The Coober Pedy Experience

Driving up the middle of Australia into the desert the shrub gets shorter and less dense while the roadkill seems to get bigger. I had never seen cows as roadkill before but now I've seen many. The further you go up you start to see remnants of cars that have been either destroyed in a roll over or simply left to be vandalized and stripped by whoever makes the effort to do so. Coober Pedy lies more or less half way to Alice from Adelaide ie) a long way from anywhere. Again quirky just doesn't seem to do it justice. It was established in the late 1800's when some young buck stumbled upon an opal seam. Now there are over 2.5 million holes in the area and although the population has dwindled, plenty of miners hoping to make it rich. Of every 100 holes that are dug, 99+ find no opal. About 1/10th of those that do find some, find some that is of any value, a 10th of those can make a living off of their find and only a 10th of those actually make it rich. To do an exploratory hole costs about $100. If something looks promising the hole has to be widened so someone can be lowered down to look and this costs about $500. If the miner decides to pursue this area then their initial outlay is about $3000 without any assurance that they will find any opal of value. Fools paradise! The area looks like it has been infested with monstrous ants as wherever you look mounds of dirt litter the landscape. As it is essentially in the middle of desert, greenspace is non-existent and the main road of the town is essentially bordered by cinder block businesses, hotels and restaurants (of which there are few). It's like a frontier town in one of those old Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns - dusty with an undertone of struggle and strife. The aboriginals in the area are as black as black and very dishevelled (at least the ones you see wandering the town). They seem lost, idly sitting on sidewalks or lounging beside buildings near the centre of town. On the day we arrived there seemed to be a feud brewing and you could hear shouting and witness some poor emaciated Abo being kicked and beaten in the street. Later, as we were going to dinner, we could hear a scuffle again and then witnessed rocks being pelted (..our way) at some poor fellow sprinting away in a cower. Sounds like a dreadful place but aside from these episodes we actually enjoyed it for a couple of days as there was plenty of interesting things to see and do.

We stayed at a hotel called the Desert Cave in which you actually stay underground in a holed-out sandstone cave - much like about 50 % of the towns people. We arrived on a public holiday so had to make the best of it finding interesting things for the kids to do. For a start we hit the Old Timers Mine, where you could take a tour underground and get a bit of a history of mining for opal in the area. The kids were stoked as they got to wear hard hats and check out a number of tunnels and displays 20-30 ft under the earth. They had a small sandbox outside filled with rocks with tiny shards of opal and fossils so the kids were able to do some 'noodling' and find some treasures. From there we found the Big Winch - one of those big things in Australia which some towns flaunt as tourist traps - not particularly exciting really - so we moved on to Josephines Art Gallery and Kangaroo Orphanage - what the two have in common is anyone's guess. As we walked in, there were a bunch of Didgeridoos on display for sale and conversation with the proprietor led to her espousing her husband's capability at teaching people how to play these long cylindrical instruments. Naturally we were intrigued and before you could say lickety-splitz the kids were all having a lesson while I sauntered around the shop checking out the artwork. Jo gave me a quick lesson on Aboriginal Art and pointed out some of the typical themes in some of the paintings. We were a bit early for the kangaroo feeds so had a wander nearby to a couple other opal shops owned by haggard-old grumpy Germans who seemed to be miffed if you were only browsing in their shop and not laying down hard currency or plastic. The lights would go out before we'd left the building kind of thing. We headed back to the Kangaroo Orphanage just as a busload of tourists had arrived and saw some of the smallest and cutest red kangaroos you could imagine. At the end, the kids and Jen got to cradle these small pups and because we were enamored by it all - bought a Didgeridoo for the kids to have a go at - might give them an interesting show and tell next year at school.

