Our little fire at our desert camp site still had coals the next morning so we got it going again so the kids could cook the toast using a toasting fork. I made a huge batch of scrambled eggs and bacon and we all ate outside around our little camp fire. Ben declared it the best breakfast ever!!

We’d had a lovely sleep in and finally packed up camp and set off around 10am. I used our grey water to extinguish the fire and made sure it was out before we set off.

Just as we were leaving our camp a group of old cars went by each one covered in stickers. We commented that it must be a rally. As we went along the remaining 150km to Coober Pedy we were passed by many more of these cars.

We arrived at Coober Pedy and stopped under the famous town sign however the rally cars had arrived before us and more came afterwards. Of course they all wanted to take photos under the sign so we though we’d come back when we were leaving town.

We got chatting to a lady dressed in an ABBA costume and she explained that the rally was called the Mystery Box Rally and they raise money for the Cancer Council. She and her husband had come down from the Queensland to participate. The rally had raised $1.1million already. What a fantastic effort! All the cars have to be over 20 years old and no 4WD are allowed. We even saw a couple of little Mazda 121’s. Over the duration of the rally they have a couple of dress up nights and this day’s was Music Legends so we saw a few dressed as Wiggles, Baby Sharks, ABBA, Elvis, and many others. They all looked like they were having a fabulous time. The rally was next heading to Oodnadatta so those old cars take a beating on the gravel roads.

Our first stop in Coober Pedy was for fuel and we came across rally cars there too so there was a bit of a queue. Fuel was only $2.48L. Across the road from the service station are the town’s water bowsers. This is where you can top up your water tanks by paying for the water.

We checked in to the Big4 Stuart Range Caravan Park where we had two powered sites booked. The park also has two water taps that you have to put money in. It’s $1 for 40L of water. We both stopped and filled up before going to our site. The whole park is gravel with a few scrubby trees however the pool looked inviting surrounded by its green fake grass. There is a large amenities block in the middle with a camp kitchen, gas BBQ’s and even a fire pit. A large playground is also in the middle of the park.

Katie was surprised to find another New Age Bilby in the park. They keep popping up!

After setting up camp we all piled into ENNY (Katie’s car) and headed into town to check it out. What a bizarre place is Coober Pedy. It’s pretty obvious that nothing gets thrown away here and there is lots of stuff lying around. Old cars, machinery, metal drums and general mining paraphernalia. You never know when it may come in handy!

The Main Street is Hutchison St named after the young lad that first found opal while he was prospecting for gold.

We stopped at the top of a hill in town to check out the view and The Big Winch. Next door is the Big Winch 360 Cafe & Bar. It also houses the Big Winch 360 cinema experience and we thought that sounded good. The next show was at 3.30pm so we had time to check out The Blower and the Steel Tree and make good use of the binoculars set up at the end of the lookout.

The Big Winch was built in the early 1970’s by local Claus Wirries as a tourist attraction. It is a replica of a hand windlass that were used to lift buckets of overburden out of the mine shafts in the early days. Claus sounds like a real character.

Next to the Big Winch is a Blower. This amazing machinery is a Coober Pedy invention and is basically a huge vacuum cleaner. A pipe was fed down into the shaft and connected to the tunnelling equipment. The blower was turned on and the dirt would be sucked up the pipe into the drum. When the drum was full it would be tipped out into a pile hence the thousands of piles of dirt everywhere on the opal fields.

The last of the objects on the lookout is The Steel Tree. This tree made out of bent and twisted steel was made by another local BobAmorosi in 1970. Bob had ordered some steel brought up by truck from Adelaide however the truck caught fire and the metal became bent and twisted. It was no good for its original use so inventive Bob made a ‘tree’ for his children to climb as there is a scarcity of trees to climb out here.

We headed next door for our 360 degree cinema experience. This was fabulous and we do recommend it. It only cost $15 for Seniors, $20 for Adults and children aged 12-16 were $10. Ben and Maddie were free.

The show is in three parts and beings in a small theatre. The first part is a Welcome to Country film that runs for about five minutes. You learn about the local Aboriginal people and their connection to country.

For the second part you walk down a set of stairs and into a circular theatre. This second video, filmed over 12 months, describes the local area, some history and showcases the beauty of the vast outback of South Australia.

For the third part you go back to the small theatre you started in and another five minute video is all about locals and Coober Pedy. Coober Pedy is based on Aboriginal words and means ‘white man in a hole’. What an apt name for this town.

The whole show runs for about 40 minutes and we all enjoyed the 360 degree cinema and thought it well worth a visit.

Back at camp the kids enjoyed a swim in the heated pool while I set up our communal area for dinner and got our outside TV tuned in so we could watch the second game of the State of Origin.

Katie cooked hamburgers for dinner on her Weber and we all enjoyed our dinner outdoors watching the game. Happy to report that NSW won the game so that’s one game each. The third will be the decider.

It had rained a little overnight at Port Augusta but not enough to be a nuisance. The boys swags were a little damp but they’d dry out quickly. They’d slept really well snuggled in their swags. Ben said the rain did wake him up but he fell back asleep in no time.

Maddie had put her toe through the front of her joggers so while Rich and the boys got the camp packed up Katie, Maddie and I set off to find a shoe store. We managed to find a SportsPower store and Maddie chose a gorgeous pair of hot pink sneakers. She’ll be easy to spot from now on!

