Most travellers along the Stuart Highway between Port Augusta and Coober Pedy, SA, tend to give Roxby Downs and Andamooka a miss. Years ago there was a horrendous dirt road leading in, and to get to Roxby Downs you had to go via Andamooka, but nowadays this is a two-lane sealed highway.

From the Stuart Highway, it’s only 6km to Woomera and a further 81km to Roxby Downs and the Olympic Dam Mine, which has the largest uranium reserves in the world. It is mainly a copper mine, with by-products of gold, silver and uranium.

From Roxby Downs it’s a short trip of 29km (once again on this two-lane sealed highway) into one of the most fascinating opal mining areas we have seen. Continue on for a further 20km on a dirt road to Lake Torrens.

Roxby Downs

We left Port Augusta early in the morning, stopping to view several salt lakes, before turning off at Pimba. Woomera was a good rest stop to inspect Missile Park, with its rockets and planes, and the notorious old detention centre, before heading up to Roxby Downs and the Myall Grove Caravan Park.

As we got closer to Roxby Downs the country turned to red sand hills, many covered with desert pine trees. We saw several wedge-tailed eagles feasting on road kill. Due to their large size and weight, it is difficult for them to take off quickly, so we slowed right down – it’s very sad to see one of them killed.

The caravan park was a pleasant surprise. Sites were large, with water, power and sullage and a modern, clean amenities block. Showers had a shelf as well as hooks and plenty of hot water. Sites were large enough to stay hooked up. We had perfect reception on four TV channels, and five bars on our mobile phone. There was a pool (empty for the winter when we were there) and children’s playground.

Roxby Downs is going through a major expansion and the park was being extended with more sites as well as cabins, but it would still pay to book at Myall Grove, as every site was taken each night for the four days we were there. Days were lovely, 20-21°C, no wind, but nights were cold and down to -3°C. Once again, our electric blanket had plenty of use.

Olympic Dam Mine

Roxby Downs was built in 1988 to support the Olympic Dam Mine, so it is a modern town with various sporting facilities and good shopping for a town of this size. Approximately 6000 people live here but the town is growing in a big way, as the BHP Billiton-owned mine has huge expansion plans. Water is desalinated artesian bore water piped over 200km for the town and the mine, so there is great pressure to conserve and recycle it.

We took the two-hour surface tour of the mine, at the small cost of a gold coin donation to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Apart from watching a 10-minute video, you are contained on the coach, as strict safety regulations apply.

Olympic Dam has the largest reserves of uranium in the world, is the fourth-largest copper mine in the world and is the largest underground mine in Australia. It has 250km of underground roads plus a railway to bring the ore out. Processing of the ore is done on the surface, which is a unique feature.

Plans are in hand to triple the size, and BHP has purchased several surrounding properties to provide access to the ore body in the form of a massive open-cut mine. If you imagine the present huge underground mine as the handle, the open cut will be as large as the frying pan.

BHP is a partner in the Arid Recovery Reserve, a 60sq km area fenced and free of feral animals, for the breeding of re-introduced wildlife that was previously extinct in the area. Evening tagalong tours are available and there is a semi-dugout hide, where the nocturnal animals may be seen under a red light. In Roxby Downs there is also an emu walk/arboretum which we found interesting.

Andamooka Rose

We based ourselves at Myall Grove while we drove to Andamooka for the day. Margot at the Duke’s Bottle House information centre was very helpful. This is also the post office and motel. Instead of driving around in circles, we took a tagalong tour with Rose at R&J Tours (Rose and her son James). If you want to see life at Andamooka as it really is, warts and all, we would recommend this option.

There is nothing conventional about Rose. She explained that she came to town broke, looking for her father’s old claim (he was an opal miner). Rose and her son had an old caravan, found an abandoned mine and squatted there, parking her van at the entrance and using the mine as their home.

Rose does not believe in “done-up or renovated tourist attractions”, and she took us to old homes still occupied – some partly underground (the land here is too unstable to allow fully dug-out dwellings) and others made of corrugated iron and bits of bricks. The architectural style is unconventional, to say the least.

Also on the agenda were several types of mining – fully underground, partly underground (the so-called ‘bobcat drives’) and open cut. We soon picked up the local jargon of ‘concrete’ (non-opal-bearing rock) and ‘painted ladies’ (rocks with only a thin veneer of opal). Everywhere we went, locals called hello to Rose – she was obviously popular.

An interesting part of her tour involved divining for opal with two brass welding rods. After watching her, we both tried and it worked. I would not do this for a day job, though.

She showed us the grave of a miner who fell down a mine shaft after a drunken argument. It’s now marked with a high cross. We had time to ‘noodle’ (fossick) and found several rocks showing colour. Noodling for opal is allowed anywhere without a permit, as long as you stay away from any marked claims.

Down the opal mine

Our highlight was a trip down Peter and Eric Hansen’s underground mine. The brothers have been working this claim since 1965 and have done very well. We were lowered down the 21.5m shaft in the ore bucket via a large crane. The boys then showed us around, obviously very proud of their mine.

We were surprised to find two bobcats down there, plus other heavy equipment. They run on biodiesel made from fish-and-chips oil, to minimise toxic fumes in the mine. Peter pointed out the gypsum layers and where opals were found. We also walked the length of some of their tunnels. We were at the end of one long tunnel when a power board fused, and all the lights and blowers went off. Oh dear – instant and total darkness.

Peter lit his cigarette lighter (fortunately this was not a coal mine) and I used my camera flash now and then as we tried to walk out, until we turned a corner and saw the light coming down from the main shaft. The boys found another power board and all was well again.

Back on the surface, Peter hoisted us up in the ore bucket to get a view over the town and we could see right out to Lake Torrens. What an experience!

Rose continued her drive right through the opal fields, stopping and explaining points of interest, and telling yarns about characters of the town.

After the four-hour tour, we still had time to do some more noodling. It sure gets you involved, but we found nothing of any value apart from a small piece of opalised wood.

Interestingly, fuel was 13cents a litre cheaper in Andamooka than at Pimba on the Stuart Highway. It was also cheaper at Roxby Downs than at Pimba.

If you are travelling the Stuart Highway, take the hour or so detour into Roxby Downs, stay a few days, noodle for opal at Andamooka and explore both areas. You will be pleased you did.

Myall Grove Caravan Park, owned by Aspen Parks, is at 56-94 Burgoyne Street, Roxby Downs, SA 5725. Phone (08) 8671 1991.

Visitor Information Centre,

Roxby Downs, (08) 8671 2001.

Andamooka, SA

R&J Tag-a-long Tours,

Andamooka Opal Field, SA. Phone

(08) 8672 7259 and ask for Rose.

Andamooka information, Margot Duke, Duke’s Bottle House, Andamooka, (08) 8672 7007,

www.andamookaopal.com.au

By Tony and Denyse Allsop, as featured in Caravan World 453, May 2008