We are off to Mt Isa today, its 651 km so took it easy stopping a couple of times for toilet and nana nap. The trip was a strange one, the amount of roadkill, kangaroos mostly, is amazing, I counted 100 or more in a 1km stretch! We stop at the Barkly Homestead for some lunch and to take some pictures. The rest of the drive is unremarkable, the road was uneven making the caravan bounce a lot, if we opened the windows you could smell the dead carcasses, really not a journey worth remembering! I have been hot and cold all day and my neck and throat are sore again so when we are setup at the caravan park Tommy goes off for an explore, while I have a sleep, and comes back with a pizza for dinner. I have an early night while he watches some tv.
As soon as we get up we look up a Dr nearby and make an appointment as I have hardly slept all night with my sore throat and neck. He says its not infected but very swollen so gives me steroids to help with the swelling.
We have breakfast and a rest then head off to the Information centre then the look out over the town.
Some fact about Mt Isa from the Internet:-
Mt Isa is a mining town which was born because of the vast mineral deposits found in the area. Mount Isa Mines is one of the most productive single mines in world history, based on combined production of lead, copper and zinc. With a population of 21,992 recorded at the 2011 census and 33,200 in the surrounding district, Mount Isa is the administrative, commercial and industrial centre for the state's vast north-western region. Although situated in an arid area, the artificial Lake Moondarra, 19 kilometres north of the city on the Leichhardt River provides both drinking water and an area for water sports, birdwatching and recreation. Locals often refer to Mount Isa as "The Isa".
Due to the lead production in the city, Mount Isa has one of the most intensive air quality monitoring systems in Australia. Concerns have been raised over childhood lead contamination and air pollution within the city.
The Leichardt River divides the city into areas known as "mineside" and "townside". Xstrata, the power station and the Airport are on the mineside, whilst the majority of the city, including the CBD and Base Hospital are on the townside. In recent years, population increases associated with the mining boom has increased demand for accommodation and land.The city has begun to spread out, with new suburbs in the south-east and north of the city being planned or developed.
We have breakfast and a rest then head off to the Information centre then the look out over the town.
Some fact about Mt Isa from the Internet:-
Mt Isa is a mining town which was born because of the vast mineral deposits found in the area. Mount Isa Mines is one of the most productive single mines in world history, based on combined production of lead, copper and zinc. With a population of 21,992 recorded at the 2011 census and 33,200 in the surrounding district, Mount Isa is the administrative, commercial and industrial centre for the state's vast north-western region. Although situated in an arid area, the artificial Lake Moondarra, 19 kilometres north of the city on the Leichhardt River provides both drinking water and an area for water sports, birdwatching and recreation. Locals often refer to Mount Isa as "The Isa".
Due to the lead production in the city, Mount Isa has one of the most intensive air quality monitoring systems in Australia. Concerns have been raised over childhood lead contamination and air pollution within the city.
The Leichardt River divides the city into areas known as "mineside" and "townside". Xstrata, the power station and the Airport are on the mineside, whilst the majority of the city, including the CBD and Base Hospital are on the townside. In recent years, population increases associated with the mining boom has increased demand for accommodation and land.The city has begun to spread out, with new suburbs in the south-east and north of the city being planned or developed.
We then head to the Government offices to apply for a fossicking license for Queensland and to find out where we are able to dig. The girls at the office are really helpful and make sure we know some good spots and give us a contact number for a land owner near the land we want to fossick on.
Dinner at the Irish club - $20 all you can eat) and an early night.
Next day We are up early and pack a picnic and Tommy gets his fossicking gear ready. We drive 20minutes up the road to a free camping spot called Gregory downs and make our way through the camp and out the back of it into 4 wheel drive country! The roads are rutted and just orange dirt so Tommy drives carefully a few kilometre in. He spots a dry river bed and decides this is a good spot. We go for a look around to see where he should start and then back to the car to get me setup and Tommy to collect his digging equipment. I get my iPad & keyboard setup on the back of the Ute with some blankets over the canopy for shade(its 35dg toady) and begin catching up with this blog while Tommy sets off on his adventure.
Dinner at the Irish club - $20 all you can eat) and an early night.
Next day We are up early and pack a picnic and Tommy gets his fossicking gear ready. We drive 20minutes up the road to a free camping spot called Gregory downs and make our way through the camp and out the back of it into 4 wheel drive country! The roads are rutted and just orange dirt so Tommy drives carefully a few kilometre in. He spots a dry river bed and decides this is a good spot. We go for a look around to see where he should start and then back to the car to get me setup and Tommy to collect his digging equipment. I get my iPad & keyboard setup on the back of the Ute with some blankets over the canopy for shade(its 35dg toady) and begin catching up with this blog while Tommy sets off on his adventure.
As you can see from the photos its not much more than red dirt and rocks but he thinks he might be lucky and off he goes. We keep in touch every so often with our whistles and he arrives back after a few hours. He hasn't had much luck but he has a big smile on his face and thats good enough for me! As long as he is enjoying himself it doesn't matter what he finds. We have our picnic and the fresh air has made Tommy a bit frisky, so its a little while before we are ready to make our way back to Mt Isa.
We see the signs for lake Moondarra and decide to take a visit there before heading back. So glad we did! What a wonderful place!
We see the signs for lake Moondarra and decide to take a visit there before heading back. So glad we did! What a wonderful place!
Next day it was off to the underground mine for the grand tour! We had to meet our tour guide in the front of the Information desk, where he introduced himself and ran over some safety rules. He then took us to through the museum, pointing out facts and figures, equipment and some interesting photos and memorabilia, and then into the changing rooms. Here we were issued with nice, bright orange (prison issue), overalls and wellies! On reflection we looked hideous, hence no photos of us in them! Then outside to walk around the yard relating stories of accidents and great achievements down the mine and about pointing out large machinery lying rusting around us. We got to the lift shaft and took our turn in getting into the lift and taking the 2 minute trip down, then waiting for our guide.
We travelled around mine shafts looking at diggers and borers and cutting machines along with giant dozers for collecting the dirt and skips on train lines which carried the dirt to the mine shaft to be brought to the surface.
The mines smell of dampness and really dark, but we are all wearing miners helmets with personal torches attached and you can really get the feeling of what it must be like to work in this environment. Tommy has loved finding out about what makes everything work but I for one am glad when we head back to the lift shaft. It was a really interesting trip and would highly recommend as long as you are not claustrophobic!
We travelled around mine shafts looking at diggers and borers and cutting machines along with giant dozers for collecting the dirt and skips on train lines which carried the dirt to the mine shaft to be brought to the surface.
The mines smell of dampness and really dark, but we are all wearing miners helmets with personal torches attached and you can really get the feeling of what it must be like to work in this environment. Tommy has loved finding out about what makes everything work but I for one am glad when we head back to the lift shaft. It was a really interesting trip and would highly recommend as long as you are not claustrophobic!