Back to Coober Pedy

We left the Campgrounds early and quickly ducked into IGA for some breakfast, then settled in for the big drive back to Coober Pedy.

As we drove and got approx. 50kms out from Erldunda, Rowan piped up from the back of the car... 'Are we going to see the emus again?' We were amazed at his sense of his direction and memory! We stopped at Erldunda for some fuel and to stretch our legs.

We stopped at the border for some quick photos and then again at the Marla Roadhouse inside the South Australian border.

The remainder of the drive got a bit loooooonnngggg and we eventually arrived in Coober Pedy about 7:30pm. We hadn't arranged our accommodation but were planning on parking in someone's backyard (Thank you Wikicamps).  After meeting the host (Gary) who gave us a run-down on everything that ticks in Coober Pedy we ordered some pizza and started setting up.

Gary made a few comments to Chad and Brenton that you could find opal ANYWHERE in town so the boys started scouring through the stones in the yard. They quickly found potch (the worthless part of opal) and from then on they sat down and were hammering stones apart and scratching them with their pocket knives.

We ate our dinner late and then got to bed.

In the morning the boys were up early again seeking their fortune in the yard looking for opals. At breakfast time we watched a documentary / movie from the local area of miners who had found some great pieces of opal.  From then on the boys were pretty keen to go looking through the whole town!

Coober Pedy is the source of 80% of the worlds opals. There are a few other mines in South Australia and Queensland but Coober Pedy provides the majority. There is no way to determine if there is opal present in the soil, besides just digging up the dirt. In Coober Pedy 50% of the population live underground or their house is dug into the hill. By living underground, the house is kept at a constant temperature of 23 degrees - a perfect living temperature!

At 10am we joined a tour at Umoona Opal mine. An ex-miner led the tour showing us through the underground house, then down the stairs to the many tunnels drilled for the mine. Our guide explained the process of mining, firstly to drill the hole down to the 28metre mark where the opal is found. This was always done by hand but now is done by drill. Then they would start a tunnel in each direction, North, South, East, West. To make the tunnels they used to use dynamite and a bit vacuum that would suck all the dust and loose dirt to the surface, then dump it in neat piles. Consequently, Coober Pedy has piles of dirt EVERYWHERE outside the town, as well as signs making you aware of the many mine shafts.

If they found opal - great... but if not, they would pack up their gear and start on the next hole!  Chad and Brenton were fascinated by the whole process, however, Rowan was very uneasy about being underground.

Opal vein in the rock

After the tour we had a quick look at the finished product in jewellery and then left to have some lunch and go see an underground church. It was called the Catacomb Church. The kids enjoyed looking through it.  Outside temps were around 45 degrees so inside the church was a nice cool change.

From there we went to another shop to look at some jewellery. Karli got a nice necklace and pendant and the boys each received a tube with opal chips in it. 

We spent some time feeding the orphaned kangaroos and joey at a Refuge place. The owner takes in orphaned joeys and birds and raises them to adults.

After this we had promised the boys that they could do some 'noodling' in town, where local miners dump their dirt for others to sift through looking for opals. It was extremely hot but the boys were very keen so they and Karli were climbing over the mounds looking for opal. Karli found a nice one!  We managed to get them back to the car eventually and we headed back to our camp for the night.

We had an enjoyable but definitely a HOT day!