Grasberg Mine

The location of this cable car is a gold mine — literally! The Grasberg Mine in Papua, Indonesia is the largest gold mine and third largest copper mine in the world. The Grasberg Mine has produced 1.5 billion pounds of copper and 1.7 million ounces of gold. That is enough for about 230 billion original US copper pennies and 10 million gold rings. The mine includes a 1.5 mile-wide pit visible from space as well as almost 180,000 hectares worth of underground areas (TLDR: it’s big). The mine is located within the remote highlands of the Sudirman Mountains. It sits at an altitude of 14,000 feet (4,270 meters) above sea level (a classification of mountains that hikers refer to as “14ers”).

14ers might be exciting mountains for hikers and climbers, but it was surely less exciting when considering how to transport workers and equipment up this steep, rugged, difficult (not to mention dangerous) terrain. Around 1989, the cable car was built to move miners and equipment up, up, up.

The cable car travels along a track about one mile (1.5 kilometers) long, ascending from 9,186 feet (2,800 meters) to11,483 feet (3,500 meters) above sea level in about 23 minutes. Once holding the title of the world’s longest cable span, this system remains one of the highest-altitude cable cars in operation today. It continues to serve a vital role, efficiently transporting equipment, supplies, and up to 100 people at a time between the milling and mining areas. Pack animals all over Indonesia let out a huge neigh of relief.