Kalgoorlie WA May 4, 2015
Today we drove from Merredin to Kalgoorlie in one go, only a quick toilet break, 330km in 3 1/2 hours. I’ve driven some long distances in some pretty bland landscapes, but this one just about takes the cake. The road is pretty much dead straight and dead flat and lined both sides with head high scrub. It is interspersed with a few sun-bleached clumps of buildings that may have once been towns. On leaving one there is a sign that says,’no services for next 157km’, and they meant it. Nothing. Nothing at all, except an odd sign pointing off into the distant scrub suggesting that there was something interesting to see on the pipeline. Who cares? Keep driving. You cross and double cross the pipeline and the railway and the telegraph. Hell, didn't even see a train all day. Coolgardie is the only town of note, and as that is only 40km from Kal, there’s absolutely no point in stopping.
Kalgoorlie, which has near legend status in Australian folklore, looks just like similar mining towns such as Mt Isa. Apart from the remaining few old buildings in the old town centre that reflect the glory days, the rest is cheap housing, mostly looking pretty rundown. These places have a certain greyness about them, there are no nice gardens or lush green parks. It’s all and only about the mining.
The only game in town is the mine, but it isn't just a hole in the ground, it is a giant, huge, bloody big hole in the ground. Called the Super Pit, it is 3.5 km long, 1.5 km wide and over 500m deep. We are doing the proper full-on tour tomorrow, but there is a visitors lookout, so here are a few snaps to get us going.
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| Me in a bucket. Super Pit. Kalgoorlie WA |
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| Super Pit. Kalgoorlie WA |
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| Super Pit. Kalgoorlie WA |
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| These 400ton dumpers look like toys. Super Pit. Kalgoorlie WA |
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| Dumping at the tip-head. Super Pit. Kalgoorlie WA |
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