bike lights at home that day, so they were more than a little worried about hidden nails, ghost trains, broken glass ... and humanoids.

The center of the tunnel is always darkest before the dawn, and that's where they had their first problem. Their front tires were stopped by a solid object, forcing them to step into liquid, possibly water, possibly not. They remounted their aluminum steeds and exited the tunnel without further incident.

It took only 5 minutes to ride through "Tunnel Number Zero", but it felt like 10 minutes. They made a note to further explore this "missing time phenomenon".

April 29, 2006: Close Encounter

Operation Apollo: This time Richard-o and Aiden-o brought all the right stuff, including lights, batteries, camera, and courage. They were able to take the first picture ever of the dark side of the tunnel.

Their stunning pictures show positive evidence of humanoid underground dwellers, including wooden beds, a roasting pit, speaker cabinets, and encyclopedias. Luckily, the humanoids were either not in the tunnel during their visit, or chose to only observe from above.

Rural Mysteries of the North Fork Polygon