On day 2 of the Coober we ventured to the Catacomb Church - an underground church excavated into the sandstone and then did some further noodling in the public noodling area - again a bit of a fool's paradise as the chances of finding anything remotely resembling opal and of value is probably well less than zero. Once sufficiently dusty we aimed our sights at trying to find a place to scrub up one of the small stones we'd noodled the day before at the Old Timers Noodling area and organize an afternoon activity. After a few strikes we found a fellow who would shine up our precious find but couldn't do so until later in the day so we headed out to Tom's Working Mine on the outskirts of town for a family tour. The tour was run by this old Scot who'd smoked his lungs to death and was huffing and puffing like a steam engine throughout the whole tour. Again the kids had a blast as they were allowed to be winched up one of the small holes that miners used to descend in order to enter the mines, play with divining rods (which only I seemed to have the power to make work) and attack some sandstone with a hand-held jack-hammer. At one point we were 52 feet below the earth! For dinner we hit a local Greek restaurant and then trekked out to the Breakaways - a rock formation about 30 kms from town along some windy dirt roads better suited to rally racing than racing the setting sun for a few pics. On more than one occasion deep curves came up suddenly in the road without warning and as we were nearing the rocks the sun shone directly into my view as I was driving, blinding me from anything in front on the road. Fortunately we stayed on course and enjoyed the lookouts over these majestically coloured formations. All tolled, we found Coober Pedy a friendly enough place to visit with some very down to earth (literally and figuratively) people but am glad I decided not to take on the job here for a week - may have been mayhem in the emergency! Off to Uluru, King's Canyon and Alice next - looking forward to gazing at the big rock!

Woomera ? quirky military ghost town

It seems many places in this part of the world are touted as quirky - not sure that would be the correct term for Woomera though. When we arrived in Australia in April 2003, it had just been closed down as an immigrant detention centre due to purported human rights abuses and riots at the site due to overcrowding. Its other claim to fame has been military and aerospace research - particularly with rockets/missiles. As you drive into Woomera off the highway you're immediately struck by the conformity of all the buildings and these numerous cinder block apartments bordering the town. The caravan/'tourist' park is on the outskirts with a few portable trailer cabins scattered throughout the essentially barren concrete compound. Needless to say - we had a look and kept on driving. The hub of town centres around the visitor's information complex which also houses a small museum and bowling alley (...of course!). We came in on a Sunday afternoon and there were literally a total of 2 people walking the streets and maybe 5-6 (including staff) in the Visitors Centre - it was very eerie - kind of like the model town in Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull flick, just before the nuclear bomb goes off. We managed to find a hotel called the Eldo which seemed to be the former military dining hall. The dining facilities had been refurbished with modern wood rails and a nice looking bar and bistro. The rooms on the other hand looked to be not too dissimilar from the dorms Jen and I had in our first year at McGill. Once unpacked and into our room we ventured out for our regular picnic lunch. En route we ambled through the outdoor rocket and airplane museum along the main street and then found a park with a playground. We set out lunch while the wind picked up and made our cheese slices nearly airborne. A bag of lollies, some funny leather shoes and some balls with holes knocking over 10 pins fueled our afternoon entertainment. The Eldo Hotel bistro cooked up some lovely bratwurst and kids meals for dinner and we tucked in early for a big drive to Coober Pedy - the Opal Capital of the World - in the AM.

Bessie goes off-road and gets dirty

Bessie, the Toyota Kluger SUV, had yet another jaunt away from the tarmac, tackling some thin single-track (for SUVs that is) rolling, rocky hills with some steep ups and downs that made white-knuckles of Jen's hand gripping the HS bar. We'd joined a 4WD tour as a "tag-along" and were handed an UHF radio to keep abreast of the various plant and animal life and geological formations from our long white-bearded tour guide. There were some reservations about Bessie as she was only an AWD - one of the other tour guides would normally not allow such vehicles on his trips - but she stood up to the test with flying colours without barely a slip up. The rewards were immense as we were driven onto private areas of the Arkaba Station, with incredible vistas and cliff-hugging driving tracks aptly named Stairway to Heaven (coming down the otherside ? Highway to Hell?) Weather was a bit inclement with morning thunder showers and a heavy deluge as we trekked back to camp after the morning festivities. What originally appeared to be an area devoid of moisture had suddenly become a bit of a mud pit (especially around our caravan). Fortunately, the afternoon brightened up and we had our chance to hike into the Pound. It was listed as 7.8 kms round trip to the top of one of the lookouts inside the Pound so we were a little tentative as the kids generally put up a bit of a fuss when we say we're going for a walk. ("Is it going to take 500 hrs?!" ....Aidan) There was ne'er a comment though and we made great time up and back, finding lizards, wild goats and a number of roos along the way. Even Piper made most of the trip on foot - as we were coming down from the highest lookout some out-of-shapers coming up the otherway were amazed at the spring in her step and I explained she was a bit of a mountain goat - which she of course took to heart and announced to other trekkers coming up the same path. Back at camp we got ourselves organized for the next part of our journey which will take us up to Woomera, Coober Pedy, Uluru, King's Canyon and finally Alice Springs where I've got work for 2 weeks. Now we'll really get an appreciation of arid, dry and barren!