After fueling up we set off towards Coober Pedy. I was quite excited when we made the turn at the sign saying Coober Pedy and Alice Springs. I love a road I’ve never been on before! I’ll be able to draw more lines on our map.

A Pipeline runs alongside the road from Port Augusta to Woomera to supply water to the little communities of Pimba, Woomera and the RAAF base.

There were ‘jump-ups’ off in the distance, flat topped hills that rise up out of the flat land surrounding them. It really is desert around there.

Before we arrived at Pimba we pulled into a lookout to check out the view of a huge salt lake called Island Lagoon. The lake is so huge it stretches away to the horizon. We were also a bit surprised by how much water was in the lake.

Stopped at Spuds Roadhouse at Pimba to top up our fuel $2.68L. The most expensive fuel yet. Pimba is a tiny dot on the map with only about 10 houses and a pub. The Roadhouse has a free camp area that looks like it might get really busy but you’d be jammed in like sardines in a tin.

We decided to drive the short 7km into the town of Woomera which is still an active RAAF base. 147 people call it home although the town can house up to 6,000. It has all the infrastructure to support the larger population with a large school, youth centre, a 6 lane bowling alley, tennis courts, swimming pool, general store, medical centre, dentist, tourist information centre and Heritage Centre.

Woomera was established in 1947 as a site for launching British experimental rockets. Between 1960 and 1972 NASA operated a deep space tracking station at nearby Island Lagoon. The testing range covers 127,000 square kilometres and is known as the Woomera Prohibited Area.

The big attraction for us though was the Rocket Park. This gravel park is spread over two blocks and contains displays of many of the different types of rockets that have been fired at Woomera.

I was fascinated by the remains of the rocket that took Australia’s very first satellite into orbit in 1967!

After a lunch break next to the Rocket Park we headed back out to the Stuart Highway and turned northwards again. It is 548km from Port Augusta to Coober Pedy and we didn’t plan to go all the way in one day but stop somewhere in the desert and camp there.

The Stuart Highway is a very good, wide, tar road. We were surprised that there wasn’t more traffic as it is the main road up through the centre of Australia. The road is crossed by wide cattle grids and after each one is a sign letting you know the name of the station you are now driving through and whether the road is unfenced. At first I thought this was a bit silly as you can see the fences when the road is fenced. However I changed my mind when I thought it is to let people know that there may be stock in the paddock the road is going through. If the road is unfenced then you need to be aware of that danger.

The highway is named after explorer John McDouall Stuart. Stuart was born in Scotland in 1815 and came to South Australia in 1839. He became one of the most successful explorers in Australia’s white history leading many expeditions to the centre of Australia and the Top End. Alice Springs was once a town called Stuart until it was changed in 1933. Stuart has been described as being a wiry, man with a big black bushy beard. He must have been a tough character when you see the land he crossed many times on horseback.

Just north of Pimba were more huge salt lakes and we’d been told that Lake Hart was a good camp spot. It looked like it might be too as we drove past but we hadn’t done enough km’s so kept going. Lake Hart is enormous and was full of water shimmering in the sunlight. Maybe that would be a good spot on the way back.

We eventually pulled up around 4pm at a spot marked on WikiCamps as being a large, flat area where you could get well away from the road. It was a perfect desert camp spot.

We quickly ‘circled our wagons’ to block off the wind and put our awnings out to dry after being rained on overnight at Port Augusta. Rich and the boys got a little fire going whilst I cooked our tuna mornay & rice dinner in the motorhome.

What a fantastic night we had sitting around our little camp fire singing old Scouting songs and some modern ones. Katie even gave the kids some dancing lessons. They were hilarious. I haven’t heard the Katie and kids laugh so much.

We turned off all our lights and were amazed at the stars. The sky seems bigger and the stars seem closer out in the desert.

Guess who came to the motorhome for scrambled eggs & bacon?

Our tickets for the Sound & Light Show included a visit to the museum in the daytime so after breakfast we packed up camp and drove up to Steamtown to do the guided tour.

Sadly we were all a bit disappointed as our tour guide was not very good. It went downhill from the minute he introduced himself and told us he didn’t want to be there. Oh dear!

Nevertheless we spent the next hour checking out the locomotives, the carriages, the turntable and roundhouse that we’d seen in the dark the night before.

One interesting story our guide did tell us was about a lady Fireman. She was a little tiny thing and all the blokes thought she wouldn’t be able to keep up with he job. However she proved them all wrong and was asked many times how she did it. She was half the size of most of the Firemen. Her reply was always “a little and often”. Meaning she shovelled the coal into the boiler in small amounts but often. The men all remember her fondly. Our guide sounded most impressed that he knew her.

We left Peterborough around 11am and continued our journey towards The Red Centre. We passed through Orroroo and arrive in Wilmington around 12 noon. We took advantage of the dump point and pulled up next to the playground for a lunch break. The two youngest ones really enjoyed the swings. We always appreciate these facilities especially in the little towns we pass through.

Whilst there a local fellow wandered though the park and stopped for a chat. He told us about an amazing lookout only a few kms out of town in the direction we were going. It sounded good so once we’d got going we kept an eye out for the turn to Hancock’s Lookout.

It was a 7km rough gravel road to get to the lookout but it was well worth it. What a spectacular view! You could see the Spencer Gulf and Port Pirie away to the south, Port Augusta to the north and, as it was a clear day, we could even see across the gulf to Whyalla on the other shore. Riley thought it was really cool.

