Coober Pedy Tour

Thought I should do the 10 – 12 hour Mail trip to Onandatta – but you have to book at least 3 months in advance so that saved me $195. Got keen when I realised you travel in aircon vehicle! 

Had a bit of a look round – very dust place. Only main streets sealed. Quite touristy, heaps of opal shops and accommodation.  Had  lunch then off on the tour with a French couple, and a Bosnian guide. Showed us the 18 hole golf course with its bitumen ‘greens’.  No good for me - I tend to dig divots in the grass so would probably either break a club or my wrists!

Really good tour – we went right in to the mining areas, saw the test holes, then the shafts, watched a guy coming up on a winch and the trucks with suction pipes to remove the rubble. On to the 11 and 12 mile areas that were mined 50 years ago. Some open mines here also. The ground is unstable in much of this area. Only about 300 people still mining – from 3000 fifty years ago.

 The mines are not filled in as often another miner may go in to an abandoned claim and get lucky. It also means everyone knows where mining has taken place – a safety thing.

On to the Breakaway Range. Amazing colours in hills sticking out from a vast and very dry desert. White and brown ‘Salt & Pepper castles’. This area was once an ice covered ocean they say. 

Saw part of the dog fence – 5000 km all the way up to QLD.

 

 
Went to the museum and in to all the tunnels underneath it. Not my thing - pretty claustrophobic and rather warm. 
Imagine sleeping in a bedroom in absolute darkeness! Still - you have to admire their tenacity chipping away hoping to find the opals. Tunnels going off in all directions.

 










On back to town then to the Serbian Church carved in to a hill. The hall can hold around 400 people and there is a flat for a priest to live in - none there now as very few Serbs left. Was made using the round tunnel machines for the roof and the square ones for the side. Very lovely. They have planted fruit and vegies outside as well - most doing ok it seems.