We are only going to night stop at Coober Pedy as we visited
there in May/June 2007,we camped underground at Riba's Caravan Park, different experience and very difficult to get pegs into the rock, the great thing is that the temperature underground hardly moves from 23°C day, night, winter or summer. We did the mine tour and found it fascinating, anyone planning to visit should in my opinion spend at least one night here if not camping then in one of their underground cabins.
Coober Pedy comes from the local Aboriginal term kupa-piti, which means "white man's hole", probably because of the miners holes. The below-ground homes and shops, called "dugouts", are built to escape the high daytime temperatures. Opal was found in Coober Pedy on 1 February 1915; since then it has been supplying most of the world's gem-quality opal and is known as the "opal capital of the world", it is reputed to be the largest opal mining area in the world! A must see is the Old Timers Mine and Museum, a great way to learn the fascinating history of opal mining, the self-guided tour shows how the miners lived and worked, seams of opal, and opalised seashells have been left in the walls and can be viewed. There is also the demonstration of mining machinery and one can 'feed' the blower.
'Feeding the Blower" Inside the Mine Underground Church |
Our next stop will be at the NT border about 395 Km stopping at Marla and Agnes Creek along the way. From there it is a 'short' 288 Km to Alice Springs, we will be making a stop at Stuart Well to see the singing Dingo, lets hope Dinky is still there next year as I believe the owner is looking to sell the road house and retire to Alice.
Until next time................Life is short, live it
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