Our journey continued across The Remarkables via Horrocks Pass. It was a winding road but didn’t take too long. We came through the other side and you could see the gulf spread out before you. The other thing we noticed immediately was the 50 or so wind turbines. I didn’t remember them being there when we came through in 2016 so I had to Google it. Sure enough the Port Augusta Renewable Energy Park only began construction in 2020. So far it includes 50 wind turbines and a solar farm.

A little further along towards Port Augusta we passed the Sundrop facility and I do remember this one from our previous trip. Sundrop is a huge solar greenhouse facility that grows produce for Coles.

Once we arrived in Port Augusta we did a drive by of the Port Augusta Sports Club RV Park however it is just a gravel carpark and the RV’s were very close together. We didn’t fancy that. We continued on over the bridge where massive roadworks were going on, creating traffic havoc, and called in to the Discovery Park – Port Augusta. I’m a member of G’Day Parks so it was $36 for a powered site. We were able to get two sites next to each other and we quickly set up camp.

The boys got their swags out to sleep in.

Katie took advantage of having a laundry and got all her washing done in one big load whilst I only had a small load and got it done in the motorhome.

Richard settled in to read his book, Riley chose to stay and read his book and be in charge of picking the washing up from the dryer whilst the rest of us went to look for a supermarket. We’d prepared a list of meals for the next week to last us until we get to Alice Springs.

Back at camp it had rained a little but not enough to wet everything. A little more rain was forecast overnight so this would be a test for the boys in their swags.

What an interesting town is Peterborough, South Australia. Peterborough began as a private subdivision in the late 1800’s. The land was owned by a Heinrich Koch and after he heard that the railways would be coming through he subdivided his land into town allotments. The town was named Petersburg after the land’s original owner Peter Doeke however the name was changed in 1917 due to anti-German feeling due to WWI. Many of the town’s German street names were also anglicised.

With the discovery of silver and other minerals in Silverton and Broken Hill and the development of agriculture in the area a more efficient mode of transport than bullock drays was needed to transfer produce to the harbour at Port Pirie. Bullock drays did the job but they took a long time and it was very hard work.

Peterborough is at the point that surveyors decided would be the meeting place of rail lines coming from Silverton/Broken Hill to Port Pirie and from Burra via Teworie and from Peterborough to Alice Springs.

These lines were all completed in the late 1880’s. The town grew and pretty soon a passenger stations, good shed, post office and the Petersburg Hotel (the first of four) were built. These were followed by a school and several churches. Shops were built and small industries started to appear. These included a butter factory, an ice works, brick kilns and a cordial maker.

The town became the largest rail depot outside Adelaide with workshops, a 23 bay roundhouse and a three gauge turntable.

We drove right through the Main Street to get to the Tourist Information Centre which is housed at the Steamtown Heritage Rail Centre. We called in to collect our tickets for their Sound N Light Show we’d booked the day before. I’d seen the entry for their RV Park on WikiCamps and it showed a large sign that said Self-contained vehicles only, no tents or swags so I thought I’d better ask if our boys were OK to sleep in their swags beside our two self-contained vehicles. Sadly the answer was no. What to do?

After a bit of chat we all decided that the RV Park was so convenient, being walking distance, that the boys could sleep inside for the one night. Riley slept in the motorhome and Ben slept on the lounge in the van.

We got our camp set up with our RV’s facing each other. There were about 20 or so other RV’s already parked up. The RV Park is a very large grassy and flat area just on the edge of town. You can stay for free for 72 hours. There are lots of rubbish bins but the dump point and potable water are back in town.

The kids got out their scooters and, with helmets on, we set off to walk to town. We followed the pathway from Steamtown to the Main Street. It’s only about six blocks long. Along the way we stopped off at the Newsagency as I’d read that they have a model train set up that was worth a look. Katie stayed outside with the scooters whil Rich and I took the kids inside. Wow what an impressive model railway. It is a model of Petersburg in all its railway finest in the 1960’s. The detail is amazing. The kids were happy to watch it for a good half an hour.

We continued on and found the sculpture of Bob the Railway Dog. The story of Bob could fill an entire post on its own. Suffice to say that Bob was a much loved character on the railways and was know far and wide. He would ride the trains wherever and whenever he felt like it and was know to travel to Broken Hill, Oodnadatta, Mt Gambier, Melbourne and Sydney. He even took the tram in Melbourne and rode on a Murray River paddle steamer. Apparently when Bob heard the whistle of a train he was off! Bob was adopted by the Enginemen (train drivers) of the SA Railways who paid his annual registration. Bob died in 1895 and was mourned by many.

Behind Bob the Dog is the Town Carriage Museum. This is a 1916 first-class sleeper car which was used on the very first train across the Nullarbor from Port Augusta to Kalgoorlie. Inside are displays of the history of Peterborough as well as artifacts and other memorabilia. The best part though is to sit in one of the sleeper compartments, press the button and all of a sudden you are on your way to Broken Hill. The windows have been turned into screens and you really feel you are on the train watching the scenery go by. This was an excellent museum and the best part….it’s free.

We walked back past the new Town Hall built in 1927 and I just had to have a peek inside at it’s gorgeous interior. Check out the photos below!

The kids enjoyed a fun time at the Skate Park amongst some local kids. I love watching the kids at the skate park. They love it!

