Story and drone images by: William E.Simpson II

As the water from Iron Gate Lake is drained, strange sights are being revealed. Photo: William E. Simpson II

Was anyone in this car when it went off the steep cliff and into 50-feet of cold water at Iron Gate Lake? Photo: William E. Simpson II

As Iron Gate and Copco Lakes are being drained as part of the removal of the Klamath River dams, secrets hidden for decades underwater in deep mud at the bottoms of the lakes are starting to come to light.

In the next drone images, Simpson takes the drone in for a closer look into the car. Is there any sign of human remains? Lets take a look! What can we see?

Stay tuned for more updates. As the Big Lebowski said; ‘New ‘Sh*t’ has come to light”
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Good morning Jay,
I am Don Meamber and met you at the Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday. Sheila and I live on our ranch just north of the Montague city limits. I sent you the CCA Legislative Bulletin telling about the State running out of funding to compensate ranchers for wolf damage to their herds.
My great uncle was John Christie Boyle, so was probably your wife’s grandfather’s boss during construction of Copco I and II. During those projects Boyle wore several hats, such as engineer who designed the dams, located the best sites, foreman on the job for the crew, and the Contractor with the Comany’s employees as crew to build the dams for Siskiyou Electric, later changed to California Oregon Power Company. There used to be railroad tracks running upriver from the mainline to the dam site to move big supplies like the generators.
When the next 2 were constructed, J.C. Boyle and Irongate, the contractor was Morrison-Knutsen in both cases. My uncle designed both dams as I understand it. He passed away in 1979. He and a brother were born in Ft. Jones. Then the family moved to Mt. Shasta where my grandmother Rita Boyle Prather was born in 1890, but they soon moved to Yreka because 1890 was a record snow year all over and very difficult conditions.
I became acquainted a few years ago with a man that worked on those last 2 dams, and he is still living in his 90,s in Fox Island, WA. He, John Stadler, gave me a lot of personal memoirs he wrote about daily life during construction. Maybe there are some that you might like to reprint for the viewers. I can contact him to get his permission that doing so would be acceptable. I am sure he wants it dispersed, when he gave it to me.
Keep up the good work, Jay.
DON