This is a close-up detail of some old mining equipment at the historic Bodie, California ghost town. (This text did not accompany the original 2006 post — it was added in 2026.) As best as I can recall, this mechanism must have been some sort of winch, with cabling that wound up on the spool in the background.

Mining Equipment. Bodie, California. May 27, 2006. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell.