The Legend of the Lost Gold Mine
The Legend of the Lost Gold Mine (Pegleg Pete and Alf) Legend has it, in 1896, as the gold rush began in the Yukon, many fortune hunters traveled through Alberta on their long trek North. When they stopped at Pigeon Lake (then known as Woodpecker Lake), many of the travelers searched for gold in the area. Rumor has it a gold prospector named Pete found a vein of gold close to the lake and stayed on to mine it and become rich. The legend goes on to tell how Pete carefully guarded his secret gold mine over the years fighting off thieves looking for a chance to get rich quick. Pete used dogs to guard his gold, which worked well for a while. Unfortunately, they kept running away with cute little poodles brought out to the lake by vacationers. After losing several guard dogs, Pete searched for a better answer. One day, Pete came across a somewhat friendly alligator left behind in the lake by a prospector who previously lived in the Florida everglades. Pete took a liking to him and decided to call him Alf. Alf was quick to learn about guarding the gold and so Pete gave him the job of Head of Security for his precious gold mine. Things were going along quite well until Alf decided he’d like to have all the gold for himself. One night, as Alf was quietly sneaking Pete’s gold into a safe hiding place, Pete woke up and caught him. Enraged, Pete grabbed Alf by the snout and a vicious scuffle ensued. We’ll never know the true details of what happened that night, but the story goes that during the fight, Alf bit off Pete’s leg and Pete knocked out all of Alf’s teeth. Luckily, Pete was able to carve a wooden leg for himself out of a poplar branch. From then on, Pete was known as ‘Pegleg Pete’. After making up, Pete and Alf searched for Alf’s teeth and found them all except one. Pete kindly had a gold tooth made as a replacement.
Since that day, Pete insisted Alf sleep with him in the gold mine so he could keep an eye on him – never fully trusting him again. The only complaint Pete had about Alf was that he snored too loud. Over the years, with all the gold finds in the Yukon, Pete’s gold mine was forgotten and eventually lost forever – or so everyone thought! Many years later, however, Blackstone Adventure Mini Golf was being constructed in South Pigeon Lake and Pete’s lost gold mine was unearthed looking much as it did in 1898. Sometimes, if you listen real carefully, you can still hear the sound of Alf’s snoring coming from the gold mine. Not much gold was left, just enough to entice youngsters to try their hand at gold panning and a trip to the Blackstone Treasure Chest for a prize. And so the legend of the Lost Gold Mine, Pegleg Pete and Alf continues to remain as folklore in the Pigeon Lake area and at Blackstone Adventure Mini Golf and Family Park. Blackstone Family Adventures has honored the memory of the Lost Gold Mine by providing visitors with fun and laughter while playing mini golf and panning for gold. But remember, don’t try and steal Pete’s gold ‘cause Alf still watches from his guard post at the gold mine entrance ………. and he still has all his teeth. Blackstone Family Adventure Archives – circa 1898
Since that day, Pete insisted Alf sleep with him in the gold mine so he could keep an eye on him – never fully trusting him again. The only complaint Pete had about Alf was that he snored too loud. Over the years, with all the gold finds in the Yukon, Pete’s gold mine was forgotten and eventually lost forever – or so everyone thought! Many years later, however, Blackstone Adventure Mini Golf was being constructed in South Pigeon Lake and Pete’s lost gold mine was unearthed looking much as it did in 1898. Sometimes, if you listen real carefully, you can still hear the sound of Alf’s snoring coming from the gold mine. Not much gold was left, just enough to entice youngsters to try their hand at gold panning and a trip to the Blackstone Treasure Chest for a prize. And so the legend of the Lost Gold Mine, Pegleg Pete and Alf continues to remain as folklore in the Pigeon Lake area and at Blackstone Adventure Mini Golf and Family Park. Blackstone Family Adventures has honored the memory of the Lost Gold Mine by providing visitors with fun and laughter while playing mini golf and panning for gold. But remember, don’t try and steal Pete’s gold ‘cause Alf still watches from his guard post at the gold mine entrance ………. and he still has all his teeth. Blackstone Family Adventure Archives – circa 1898