Back at camp we ate our Shepherds Pie that had been cooking while we were out walking. We rugged up against the cold night and set off to walk back to Steamtown for the Sound n Light show.

Wow, it did not disappoint. You enter through the Tourist Information Centre into a huge shed with a glowing T Class Locomotive belching out steam. You feel like the train has just pulled up a few minutes ago. Then the guide shows you outside, in the dark, to a beautifully restored carriage that is sitting on the turntable. You sit inside the carriage facing the roundhouse and then the show starts. A very professionally made movie shows the story of Peterborough and the railways. At various times the locos and carriages in the roundhouse are lit up.

It was very well done. The most dramatic part was the description of the only head on crash on the northern lines. It was quite scary and had a very sad ending with the Engineman and Fireman losing their lives. The poor Fireman had his leg severed at the thigh and, although he was rescued, succumbed to his injuries. Maddie doesn’t remember that bit as she fell asleep.

We all loved the show! Do this one if you are in Peterborough but it pays to book as seats are limited.

We walked back to the RV Park guided by our headlamp torch and it was not very long before everyone was sound asleep.

We said farewell to Broken Hill after an enjoyable stay at the Racecourse. We recommend this great spot for anyone passing this way. We had a quick stop at the dump point and I was surprised to see a John Dynan mural on the wall. He’s a popular artist in these parts. He has a gallery out at Silverton.

We had quick stop for fuel and swapped a gas bottle on the motorhome, and set off towards the NSW/SA border some 50km away.

We had a short stop to take a photo before we crossed over the border at the tiny village of Cockburn. There’s not much there except a couple of houses and a pub. Even the old roadhouse was closed.

Stopped for a cuppa at Warwirra Creek Rest Area at the end of kilometres of road works. It’s real desert country around there. Pretty flat countryside for as far as the eye can see with scrubby low bushes and saltbush. Hardly a tree in sight. In the distance on our left are some low rocky hills and that’s all that breaks the horizon. I called Riley on the UHF to see if he felt like he was in ‘the outback’ yet and he responded with an emphatic ‘sure do’.

The next tiny village was Olary. Just a tiny spot on the map.

Next up was Mannahill. It has a little Rest Area with a plaground. A Police station, a pub, a lovely old Railway station and about ten houses. I wondered what the people who live there do. It’s out in the middle of nowhere.

We were passed by a very long freight train not long after going through Mannahill. It seemed to go on forever and must have been going fast as it very quickly caught us and was gone into the distance

The next little village was Yunta with a very busy truck stop. There is a Heavy Vehicle Checking Station at Yunta however it was closed so we didn’t need to go in. Yunta has a rest area with toilets and picnic tables. A few vans were making use of the area with people having lunch. We just drove straight through.

We finally came to Oodla Wirra and this is where the SA Quarantine Station is. There was a very friendly inspector who came on board and quickly checked our fridge for quarantined fruit and veg but what we hadn’t already used we had given away in Broken Hill. Ben and Maddie did a great job walking around camp giving away our fruit. We were waved through quarantine in very quick time.

We left the desert behind and began to see farming land before we reached our destination for the day when we arrived in Peterborough. This tiny town of just 1500 people was once the thriving heart of the northern part of SA Railways with some 100 steam trains passing through each day. In its heyday the town was home to some 6,000 people and many of those worked on the railways. That has all finished now and Peterborough is now a tourist town. We all looked forward to learning more about this fascinating little town.

Don’t you love a relaxing day? We had one those on our last day in Broken Hill. We all enjoyed a sleep in and spent the morning catching up on washing, cleaning our RV’s, reading and generally enjoying the warm sunshine. It was a glorious day at Broken Hill with hardly a cloud in the blue sky.

Pa decided he was going to have a reading day and was quite happy to be left at camp while the rest of us piled into ENNY (Katie’s 4×4) and set off to town. Riley and I were dropped off at the Mining & Minerals Museum while Katie, Ben & Maddie hit the shops looking for stuff for the van. The museum is housed in an historic building owned by the Broken Hill Council. The building was a Bond Store built in 1892.

Riley and I spent an hour or so exploring the great little museum which has excellent displays of all the minerals found in the Broken Hill area. There is a short video that shows the history of our planet and the formation of the rich Line of Lode, as the ore seam is called in Broken Hill. It took millions of years to create this wealth just waiting for someone to find it.

The displays include a 42kg nugget of silver. It’s huge! Many of the minerals found in Broken Hill are some of the best examples found anywhere in the world.

The museum is the home of the Silver Tree. This incredible sculpture is made entirely from silver and depicts the story of Charles Rasp who discovered ore in Broken Hill and thus began mining in the area.

I do recommend a stop at this little museum when in Broken Hill. The entry fee is a donation. Well worth it.

Katie, Ben & Maddie were still shopping so Riley and I wandered down the street to visit the Sufi book shop. What a fascinating store. It is full of books about Islam and Sufism, spirituality, health & well-being, Philosophy and poetry, incense & essential oils, clothing and middle eastern rugs and tapestries. They even sell Hookah pipes. While there a man came in and asked the assistant how to get to the mosque and she gave him directions. He also asked about Halal stores in Broken Hill. He was directed to the Sufi Bakery and told to check with them.

Katie picked us up and our next port of call, after a visit to the hardware store and a quick stop at the Reject Shop, was to Bells Milk Bar. Bells Milk Bar is Australia’s longest running milk bar and walking in the door is like stepping back in time to the 1950’s. What a gem of a place. We all had milkshakes and a ham & cheese toastie for our lunch The children all declared the place ‘awesome’.

