I've skied the tailings piles. They're very accessible. It's obvs not recommended because it's dangerous (avalanches!), illegal (no trespassing!), and unhealthy (mesothelioma!). But if you are a reckless person, it's pretty easy to figure out where to go and what to see.

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How can you know where the asbestos are?

Yeah, especially around that pond there, I forgot the name of it...

Oh yeah! If it was summer, the screams would have been accompanied by people running down the street bleeding to death from 335,470 tiny wounds. Happens every year July-September.

I think all of it is off limits and likely not the safest to be around. But imo if you go in once in your lifetime to check it out it’s probably not going to be what kills ya.

Buildings are super cool, lots of old equipment to look at too.

Oh alright, the mound looks like the most dangerous place (lots of asbestos) but if people do it that much I guess it’s alright? Do you know what parts of the mine are most dangerous/off limits? How are the buildings?

Having been to Proctor, if it were summer I would say it's the screams of people being eaten alive by mosquitoes. But it's January so I got nothin'...

You Win the Internet: Vermont Edition^TM

Yes. In the summer people regularly ride the trail and watch the sunset from the top. Definitely don’t think this is something that is “allowed” but it’s done

There’s trails surrounding it. You aren’t constantly driving through literal asbestos. Not that it’s any better though, I would it to be a risk worth taking

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There are a million "no trespassing" signs (I've driven by out of curiosity) and I am told the mine owner will prosecute trespassers.

Better yet, if you're here for a month, bounce around to a few different places and hotels. And if you have the tires, think about driving to mad river or sugarbush for a day to ski and chill. Have you looked into Jay Peak. Bit out in the middle of nowhere, but maybe that's what you want. Every thought about a day, or a few, in Montreal?

Have you been to the top?

Ah, seems like it’s begging to kick up dust 🤔

Boy are you going to be mad if there's no snow in the roads when you're here

ATV/4 wheeler

Drop your gear. Let your foot off of the gas instead of mashing your break. Break and stopping are the enemy. Remain in control enough to not need to be breaking much. Give yourself plenty of time to stop, and ease into it. Don't jam on the break. Going is the easier part, momentum is your friend. Feel the road and take your foot off of the gas when in doubt. It's the slowing down and stopping that'll get you

Alright, thanks for the info

What’s a side by side?

> N95 if concerned though

N95's do absolutely nothing for asbestos. The mine and surrounding area is off limits for a reason and suggesting any part of it is "more or less safe" is stupid. Even if parts of it are "mostly" safe, the type of person who needs to ask, isn't qualified to make that decision.

i don’t think you can watch where you’re breathing but getting a respirator mask would help more

Asbestos is a fibrous mineral comprised of short barbed threads. When it is in a solid form it's highly heat resistant and fairly chemically inert. The problem is when it becomes aerosolized (eg dust kicked up by walking around) it sticks to your skin and clothing becoming an irritant (think like fiberglass itching). Worse still is when (not if) you breath it into your lungs, those barbs act like fish hooks trapping the fibers in your lungs basically forever. Over the years these fibers will cut and irritate your lungs causing scar tissue (Asbestosis) or cancer (mesothelioma) or both. In the case of mesothelioma, once it develops the survival rate is only 23% and is a horrible, painful death; typically in less than 2 years.

Under no circumstances should you go anywhere near a known source of loose asbestos like at a mine. That mine ran for 60+ years and will have dangerous amounts of dust virtually everywhere that someone would consider "interesting". Dust masks/N95 will not provide protection and even something fancier like a 3M P100 is not intended for that level of exposure (it's meant for limited exposure like what you might get renovating an old house that "might" have asbestos, not exploring a mine that does have asbestos). Workers who deal with asbestos (such as for asbestos abatement projects) will wear full body clean suits, including sealed gloves and boots as well as negative pressure air-purifying respirators.

I’d recommend taking a side by side up if you’re going in. You can get to the top and see the view from there that way!