Opal underground city of Coober Pedy (Australia). Australian Odyssey Australia underground city cuber pedy

In the central part of Australia there is a small mining town of Coober Pedy, one of the main attractions of which is its underground houses. The city is known as the opal capital of the world because it is home to about 30% of the world's opal reserves, more than anywhere else on the planet. I invite you to take a short photo walk around the opal capital of the world.

Most likely, the name of the city of Coober Pedy is associated with its unusual houses underground. In the Aboriginal language, Koopa Piti, from which Coober Pedy gets its name, means "white man's hole". The city is home to about 1,700 people who are mainly engaged in opal mining, and their houses are nothing more than underground “holes” made in sandstone at a depth of 2.5 to 6 meters.

It is located in South Australia, on the edge of the Great Victoria Desert, one of the most desolate and sparsely populated places on the continent. At the beginning of the 20th century, mining of precious opals began here, 30% of the world's reserves are concentrated in Coober Pedy. Due to constant heat, drought and frequent sandstorms, miners and their families initially began to settle in dwellings carved into the mountainside - often it was possible to get into the mine directly from home. The temperature in such an “apartment” did not exceed 22 °C all year round, and the level of comfort was not much inferior to traditional “ground” houses - there were bedrooms, living rooms, kitchens, and bathrooms. But there were no more than two windows - otherwise it would get too hot in the summer.

Due to the lack of underground sewerage in Coober Pedy, the toilet and kitchen in the houses are located immediately at the entrance, i.e. at ground level. Bedrooms, other rooms and corridors are usually dug deeper. The ceilings in large rooms are supported by columns, the diameter of which reaches up to 1 meter.

Building a home in Coober Pedy could even make its owner rich, as it is home to the largest deposit of precious opals. Deposits in Australia, mainly in Coober Pedy, account for 97 percent of the world's production of this mineral. Several years ago, while drilling for an underground hotel, stones worth about 360 thousand dollars were found.

Rooftops of Coober Pedy. A common sight and distinctive feature of the underground city are ventilation holes protruding from the ground.

The opal deposit at Coober Pedy was discovered in 1915. A year later, the first miners began to arrive there. It is believed that about 60 percent of Coober Pedy's residents were from southern and eastern Europe who came there after World War II to work in the mines. For almost a hundred years, this city has been the world's largest producer of high-quality opals.

Since the 80s, when an underground hotel was built in Coober Pedy, thousands of tourists visit it every year. One of the most visited places in the city of opals was the home of its recently deceased famous resident, nicknamed Crocodile Harry - an eccentric, alcohol lover and adventurer who became famous for his many love affairs.

Photo: underground church in Coober Pedy.

Both the city and its suburbs, for various reasons, are very photogenic, which is why they attract filmmakers there. Coober Pedy was the filming location for the 2006 Australian drama Opal Dream. Scenes for the film “Mad Max” were also filmed in the underground houses of the city. Under the Dome of Thunder."

The average annual precipitation in Coober Pedy is only 175 mm (in central Europe, for example, about 600 mm). This is one of the driest areas in Australia. There is almost no rain here, so the vegetation is very sparse. There are no tall trees in the city; only rare shrubs and cacti grow.

Residents, however, are not complaining about the lack of outdoor entertainment. They spend their free time playing golf, although due to the heat they have to play at night.

Coober Pedy also houses two underground churches, souvenir shops, a jewelry workshop, a museum and a bar.

Coober Pedy is located 846 kilometers north of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia.

Coober Pedy has a desert climate. In summer, from December to February, the average temperature is 30 ° C, and sometimes reaches up to 40 ° C. At night, the temperature drops significantly, to around 20 ° C. Sandstorms are also possible here.

Underground gift shop in Coober Pedy.

The townspeople escape the heat by digging their own houses underground.

Underground bar in Coober Pedy.

These beautiful precious minerals are mined in Coober Pedy, a city called the “opal capital of the world.”

Some descendants of miners prefer to decorate their underground houses “a la naturel” - they cover the walls and ceiling with PVA solution to get rid of dust, while maintaining the natural color and texture of natural stone. Proponents of modern interior solutions cover the walls and ceiling with plaster, after which the underground dwelling becomes almost indistinguishable from an ordinary one. Both of them do not refuse such a pleasant little thing as an underground swimming pool - in one of the hottest places on the planet this is a particularly pleasant “luxury”.

In addition to housing, Coober Pedy has underground shops and museums, galleries and workshops, restaurants and a hotel, a cemetery and churches (including an Orthodox one!). But there are few trees and flowers here - only cacti and other succulents can withstand the hot, arid climate of these places. Despite this. The city has golf courses with rolling greens.