The milk bar started life in 1892 as Fenton’s Confectioner & Cordial Maker. It was renovated in 1938 and became Bells Milk Bar. It was further renovated in 1956 and it is pretty much the same today. Definitely put this one on your list of things to do in Broken Hill. The milkshakes are delicious.

Across the road from the milk bar is a playground and the kids enjoyed a half hour play there. I took the opportunity to call the Steamtown Historic Railway in Peterborough and book us all in for their award winning Sound & Light Show for the next evening.

Back at camp we found Rich still reading his book. He’d had a lovely quiet day. We cooked a leg of lamb in Katies Weber and I did the veggies in the motorhome. Yum, who loves a lamb roast? We followed it up with a fresh fruit salad so we could use up most of our fruit before we cross the border into SA. What we didn’t eat we would try to give away to other travellers.

That ends our stay in Broken Hill. We plan to head off in the morning and get to Peterborough. First thing though we will use the dump point then go into town for fuel and a gas bottle. We filled up with water before going to bed and packed up our chairs, table and awnings. We were all ready to continue our journey.

We were woken to the excited sounds of the children as they watched the horses in training going by right past where their swags were set up. It made us laugh to see the children all rugged up in their fire coats sitting in their camp chairs that they’d line up against the fence so they could watch the horses.

We were all up early and ready to go off to Silverton for the day. Our first stop was to the Historic Day Dream Mine to do an underground tour. The kids were very excited about going underground.

To get to Day Dream Mine you head out of town on the Silverton Road then take a right onto a gravel road. It is another 13km along this road and through a couple of gates to the mine site. The road was a typical outback gravel road with some good sections and others that were very corrugated. Katie enjoyed the drive.

I was astonished when we were approaching the mine to see a sign beside the road that said this was the site of a township in the late 1800’s and some 500 people lived there. It is such a remote location.

When you arrive at the Mine you check in with the lovely Maggie (who has a strong Afrikaner accent) and she takes your order for tea, coffee, milo and scones. Then you wait out on the verandah for the tour guide.

Scattered around the main building are lots of old mining machinery and tools. There is a toilet block back up the hill.

Our guide Jeremy arrived and gathered our mixed group. We had lots of grey nomads, a couple of young people and we had the only kids. Jeremy led us onto the mine site for the surface part of the tour and explained the mine was established by prospectors wandering through the area and finding substantial deposits of lead, tin, zinc and silver. Word got out and more prospectors followed. Remember these prospectors would have all come on foot.

The mine grew and we were shown where the black powder was stored in an underground dugout to keep it at the right temperature.

We were shown to where the windlass used to be above the shaft and then we were led to a shed where Jeremy gave a safety briefing and we were issued with hard hats with lights. We’d been told when we booked the tour to wear sturdy shoes so we’d all worn our boots.

Jeremy led us down into the mine and it was very steep with steps just cut into the rock face. At times the ceiling was so low you had to bend over double. Luckily there’s a hand rail to hold on to.

For the next hour we were led up and down tunnels all carved into the rock by hand. At the bottom we were about 130 feet underground. The tunnels were mostly very narrow and then occasionally opened up into wide spaces. Jeremy explained that this is because the ore body the miners were following must have widened there and all the ore had been removed creating a big wide space.

Children as young as 8 years old worked in the mine sorting ore. They were used because they were small and could fit in tiny spaces. Although about 3 years of doing this was enough for the children to start losing their eyesight so they were then moved above ground. Our kids were amazed by this.

We passed an exhibit of old mining tools and a wooden wheelbarrow called a ‘Cornish barrow’. They were called that because they had no legs and were used to get in and out of smaller spaces than a usual wheelbarrow could fit.

At one part of the mine we came to a large opening and there was room for the whole group to sit around in a circle. Here Jeremy demonstrated how the miners working in threes would drill the holes in the rock. One would hold the spike and the other two would swing the sledge hammer in a rhythmic tap tap. Pity the poor guy holding the spike. It was his job to hold it steady and after each tap turn it a quarter turn so it drilled into the rock. Broken or sliced off thumbs was a common injury. Remember too that those miners were working by candle light.

Riley got to help with the demonstration and he was the spike holder!

There were two candles burning and Jeremy asked us all to turn off our headlamps. We were left with just the two candles and that is how much light the miners would have had. Incredible! Then Jeremy snuffed them out. It was pitch black. You could not see your hand held in front of your face! No wonder miners had horrific accidents such as falling down shafts.

As we had climbed down into the mine to exit we had to climb back up. Once back on the surface we had to hand in our hard hats and we were counted by Jeremy to ensure we had all returned to the surface.

The next tour group was assembling so we found a lovely sunny spot on the verandah where we were brought our previously ordered scones with jam and cream and hot drinks. The scones were delicious and the hot drinks were served in tin mugs. These were very welcome after our tour underground.

We left the Day Dream Mine and headed back out to the Silverton Road. On the way we asked everybody for a rating out of 5. We got 4.5 to 5 from everyone so we all thought it was a great experience.

Silverton is only a short drive from Broken Hill and we’ve been there quite a few times already. However the children had never been and Katie hadn’t been there since she was a teenager.