A fossil and feast kind of day

Woke to 'Ah, Ah, Ah' of a local crow seemingly just beside my window. Walls of caravans are pretty thin so it sounded almost like he/she was in the bed with me. After a bit of hustle and bustle we got ourselves organized and into the trusty Kluger which Aidan has decided to name 'Bessie' - like my old metallic purple VW Van - Fiona the GPS and Bessie the Beast! We'd decided to do a self-drive tour of some of the ranges and gorges in the national park. One area in particular had captured our attention as it was touted to be where the earliest known fossil , the Dixonian ... something or other - has been found. I haven't quite figured out whether it is an Edicarian or whether that was the age it was meant to have existed. It is ...or was an aquatic organism which prevailed in this area whilst it was completely covered by water and has surfaced through erosion and tectonic plate movements which have given rise to Wilpena Pound - Wilpena meaning out-stretched fingers and Pound - enclosure. It is like a massive 100 sq km. amphitheatre which was perceived by some early entrepreneurs as potentially a great catchment for water and thus ideal for hordes of sheep and agriculture. Unfortunately, rains are not all that common here and the area became over-grazed and over-cultivated fairly quickly. Areas remain barren today where such practices have left them effectively bereft of nutrients and sustainability for plant life. We headed along the road to the Bracina Gorge and past the Terzona area where the fossils were meant to have been found. As we traveled further west we encountered signs every km or so indicating a change of geological rocks or formations and a decrease by 10-20 million years in age. The formations were actually quite amazing to see - it felt like we were traveling back in time and taking in some amazing ancient history in the process. We hiked along some creek beds and along one of the many hiking trails in search of fossils touted to be abundant in the area but only stumbled upon some once back near our vehicle. Aidan was the keen eye and after the first find kept spotting new ones. We continued along our 'off road' adventure with Bessie and stopped for lunch at the top of a ridge where a look out allowed us views of some incredible valleys and hills. Once back at the camp we tackled the pool and tried to get some school work done before the weekend with variable success. Dinner was had at the resort Bistro and included a Flinders Native Plate - complete with Emu Pate, Smoked Kangaroo, Native tomato relish and goat's cheese. I had the Kangaroo dish for the main while Jen played it safe with a vegetarian salad and the kids hoed into some traditional kids meals. Dessert was the typical ice cream and sauce for the kids while Jen enjoyed (with us) a massive serve of blueberry, mango and lime gelati and I, the sticky-date pudding (see I am Australian!). With full tummies and yet another day of adventure ahead we tucked into our beds to await the early morning wake up call of our winged friends.

Wilpena Pound

Arid, dry and barren - three words that seem to characterize this place and have done so since settlers tried to make a living off its lands back in the 1800's. On the drive in a few remnants of their stone houses still sit empty and crumpling to the side of the road. We woke reasonably early to take in a day of exploration of the area. We were greeted at the information hut with " Mr Parker and family I presume" - as the kids' schoolwork bag had preceded our arrival and Jen's name is on the tag. The kids were a bit excited with the new environment and all the pamphlets at their disposal so I had to mind them while Jen collected the info on what we could do and when. Given the low wind we decided to do the flight over the Pound to start then zip around to the Old Settlers Village and Solar Energy power plant on our bikes. We were beginning to wonder whether it was worth carting all these two wheelers around as we hadn't used them much - today made the carting around all worth while. Piper managed to fall on her chin while traipsing around a monument recognizing the adversity suffered by the aborigines in the area and gave herself a nice purple goose-egg. You keep wanting to wipe it off but it just won't come. In the afternoon we enjoyed the pool at the resort and then did a short drive to the Sacred Canyon to see some ancient aboriginal rock carvings. The 500m trail took us into a small gorge weathered from previous floods and water flow with smooth rocks and narrow gulleys. The carvings were simple symbols like stick men, squares and circles depicting areas of old camps and the people who inhabited the area at times. The kids had a great time scrambling over the rocks and into little cave-like areas like novice explorers on their first trek. Night fell and the sky lit up with a blanket of stars. Aidan looked up and pointed out the constellation Orion and his belt like it was second nature (Can't you see it Dad - just there). We finished the night off with a short game of Scrabble - won't be long before Aidan will prevail methinks!

