Exploring Coober Pedy and Surrounds

If you ever plan on seeing Coober Pedy you need a minimum 2 full days. After a day and a half we can all say we would've appreciated another day!

We left about 9.30am after Joe cooked us a pancake breakfast! We expected the round trip to see the Breakaways, Dingo fence and Moon Plain would take no longer than 1 1/2 hours. We took 3 hours. Seeing the Breakaways for the first time is what I imagine seeing the Grand Canyon would be like. Just WOW! I've seen so many photos but nothing can prepare you for the sheer scale of it! If you ever get the chance go!

After our drive we went straight to the public noodling area where the girls dug for opal. They were very disappointed they didn't strike it rich but they found some interesting rocks and crystal gypsum.

We then went and did a tour of Faye's Mine and her underground house. Faye mined her land on her own and dug her home with two other women by hand. Although no one knows what Faye was worth it is believed she was a very wealthy woman!

We grabbed a bite of lunch then headed to have a look at the Serbian Orthodox Church which is dug from the side of a hill with the drill used to create a scalloped effect in the roof. After taking a look at the dug outs in the area we went to the Big Winch Look Out which gives a fantastic view of the whole town.

We took the girls to a kangaroo orphanage and saw a few red kangaroos and a five month old Joey in care.

By the end of the day we along with the cars were fairly well coated in red dust! We were all showered and fed just in time for the wind to kick up a bit of a dust storm and send us all inside. A good excuse for an early night before a very early start for what will probably be one of the biggest driving days of the trip, Coober Pedy to Yulara!Read more