Silverton is a lovely historic town with a current population of about 60. At it’s heyday in the late1880’s it had a thriving population of some 3,000. Silver and lead were found in the area and the town grew from there. The Silverton Tramway was built in 1888 to link with the SA railways and was Australia’s first private railway.

As Broken Hill mines were established Silverton fell into decline. Many of the buildings were transported to Broken Hill on jinkers pulled by camels, bullocks or donkeys. This is why so few buildings remain in the village to this day.

Although Silverton has a small population it is a vibrant community and the area has become famous for its popularity as a film set. Many movies and commercials have been made in and around Silverton. A Town Like Alice, Mad Max and many many commercials. The iconic Silverton Hotel has been used in many of those.

We stopped off at the old Gaol which is now a very good museaum housing memorabilia from Silverton’s past. Then we walked around the corner to the Silverton Hotel for some lunch. Our plan to drive out to Mundi Mundi Lookout was squashed as the road was closed due to the filming of a new Chris Hemsworth movie. Apparently he drove through just before we arrived at Silverton.

So after a quick drive around town we headed back to Broken Hill. We headed out of town again to visit the Living Desert and the Sculptures. The kids all declared the horse their favourite one. The view from the top of the hill is amazing. We recommend a visit here to any visitor to the area.

We had a quick stop at the Supermarket before heading back to camp. The kids played on their scooters, Katie met another couple camped with a New Age Bilby, and we all enjoyed delicious home made chicken burgers for dinner. What a great day!

We were the last ones to leave the Spring Hills Rest Area. The other travellers all got away between 8am and 8.30. We were still eating our breakfast!

There was lots of traffic coming towards us from the direction of Broken Hill, mostly cars with caravans. There were lots of wavers on this day. Do you wave to other RV’s? I do.

The countryside around was very flat with lots of scrubby short trees and clumps of saltbush. The big difference from the last time we came this way is the green grass everywhere. I can see why early settlers thought this would make great sheep country. When it’s green like that there’s plenty of feed for sheep. However it doesn’t always look like that and is usually much drier with a lot more red dirt showing.

We did see emus, a huge mob of kangaroos and goats along the way.

As you get closer to Broken Hill the land becomes hilly. Alongside the road you can see the main train line. I think it’s the same one that the Indian Pacific uses to cross from Sydney to Perth.

We arrived in Broken Hill late morning and headed directly to the top of the hill to visit the Line of Lode Miners Memorial. This is a memorial to all those who have died in the Broken Hill mines and makes for very sober reading. Some of them were so young and died horrendous deaths. Ben thought the one that was crushed by a Road Roller sounded the worst. He made very graphic noises of someone being squashed by a roller!!

The Restaurant at the top of the hill was still undergoing renovations as it was when we were last here. However we did get to see the Big Bench and the kids just had to climb it so I could get a photo. You do get a great view across the town from the top of the hill.

Back in the carpark we had a cuppa and while we were doing that a huge black GMC truck pulled in. Ben was fascinated by the big American truck and got chatting to the lady. The kids just had to have their photo taken in front of the mighty truck.

Our next stop was the Tourist Information Centre to pick up info on tours and opening times etc. The kids were a little disappointed that tours of the School of the Air have not restarted since Covid as they were looking forward to seeing how kids from remote properties go to school. Oh well. Another time for that one. We did learn that many places in Broken Hill are closed on a Monday so our choices were limited for the rest of the day.

By that time it was late enough that we could check in to our camp at the Broken Hill Racecourse. Rich and I have stayed there a couple of times previously and think it’s a great spot. It’s $35 per night for a powered site. If you are lucky you can get a site right up against the racetrack fence and in the mornings you can watch the horses training on the track. The water quality is very good and it’s a great spot to fill your tanks with good water.

We were allocated two sites next to each other against the fence so we were very happy with those. The kids all chipped in and helped set up camp and as we were to be there for 3 days we set up our awnings and got out all the chairs and tables etc. The boys set up their swags behind the van. We were loving having lovely green grass to camp on. One thing they do well there is to provide 20L drums full of water for people to tie their awnings to. You cannot bang pegs into the ground as they have underground sprinklers everywhere so they provide the drums. Very thoughtful.

There is a dump point and separate toilet and shower blocks. The park was very full with rigs of all shapes and sizes. Katie even found another New Age Bilby 15 similar to hers.

Katie got her car set up with the third row seat up for Ben to sit in. All 6 of us could now travel around together. We set off to drive out to the airport to visit the Royal Flying Doctor Service Visitors Centre and Museum.

We arrived in time to catch a tour that was just starting and we joined in. Our guide Andrew started the tour with a 10 minute video on the RFDS then we were led into the museum where Andrew spoke about the history of the RFDS and it’s importance to outback communities. I learnt the the Broken Hill facility is the one where all the planes are brought to to be repaired or serviced.

Andrew led us out past the communications room where we observed the phones being manned for incoming emergency calls then we were led out into the hangar. Out there Andrew explained the different planes that the service uses and then we were lucky to have a special treat. One plane came in and landed bringing back doctors and other health professionals from a day out at a clinic. Then an ambulance arrived with a patient to be transported to an Adelaide hospital. The patient was transferred onto a different plane and we could watch it take off. Andrew explained that it is rare for one plane to come in and another to take off so close together so we were very lucky to see that.

