But the recent rain had caused the countryside to burst into
bloom – Out here, frogs can lie dormant for years, only to come to life
overnight when rain falls. Plants are
the same – One or two overnight storms and suddenly the scenery is a mass of
flowers and greenery taking immediate advantage of the rare moisture. So suddenly we were seeing masses of white
flowers beside the road, and later a sea of yellow, often as far as the eye
could see – Which is often a VERY long way !!!
After that, I have to say there was pretty much lots of NOTHING all the
way to Coober Pedy !! I think it was
over an hour before we saw our first vehicle n the road, in either direction
!! This is NOT a well travelled road !!
The soft roaders and grey nomads with their motor homes and caravans tend to
stay on the bitumen roads, with only the high ground clearance “proper” 4 WD’s
heading down the dusty bush tracks.
Suddenly we arrived in Coober Pedy, and what a sight !! Hobbit land !! Gopher holes !!! Mole holes !!! You name it, that’s what it looks like
!!! Just totally unreal !!
We had been told by campground acquaintances
back down the track that RIBA’s was a good place to stay, so when we saw the
sign, we ducked in. Underground
accommodation !! Underground camping !!!! ??
Underground mine tours !!! All
in one place !! Seriously, they have a
mine with spaces underground where you can pitch your tent underground and stay
dry and, more importantly, cool in summer and warm in winter !! As we didn’t have our tent with us, we opted
for a room - Janet wanted a comfortable bed, and I agreed !! But right beside us in the “cave”, people
were pitching their tents for the night !!!
So we settled into our room, including our porta potty without which
Janet will not travel, and then went
into town to explore. What a crazy place
– Everywhere you look is mining equipment, houses buried in cliffs, underground
hotels and restaurants, and so on.
Apparently 80% of the population liv underground – Asians, Aborigines,
and Greeks apparently prefer to stay above ground !!!
Coming back into town we had a brief encounter with a female
wedge tailed eagle, and then it was back to our accommodation at RIBA’s. A
quick supper cooked in the camp kitchen, laundry done and hung out, and then it
was time for our in house mine tour conducted by our host Rick. (Rick and Barbara - RIBA’s – Get it ??)
Rick had actually dug and mined this min
before turning into a motel / camp site, so he was able to tell us all the
details of opal mining. Suffice it to
say, I learned two facts about Opals which opened my eyes. 1) There
is no large scale or large company mining opals simply because there is no
guaranteed way of finding them, like maybe seismic can help find oil. Finding
opals is totally a gamble, and it takes gambling types to do it, so it is all
done bu individuals who tke a risk on buying a 50 x 100 metre block and working
it to find an opal or two. And 2) the
Opal is the only precious stone that does not reflect (refract ??) light once,
but bounces light off its internal facets several times, thus giving the
multiplicity of colours that one sees in an opal, rather than the single colour
once sees in a ruby or diamond or whatever.
Opals still don’t really “light my fire”, but at least I now understand
their allure a little more. Anyway,
after a fascinating 2 hours or so in Rick’s mine, it was off to bed in our cave
!! And I have to say it is odd. While the temperature is nice, the lack of
windows is a little claustrophobic, and every underground noise echoes !! I am sure it provides welcome respite from
the intense summer heat, but one night underground was enough for this visitor
!!!
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