28 June 2014

Today it was up and off to the "Outback at Isa" centre for a morning tour of the Hard Luck Mine, which is not actually a mine at all but a recreation of one. Basically they made a mine that had never been a mine and turned it into a tourist attraction. It is actually really well done and unless they told you it wasn't ever used as a real mine you probably wouldn't figure it out. Some great stories told about the working in the mines and the conditions they worked under and some sad tales of men that had accidents and were killed. Over all an interesting experience and worth the time if your able to actually book on a tour, surprised I managed it really, but was lucky. Unfortunately there are no pictures as they don't permit cameras, as some stupid tourist lady has once dropped her camera and could not find it in the mud and thus had a stand up argument with the manager trying to get them to give her the money for it, so they just said no more. It only takes one doesn't it, and there is an idiot in every group that wrecks it for everyone else. Mind they now do take a picture of you before going into the mine with all the overalls and hard hat and light on so you can buy it at the gift shop on the way out, so that may have something to do with it as well.

Anyway then it was just a walk around the town centre, Quite a big town centre for a city with a population of about 24000 I think, but that is probably because it is spaced out over several streets not like other smaller towns in a single strip. The thing that is almost inescapable though is the mine, you can see it from everywhere, it is huge.

 Town Clock, Mine Stack

 The mine on the horizon

 Mt Isa Hotel is a huge one isn't it 

 Told you, and that's not the half of it

 Looking up Rodeo Drive

 Looking away from the mine

 Town Council Offices, Mine Stack

 It's everywhere

Literally everywhere!

I also went to the Underground Hospital and the Tent House this afternoon after the mine, it was about 1200 getting out of the mine tour and so, after lunch, back underground again. The hospital was built as a agreement between the hospital and the Mount Isa Mine and they dug a tunnel into the hill behind the hospital and kitted it out to be a fully functional hospital in the event that Mt Isa ever came under Japanese attack or bombing (Mt Isa was supplying a lot of lead to the war effort). It never eventuated and the decision was made to fill in the entrances with stone and forget about it, it was still fully kitted out, nothing had been removed before sealing it up. In the 70s  someone found mention of the underground hospital and they went looking for it, being such a fluctuating populace no one remembered it was there and when they found it and broke in an mines expert check it out determined it was too dangerous and it was sealed up again, then 20 years later they tried again and a group of men from the Mount Isa Mine gave up their free time for 4 years to restore it, everything in it now was in it when they started nothing has been added, though they had to recreate the beds.

 Hospital was basically dug out in a E shape, 1st

 Centre

 Main cross spine

Last tunnel, this is how they found it in the 70's thus why the expert decided it was too dangerous

The Tent house is basically a canvas tent and separate roof over to deflect the heat, it was three rooms (the back section on this one was added after it was moved to this site) and the lady who owned this before the National Trust bought it and moved it was still living in it not that long ago.

Off for the 8 hour drive to Tennant Creek tomorrow...

27 June 2014

Ok so today was quite a short drive of only 120 kilometres which was quite a nice change. I set out late and basically set about stopping where ever looked interesting along the way. So today it is death by landscape over load, plenty of them taken on this trip. Such amazing colours and such a huge landscape, it's amazing just how vast it is and how it changes throughout the regions as you drive through it. One question I have had in mind today though is, who first came along here and saw this and thought "why don't I just run a fence along here and farm cattle" I mean, really?

Next up was the Burke and Wills monument, it appears that they crossed this spot in 1861 on their way across the continent. Good enough for a plaque and stone monument really.

 Wonder if Burke and Wills had the same problem. Come on people it's the middle of nowhere do you really have to "TAG" it

From here it was on to Mary Kathleen, as mentioned previously it was a mine and it was closed down a couple of times before finally being closed up completely in 1984 and the entire place, all the buildings, were sold off and freighted around the country. All of the roads are slowly starting to be reclaimed by nature but there are plenty of them left, it really is quite and interesting place but the road in sure leaves a lot to be desired, though I guess it is all private property now, so why would they rebuild the road. That said though there were a number of people with caravans "free camping" on the old site, so they must have come in very slowly and carefully.

 The main "roundabout" at the start of the town

 Amazing to think that in 1984 these were still "suburban" streets

 The old swimming pools

 The main causeway into town

On again and into Mount Isa, it was a short drive and quite good really nearly no traffic and all nice and relaxed, I haven't had a really good look around yet, will do that tomorrow, so just a couple of pics to be going along with.

 First view of the town is the giant smoke stacks

 From the city lookout

Big barrel, who knew they had one and on the Irish Club too