I really liked the way Andrew included the children in his discussions and they all seemed to really enjoy the tour. I think they especially liked learning about the $20 note and how it shows all things to do with the RFDS. At the end of the tour the kids were given a copy of a $20 note and a set of worksheets for them to complete. Great home learning! They might be missing out on some school but they are already leaning so much and we are only on day 3!

Back at camp it was my turn to cook and we all enjoyed our spaghetti bolognese sitting outside under our awnings. We have an early start as we have booked to do an underground mine tour at 10am and we have to be there by 9.30am. It’s about a 45 minute drive out on the Silverton Road to get to the Day Dream Mine. Afterwards we will visit Silverton. The new Mad Max movie is currently being filmed around Silverton so we might see some of the film crew at work.

Funny story. While we were sitting outside I asked the children what the time was. We got different answers depending on what device and whether it was a connected one. That’s funny! Why are they different? We were now on South Australian time and had to set our watches back half an hour! The children thought that was very interesting.

Family history is fascinating.

I’ve always know that one of my ancestors on my dad’s side discovered copper in Cobar but hadn’t really looked into it and it’s a really good story.

After a great nights camp at the Old Reservoir we packed up, got going about 9am and headed into town. I’m pleased to say the boys slept really well in their swags. Ben said it was really warm and toasty in there. It was pretty cold last night so if they manged to have a cosy nights sleep they’ll be right for the rest of the trip.

First stop was for fuel. We drove along the Main Street and I pointed out the Great Western Hotel, which claims to have the longest verandah in the Southern Hemisphere, and the Grand Hotel which has a ‘big’ Tooheys beer can on its verandah roof.

We utilised the new caravan parking spaces opposite the Cobar Heritage Centre. This great new facility has parking, a dump point, a water tap and a central area with shade shelters and picnic tables. All of this was still under construction last time we were there.

The Heritage Centre reopened in November 2021 after extensive renovations. The entry houses the tourist information centre. We were charged $20 as a family to enter the exhibition. I was pleased at the standard of the museum. It is very well laid out with exhibits about the discovery of copper and the impact that had, upstairs are a couple of rooms with objects from daily life of the old timers such as a bed, a sewing machine, pram, crib, and even some toys.

Outside is a fabulous exhibit of a railway carriage that was the Royal Far West Baby Health Clinic. You can walk through the carriage and see where the doctors and nurses lived and worked as they visited outback towns along the railway line. This would have been an amazing service to remote outback communities.

We all had a bit of a laugh when we found a gas fridge in the little kitchen. It was the same as the one in our Brumby View cabin at Mikala. Ours still works well and is in use each time we are there.

Anyway back to the family history story. My great great great grandparents Carl Emilius and Karen Maria Frederikke Dorthea Kempf lived in Denmark. They had 8 children.

Their eldest was a daughter Johanna Coraline Poulson Kempf and she moved to the USA.

Their third child Ferdinand Emilius Kempf (1839-1883) moved to Australia in 1859 when he was just 19 years old.

Their second child Joannes Carl Kempf and his sisters Marie Sophie, Olivia Ricki Wilhemina and Laura Henriette all migrated to Australia in 1872.

Olivia Riki Wilhelmina Kempf married Irishman George Leslie Hunter and their daughter Laura Frederika Hunter married Tomas Peadar Larsen, another Dane. Laura and Tomas were parents of my grandmother Grace Effie Cecilia Larsen who married Robert Malcom Budd.

When the Kempf’s moved to Australia some of them Anglicised their names and used the surname Campbell. Ferdinand Emilius Kempf became known as Charles Campbell.

Charles was a bricklayer, having completed his apprenticeship in Denmark before coming to Australia. He and another Dane, Thomas Alfred Hartman and George Gibb had a business travelling western NSW and sinking tanks. Riley, Ben and Maddie wanted to know what ‘sinking a tank’ meant and luckily there was an old photo in the Hertiage Centre of a 4 horse team pulling a scoop and I could show them how a tank (a large dam) was built back then.

The team were working sinking tanks when floods came and the Darling River overflowed its banks and flooded the land for miles. No work was going to happen until the floodwater receded so the team headed south guided by two Aborigines, Frank and Boney. The team was lead to a natural waterhole called by the natives, Kubbar. It was here that the men found some green rocks. They took some samples with them and continued on their journey southwards

They stopped at Gilgunnia and it was here that the wife of the publican, a woman from Cornwall, recognised the ore and said in her broad Cornish accent ‘thart be copper’.

All plans of tank sinking were forgotten and the party set off at once for Bourke to lodge a claim. Campbell, Hartman and Gibb and the Postmaster at Bourke, a Mr Joseph Becker JP lodged a mining claim for 40 acres around Kubbar waterhole and so began the Great Cobar Mine.

We all enjoyed our visit to the Cobar Heritage Centre and the park across the road that includes the Cobar Miners Memorial. This is a sobering display of all those who’ve died in the mines in and around Cobar. A stark reminder that mining is a dangerous activity.

Whilst we were getting ready to depart a convoy of huge trucks went by. There were escort vehicles front and rear. The two big low loaders were each carrying the tray of a huge mining truck. Just the tray….not the truck it belonged to. They are huge!

It was time to continue our journey and we headed west towards Wilcannia. A short stop at a rest area for a lunch break saw the kids come and ask me to make ham & cheese toasties. I must make them better than mum!

Whilst at the rest stop the big trucks carrying the mining truck trays went by and the kids ran out and waved their arms to the truckies. They were thrilled when the truckies tooted their air horns in response and the kids jumped up and down and shouted yay.