Coober Pedy is a regular stop on many tourist routes around Australia. Interest in the underground city is fueled by the fact that films such as Mad Max 3: Beyond Thunderdome, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and The Black Hole were filmed in Coober Pedy. And on the edge of the Opal Capital of the World lies the world's largest cattle farm and the well-known 8,500-kilometre Dingo Fence.

The city is famous for its opals; it is the capital of the opal stone, cast in all the colors of the rainbow. Opal mining is just under 100 years old, and its deposits were accidentally discovered while searching for water in 1915. Noble opal is distinguished by a rainbow play of colors, the reason for which is the diffraction of light on a spatial lattice and its value is determined not by its size, but by the unique play of color. The more rays, the more expensive the opal. One of the Aboriginal legends says that “long ago, spirits stole all the colors from the rainbow and put them in a stone - opal,” according to another, that the Creator came down from heaven to earth and where his foot stepped, stones appeared, shimmering with all colors rainbows. Opal mining is carried out only by private entrepreneurs. However, this industry brings about $30 million annually to the Australian economy.

The Coober Pedy region is one of the driest, most deserted and sparsely populated in Australia. On average, only about 150 mm falls per year. precipitation, and very large differences between day and night temperatures.

If you happen to fly over Coober Pedy, you will not see the buildings we are accustomed to, but only rock dumps with a thousand holes and mounds against the backdrop of the rocky red desert, which creates an unearthly landscape that will stun the imagination. Each cone-mound with a hole in the middle, visible on the surface, is connected by a shaft to the underground world.

Even the first settlers realized that due to unfavorable weather conditions, when the earth heats up in the sun during the day and the heat on the surface reaches 40 degrees Celsius, and at night the temperature drops sharply to 20 degrees (and sandstorms are also possible), it is possible to live underground in mine shafts after opal mining. The constant temperature of underground houses is around +22-24 degrees at any time of the year. Today, the city is home to more than 45 nationalities, but the majority are Greek. The population of the city is 1,695 people.

Water comes from a drilled site 25 km away. artesian well from the city and relatively expensive. There is no public power grid in Coober Pedy. Electricity is produced by diesel generators, and heating is provided by solar water heating panels. At night, when the heat subsides, residents play golf with glow-in-the-dark balls.

Previously, opal mining was carried out manually - with picks, shovels, and the rock was pulled out in buckets until an opal vein was found, along which they then crawled on their bellies. Almost all the mines are shallow and the main passages in them are made by drilling machines that break through horizontal tunnels the height of a man and from there are branches in different directions. These are practically homemade devices - the engine and gearbox from a small truck. Then the so-called “blower” is used - a machine with a powerful compressor installed on it, which, through a pipe lowered into the mine, like a vacuum cleaner, sucks out rock and boulders to the surface, and when the compressor is turned off, the barrel opens - a new mini-mound is obtained - a waste heap.

At the entrance to the city there is a huge sign with a blower machine.

They live underground, grow cacti in their gardens, and play golf at night - this is what life looks like for the inhabitants of a small town in the Australian desert. We are talking about the opal capital of the world - the mining town of Coober Pedy. Residents of a town located in the southern Australian desert, where summer temperatures sometimes exceed 40°C in the shade, have found a simple way to cope with the heat. In their houses, even in the most terrible heat, it is always cool, but not at all because they use air conditioners; moreover, they do not need to wash the windows or hang blinds on them to avoid the prying glances of their neighbors, but all because the residents of Kuber- Pedis build their homes... underground.

Let's take a look at the opal underground city of Coober Pedy.

1. Most likely, the name of the city is associated with its unusual houses underground. In the Aboriginal language, Koopa Piti, from which Coober Pedy gets its name, means "white man's hole". The city is home to about 1,700 people who are mainly engaged in opal mining, and their houses are nothing more than underground “holes” made in sandstone at a depth of 2.5 to 6 meters. (Photo: Les Pullen/South Cape Photography)

2. Due to the lack of underground sewerage, the restroom and kitchen in the houses are located immediately at the entrance, i.e. at ground level. Bedrooms, other rooms and corridors are usually dug deeper. The ceilings in large rooms are supported by columns, the diameter of which reaches up to 1 meter. (Photo: Les Pullen/South Cape Photography)

3. Building a home in Coober Pedy could even make its owner rich, as it is home to the largest deposit of precious opals. Deposits in Australia, mainly in Coober Pedy, account for 97 percent of the world's production of this mineral. Several years ago, while drilling for an underground hotel, stones worth about 360 thousand dollars were found. (Photo: Les Pullen/South Cape Photography)

4. Rooftops of Coober Pedy. A common sight and distinctive feature of the underground city are ventilation holes protruding from the ground. (Photo: Robyn Brody/flickr.com).

