Minecraft wiki entry for Mining, associated text: Random mining can very well be the most dangerous method. The player can get lost, mine their way into lava and thus lose their items, into a ravine, into a skeleton spawner with 5 skeletons, or even into their own 40 block drop. Alternatively, they could embarrass themselves by mining straight up into a patch of gravel or sand, or flood their mine by digging into the ocean.