Continuing on further west and we were surprised how green the countryside was. The recent rains meant there was green grass all around instead of the usual red dirt. Of course the scrubby trees and saltbush were still there but they were now surrounded by a sea of green.

Stopping in Wilcannia gave the kids a chance to burn off some energy and they quickly headed to the playground and were up the rope climber quick as a wink. Rich and I were surprised by the high level of water in the Darling River. We’d never seen it that high before.

We caught up to the big rigs carrying the dump truck trays as we came into Wilcannia and we were right behind one of them as it crossed the bridge over the Darling River. It took up the entire bridge. All traffic was brought to a halt as it crossed over. What a sight to see.

After burning off steam we got the kids scooters out so they could scoot along to the various sites I wanted them to visit so I could tell them a little history of Wilcannia. They were amazed to learn that Wilcannia was once Australia’s third largest port and was once a boom town with 30-40 stage coaches arriving each day carrying goods and passengers. I think they found it hard to think of that when looking around at the dilapidated buildings.

We continued on and finally pulled up at Spring Hills Rest Area about half way between Wilcannia and Broken Hill. There were already a few vans and a motorhome pulled up but it looked like a reasonable spot and we could have a fire.

The kids quickly made use of the playground but were helpful setting up camp. The boys were great at getting their swags ready for the night. They’ll be experts by the end of our trip!

It was Katie’s turn to cook and our dinner this night was nachos. They were delicious. We enjoyed our dinner sitting by our little campfire with the occasional big rig going by on the highway. Most of the big rigs going by on this stretch have been road trains. Not many B Doubles along this highway. The rest area is at the bottom of a hollow and the big rigs thunder by in both directions as they are coming down and going back up a hill on either side. As I wrote this it was 8.45pm and the big rigs had stopped going by. They must have been catching up on sleep somewhere. I was sure they would start up again in the morning.

All the other RV’ers had gone into their vans and not many had lights on. Early to bed for this lot.

The much anticipated morning had arrived. It was finally time to set off on our big adventure to The Red Centre. We had spent months planning for this trip and had many discussions about what we would do when we get to certain places along the way. We even had the Countdown+ app on our phones counting down the days until we left.

Finally it was ‘D’ day…….’D’ for departure.

We are on this adventure with our daughter, Katie and her three children, Riley, Ben and Maddie. They are travelling in their 4WD and caravan and we are in our motorhome. Our route took us from Griffith to Hillston via Goolgowi then onto Cobar via Mt Hope. We had a short stop at Goolgowi to check our rigs and everything was traveling well. We traveled through the little town of Hillston and stopped for a lunch break alongside the Lachlan River at Willanthry. We have stopped at Willanthry a few times in the past and it’s always a lovely spot. The river was quite full and the children were amazed to learn that it is the same river that runs into the dam that we waterski on at Grabine each year. They found it hard to believe that the river comes all the way from there.

It was another 220km of travel to arrive in Cobar. Lots of emus and wild goats were seen on that stretch of road. We also commented on the number of caravans travelling. Good to see people out exploring our fabulous country. We made use of our UHF to let the others know when we spied emus or goats.

Just before we arrived in Cobar we turned off to check out the Fort Bourke Hill Lookout that looks over the huge open cut mine. We’d been there before and suggested to Katie that she leave the van at the bottom of the hill, they could all jump in the MH with us and we’d drive to the top. There is not a lot of room to turn around at the top especially if there’s lots of cars parked. So that’s what we did. Once at the top Katie was glad we’d made that suggestion when she saw how little room there is to turn around.

The children were amazed at the big hole in the ground. There is a viewing platform inside a wire cage (to prevent anyone going over the edge). Inside the cage are information boards with a bit of history of the New Cobar Open Cut and the other mines in the area.

Of course we had to make a stop under the famous Cobar sign just as you come into town. We managed to park both our rigs under the sign and got the picture.

Our camp for the night is one we’ve been at a few times before and we really like it out at the Old Reservoir. It is a free camp with no amenities at all however it is a large flat area with room for lots of RV’s. We’ve been here when we’ve been the only ones here but this night there was lots of RV’s of every description. There’s lots of caravans, a big bus, a few motorhomes and camper trailers.

As we were setting up camp a couple walked by and came across to chat to Katie. They are also owners of a New Age Bilby caravan and wanted to meet the fellow Bilby travellers. Katie was happy to chat about her beaut little van.

The children were all willing helpers to get camp set up and the boys got their swags set up on the mat ready for later. Rich got a fire going. After camp was set up the kids went off exploring and it was lovely to hear their happy chatter.

Katie, the children and I went for a bit of a walk and found the other Bilby parked next to a Jayco motorhome. The MH people had their two dogs with them and the children loved seeing them. They even got to take the elderly pug, Ruby, for a walk in her stroller. Ruby has very bad arthritis and cannot walk very far but she loves to be pushed in her doggy stroller.

Back at camp Pa cooked up sausages on the Biji BBQ and we enjoyed our camp dinner under the stars sitting around our little camp fire. With all the lights off the children were amazed at how many stars there are in the night sky. It was a very clear, cold night and the children enjoyed spotting satellites passing overhead. All around the reservoir we could see the twinkling of camp fires. What a great spot!

And so our great adventure has begun. 360km travelled and the first of many free camps. I hope the boys sleep well in their swags.