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Somewhere along Australia’s Stuart Highway, deep in the heart of the outback is Coober Pedy.
It is dug into the red earth of Northern Adelaide in an area known for opal mines and blistering heat. This is Mad Max’s back yard.
The eerie outback, littered with rusted cars and red dust is straight from an apocalyptic film set. In 1985 the director George Miller shot the stretch of highway to fame as the setting for Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
However, beneath its sci-fi surface there’s a whole lot more going on in Coober Pedy – deep below the ground.
The name originates from the Aboriginal language Kupa-piti along the lines of “whitefella pit”. Which is a fair description. The town was founded in 1914 by gold prospectors and settlers looking for opals in the mineral rich soil. Today, the majority of the world’s opals and semi -precious stones still originate from the pits of Coober Pedy.
The miners discovered it was far more bearable underground, out of the unforgiving outback sun. Residents spend much of their lives underground, in “dugouts”.
But these are far more elaborate and glamorous than the name would imply. The larger dugouts include an underground Serbian Orthodox church and the Coober Pedy Opal Mining Museum.
Local Airbnb listings show underground retreats, decked out with swimming pools and carved kitchens. Each has the makings of a very memorable stop-over along the Stuart Highway.
For film fans, amenities include a drive-in cinema which celebrates the town’s special place in sci-fi history. Some of the film sets and memorabilia have been preserved for tourists visiting the area. Not that any of it looks particularly out of place. Locals pass the crashed space ship from the 2000 Vin Diesel film, Pitch Black, without batting an eye lid.
Another surprising pastime is night-golf. The Coober Pedy course is world renowned, with reciprocal playing rights at the home of golf in St Andrews, Scotland. Unlike, the hallowed grounds on the East Neuk of Fife, the opal fields comprise of very little green and a whole lot of sand traps.
You’ll have to be careful when practicing your putting. Danger signs are a constantly reminder of the town’s mining history and that there are plenty of holes big enough to swallow more than just a golf ball.
Source: nzherald.co.nz