5. The opal deposit at Coober Pedy was discovered in 1915. A year later, the first miners began to arrive there. It is believed that about 60 percent of Coober Pedy's residents were from southern and eastern Europe who came there after World War II to work in the mines. For almost a hundred years, this city has been the world's largest producer of high-quality opals. (Photo: Les Pullen/South Cape Photography)

6. Since the 80s, when an underground hotel was built in Coober Pedy, thousands of tourists visit it every year. One of the most visited places in the city of opals was the home of its recently deceased famous resident, nicknamed Crocodile Harry - an eccentric, alcohol lover and adventurer who became famous for his many love affairs.

Photo: underground church in Coober Pedy. (Photo: Jacqui Barker/flickr.com).

7. Both the city and its suburbs, for various reasons, are very photogenic, which is why they attract filmmakers there. Coober Pedy was the filming location for the 2006 Australian drama Opal Dream. Scenes for the film “Mad Max” were also filmed in the underground houses of the city. Under the Dome of Thunder." (Photo: donmcl/flickr.com).

8. The average annual precipitation in Coober Pedy is only 175 mm (in central Europe, for example, about 600 mm). This is one of the driest areas in Australia. There is almost no rain here, so the vegetation is very sparse. There are no tall trees in the city; only rare shrubs and cacti grow. (Photo: Rich2012

9. Residents, however, are not complaining about the lack of outdoor entertainment. They spend their free time playing golf, although due to the heat they have to play at night. (Photo: Les Pullen/South Cape Photography)

10. Coober Pedy also houses two underground churches, souvenir shops, a jewelry workshop, a museum and a bar. (Photo: Nicholas Jones/Flickr.com).

11. Coober Pedy is located 846 kilometers north of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. (Photo: Georgie Sharp/Flickr.com).

12. Coober Pedy has a desert climate. In summer, from December to February, the average temperature is 30 ° C, and sometimes reaches up to 40 ° C. At night, the temperature drops significantly, to around 20 ° C. Sandstorms are also possible here. (Photo: doctor_k_karen/Flickr.com).

13. Underground gift shop in Coober Pedy. (Photo: Lodo27/wikimedia).

14. The townspeople escape the heat by digging their own houses underground. (Photo: Lodo27/wikimedia).

15. Underground bar in Coober Pedy. (Photo: Les Pullen/South Cape Photography)

16. These beautiful precious minerals are mined in Coober Pedy, a city called the “opal capital of the world.” (Photo: James St. John/Flickr.com).

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At the entrance to the city there is a huge sign with a blower machine.

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Coober Pedy is a small town in the central part of the Australian state of South Australia. The estimated population in 2008 was approximately 2 thousand people.

The city is known as the Opal Capital of the World because it has one of the richest opal deposits, containing about 30% of the world's reserves. The name Coober Pedy is translated from the Australian Aboriginal language as “white man’s hole” or “white man underground.”

Due to the harsh temperature regime and the prevailing mining industry, people constantly live in underground caves, in mine shafts left after mining. Standard home cave bedrooms with a lounge, kitchen and bathroom are located in caves drilled inside the mountain, similar to houses on the surface. This maintains a constant optimal temperature, while on the surface it reaches 40 °C (maximum 55 °C), at which temperature many household appliances become unusable. But relative humidity rarely reaches 20% on hot days.

Much of Coober Pedy's attraction lies within the mines, such as the cemetery and underground churches. The first trees that could be seen in the city were welded from pieces of iron. The city has local golf courses with movable grass and golfers lay out small pieces of "turf" around for tee shots.

Coober Pedy is included in many tourist routes in Australia. Coober Pedy was the backdrop for films such as Mad Max 3: Beyond Thunderdome, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and The Black Hole. Around 2012, they are planning to conduct an experimental exercise for an expedition to Mars.

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Australia. What do we know about the “Green Continent”? Cute koalas and kangaroos, aborigines, boomerangs, plastic banknotes... But Australia is also a country of opals. And the small town of Coober Pedy in the state of South Australia is its opal capital. It is believed that the opal stone calms the nerves, heals the heart, warns the owner about the presence of poison in food and even gives the gift of prophecy!..

COOBER PEDI, AUSTRALIA: A unique boulder opal found by miners in Coober Pedy. Coober Pedy is the capital of Australia's opal rush. © Dmitry Chulov.

