In a complete change to the green of Europe we have had a few days in the Australian Outback. We travelled with a few friends by train to Kalgoorlie,a goldmining town 650km east of Perth .
We took the Prospector Train from Perth for a very comfortable 7 hour journey. The train is airconditioned, reclining seats, buffet Car and movie or music entertainment.
On the way we passed through wheat farming country and saw the water pipe line which brings water from Mundaring reservoir in Perth 600km to Kalgoorlie and the Mt Charlotte reservoir.
then on through Mallee and into the red earth county of Kalgoorlie.
Bayley and Ford picked up 554 ounces of gold nuggets in Coolgardie in 1892 started Australia's richest gold rush and then in 1893 Paddy Hannan found gold in Kalgoorlie. A strip of land between Kalgoorlie and Boulder became known as the Golden Mile.
After the easily won nuggets became scarce the miners started digging and sinking shafts. Each mine had its own frame ( a Poppet Head) used to haul the ore to the surface and many poppet heads can still be seen today on small mines.
During the late 1890's and early 1900's the Goldfields were at their peak of prosperity and many beautiful buildings reflecting the wealth of this period have been faithfully restored.Wide verandahs to walk out of the sun and beautiful lace work wrought iron were a feature.
We visited the largest open cut gold mine in Australia. It was started in 1989 and takes up what was once many of the deep shaft goldmines on the Golden Mile. The Super Pit will eventually be over 3 kilometres long, 1.5 kilometres wide and about 500 metres deep. The mine works 24 hrs a day all year and the big buckets on the shovels carry 60 tonnes and fill up the giant Haul Trucks with a load of 225 tonnes. I wonder what the prospectors would say if they could see what looking for gold is like 100 years on from their day.
After Kalgoorlie we toured Boulder, a mixture of beautilful old buildings
And on the outskirts the corrugated iron houses. In the 1930's building materials were very hard to get so far from Perth so the Corrugated iron sheeting was recycled for many years.
We also visited the Boulder Cemetary as our friend's grandmother and father were buried there. It was very sad to read many of the headstones, starting life in the green of Ireland, one mother lost 4 of her children to typhoid in 1903 and then to bury them in the red earth must have been heart wrenching.
Lace work around the graves softens the baren landscape.
We hired a car and took a trip around part of the 900km Gold Discovery Trail which takes in the outlying gold mining country which has many small historical towns.
First we visited the historic Two-Up Ring where the betting game of Two-up has been played since beginning of the century. Because it used to be illegal to bet the ring was out in the bush about 5 km from Kalgoorlie.
The game of two-up was played by putting two pennies on a piece of wood (a kip) and then toss them in the up in the air a certain height and the betting was if two heads or two tails landed face up.If one of each faced up they were tossed again. A very simple game, goldmines, nuggets or a few dollars were won or lost on the toss of the pennies.
Next we visited Broad Arrow, in 1900 it was a thriving municipality with a mayor and councillors,
a stock exchange,
a magistrate,a hospital,
8 hotels,
two breweries,
shops, a blacksmith
and a dramatic society for entertainment.
Now in 2009 it has a tavern and two houses but is still surrounded by goldmines.
The tavern has been here for 100 years serving beer and meals and a welcoming environment to locals and visitors.
When visiting here everyone adds a signature. However as the only place we could see was the ceiling we decided to have a beer instead.
On through the Mulga
our next stop is Ora Banda Tavern built from local stone in 1911 and all that is left of the goldmining town.
A welcome drink on the shady verandah.
I think the gold prospectors' dogs must be big and fierce around here.
Soon it was time to drive back to Kalgoorlie
on the way we passed the start of the worlds longest golf course.
For Golfers interested the 18 hole par 71 will span 1365 kilometres with one hole in each town or roadhouse along the Eyre Highway from Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to Ceduna in South Australia. Each hole will include a green and a tee and rugged outback terrain fairway
After three great days we said goodbye to Kalgoorlie and the red earth and enjoyed the train ride back to Perth
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