Climax Mine

Climax Mine is a surface gold mine in Baker County, Oregon, near Sumpter. MSHA lists its status as temporarily idled since Aug 17, 2026 and records 1 employees. It is one of 7 gold mines in Oregon that are not marked abandoned, and one of 5 in Baker County; by employees it ranks 7 of 7 in the state.

Facts

MSHA status
Temporarily idled since Aug 17, 2026
Type
Surface
County
Baker County
State
Oregon
Land status (BLM data)
Federal land in a US Forest Service national forest or grassland
Nearest town
Sumpter
Employees reported
1
Operator
Oregon Excavating and Underground LLC
Coordinates
44.7522, -118.2211
MSHA mine ID
3503951

Source: MSHA Mines data set, retrieved 2026-10-13. Status and counts can lag real operations.

This location is mapped as federal land. Public land is not an invitation to enter a working mine or old workings. Ask the managing agency about access, claims and closures.

History and geology (USGS)

USGS site name
Downey
USGS status
Prospect
Commodities
Gold

Matched by location to the USGS Mineral Resources Data System record 10224451 (retrieved 2026-10-13). The database was last updated around 2011, so history may be out of date.

Gold mines nearby