On the Road Again...

So Murray Bridge has come and gone. We headed out of the Avoca Dell Caravan Park ready to get this trek moving.  We had a slow start as we noticed a couple weeks ago our rego for the caravan had expired back in August 2009. As such we had to go to the Murray Bridge Police station to get a police check then off to the RTA for new plates and rego sticker. We noticed we'd forgotten to drop the keys for the toilets off at the Caravan park so had to go back to do so, then check the tire pressures, fill the fuel tank, pick up the remnants of our Giant bike from the cycle shop and check the pool for Aidan's lost croc shoes - oh the joys of travelling. While checking the tires I seemed to be getting nowhere topping them up - the pressure just would not seem to increase - if anything the pressures seemed to be getting lower. 10 minutes later ... ah! The air was turned to the off position! Minutes later we were off an running - without shoes for Aidan though - they have appeared to disappear or perhaps spontaneously combust as kid's things tend to do sometimes (I'm sure I was the same when I was a kid...how many sets of retainers did I go through?). We took the most direct route which took us back through the Barossa Valley and Angaston where we stopped for lunch. A local boutique cheesery (fromagier) helped add a bit of local flavour to our Cruskits and wholemeal bread with chocolate-covered figs for dessert - mmm. With many kms to go we headed out to the Flinders Ranges past the big Miner and Clare Valley. At Jamestown we stopped for fuel and were told it was another 3-4 hours drive - it was already 4 pm!! A quick reference with the Goog ( short for Guggenheimer - the google map program on my Iphone) and with Fi (our car GPS) and we decided our friend was very out to lunch and sadly must not have ever left his small shanty town for the hills as it was only another 150kms! We managed to roll into the Wilpena Pound resort around 6:30 pm and settled into some tucker shortly thereafter. It's a beautiful little enclave with hardly any other campers - so naturally we were placed right next to another couple - oodles of empty spots wherever you look - such is life. A feast of ravoli was had and we crashed into our beds ready for a big day of exploring in the morning.

Mt Lofty and the Barossa Valley

It was a blustery day but we hedged forward into the low-lying haze and up to Mt Lofty which gives quite a nice view of Adelaide and its burbs. There were plenty of cyclists and even a footie team who had run to the top making Jen and I feel a bit bloated and out of shape. The drive to the Barossa was great with rolling windy roads, vistas of different wineries and dry hills as far as the eye could see. We made our way to the Jacob's Creek Visitors Centre which is located near Tanunda. I think they've been jaded by too many visitors as their tasting was a bit impersonal and almost fast-food like. We did find a few tasty drops though so after a spell headed out to Penfolds - just outside Nurioopta. One of the oldest wineries in Australia it definitely had a more posh feel about it with bottles of red ranging from $15 to The Grange at $605 - needless to say The Grange wasn't offered but some other reserve Cab Sav and Savoignese were there for the tasting and were reasonably priced. The Koonunga Hill Sem/Sauv Blanc hit the spot with Jen so we also picked up some of it for those warm thirsty evenings. Finally, we found Yalumba - the oldest family owned winery in Australia - it was located on a beautifully landscaped area of Angaston with a clock tower / castle like building behind. The service was very personal with wonderful tasting drops of vino to partake - we settled on the Signature Range Cab Sav/Shiraz blend from 2005 and tucked a couple away for future use. The drive back took us past one fo the longest waterpipes we've ever seen and a section of boulders well anointed with graffiti - the funniest of which simply spelled out BOOBS in capital letters! A fan like my brother! He would have had a good chuckle. The long day and drive left the kids a bit feral but we managed to get some school work out of them and then send them off to sleep.

Woke with anticipation today as Canada was up against the USA in the gold medal game at the Olympics. As I entered the office for work there was a minute left to play and Canada was up 2-1 - destiny was here! Alas - with 24 secs to go, the USA netted one and my heart sank - it had to be me - the Canucks always seem to lose when I start watching! I hustled into my office for the day and started seeing patients. After my second consult, another  patient who had seen my keen eyes darting to the screen, informed me Canada had won! I was elated and it made my day! Now I just have to catch up with the replays!