The Champion Mine was unique in that the ore came down the mountain via mule train rather than by tramway or wagon. The route was short and steep: perfect terrain for hard-working mules.
Just below the lower trailhead, you can see the tipped-over loading bin, which was still standing upright when Mitchell's book was published in 2003. It's easy to blame vandalism for the bin's toppling, but weather and snowfall can be extreme here, too. There's a good chance that snow loads were responsible.
You can't drive to the Champion Mine. At some point you'll have to choose from one of two trails and set out on foot.
We were interested in the upper trailhead for a couple of reasons. First, the road was reported to be tougher and second, the hike from the upper trailhead is shorter and easier. No one was afraid of a tough hike: instead, we were short on time and daylight.
We poked around by the lower trailhead, then headed back the way we'd come in order to link up to the upper trailhead road, a turnoff we'd missed by mistake.