The man who first called Australia the “Green Continent” was probably joking. It is green only along the coast, and in the center there is a barren desert, the bottom of a dry ancient inland sea. Right in the middle of it is Coober Pedy.

Center the map

Movement

By bike

While passing through

South Australia is one of the driest regions of the Fifth Continent. Most of its territory is covered with endless deserts, scrub and salt marshes. But it is in its depths that the country’s real underground storeroom is located.

COOBER PEDI, AUSTRALIA: The picturesque hills of the Brayways Nature Reserve at sunset. The bowels of the earth under these hills hide enormous wealth. © Dmitry Chulov.

The mining town is lost in the endless desert. Instead of trees, grass and flowers there are stones, sand and heat above 50 degrees. Episodes of films about life after a global catastrophe have been filmed here more than once. Even the inscriptions on the fences here correspond: “Welcome to Hell!”, which means “ Welcome to Hell!»

It is 10 hours' drive north of Adelaide. Seekers of happiness and adventurers from all over the world come here to this sun-scorched, dusty city. After all, Coober Pedy is the capital of the ongoing “opal rush” in Australia.

COOBER PEDY, AUSTRALIA: A miners' car parked in the desert at the entrance to the capital of Australia's opal rush. © Dmitry Chulov.

There are signs all around Coober Pedy, like a minefield. " Do not approach the mines!” read the stern warnings. The region of opal mines stretches for tens of kilometers around. Over the years of fever, about one and a half million mines! The locals themselves call the local landscape “ moon valley».

Coming to Australia was his childhood dream. Two years after arriving at " Green continent" Gennady Karpenko found himself in scorched desert. He is a carver: he looks for opals and processes them in his workshop.

Australia produces 95% of all opals in the world. This stone has been familiar to local residents since time immemorial. True, Australian aborigines have always avoided opals - they believe that a spirit with the head of a man and the body of a snake lives underground, luring people with the magical shine of multi-colored stones.

Opals were found here by accident in 1915. Now Coober Pedy is the richest deposit in the country. Its name comes from a corruption of “Kupa Piti”, which in the language of the Australian Aborigines means... “white people in the hole”.

COOBER PEDY, AUSTRALIA: A sign warning that the surrounding desert has been spontaneously torn apart by opal miners. © Dmitry Chulov.

There is a battery on his belt, a flashlight on his forehead, and an ultraviolet lamp in his hands - the standard equipment of a local miner. Gennady agreed to show us the places where he had recently managed to find large opals. There are no security guarantees. Any mine here could collapse at any moment. Searching for opals is a dangerous business in which everyone works at their own peril and risk!

Gennady, opal carver: “The crack is on this side, see? Sometimes it can be dangerous, everything can collapse here.”

Opals in Coober Pedy are searched for in mines at a depth of 25-30 meters. Some people rise to the surface with nothing for years, while others can become a millionaire in one day...

In the face, Gennady knows every turn of the adit - he spent more than one day here, underground, with a lantern and a pick.

Gennady, opal carver: “I found some opals in the rock up there, a little here…”

His favorite sound in the mine is the crunch of breaking glass. With this, opals are removed from the rock. After all, opal, in fact, is glass sintered by nature, thanks to the presence of various elements and inclusions, playing with bright sparks in the light. This stone is better visible in ultraviolet light. Therefore, Gennady every now and then turns on a blue lamp in the darkness of the mine.

Gennady, opal carver: “Sometimes when people blast rock in a mine, then they can miss some of the opals. And you, following them, through their waste, can find a vein that will bring 3, 5, 10 thousand dollars ... "

From this one of the niches, having planted explosives, his neighboring miners recently removed opals worth... 380 thousand dollars!

Gennady, opal carver: “No one here asks anyone how much you found, how you sold it - this is not customary in Coober Pedy. There is a lot of cash in this business!”

There are not many places left in the world where you can legally get rich in just one day! Some call it “opal fever,” others call it fortune, and others call it a game of roulette. In the face you can walk a few centimeters from the most valuable stone and not find it. Or you might accidentally stumble upon an opal vein!

Gennady, opal carver:“When from the wall, where there is nothing, from a small crack suddenly this opal, this thick, opens up! When they are with color, you just stop breathing! You just forget how you breathe!”

Dust, wind and an excavator that consumes tens of liters of diesel fuel per day. Many opal seekers, having arrived not for long, spent in Coober Pedy all life. All you need to do is stake out a plot of land - anyone can do it. Father and son Rade and Roger open-pit mine opals. My son has been masterfully handling an excavator bucket since he was 12 years old (!). The father, who came here in search of happiness back in 1967, is now over 70. He carefully examines the stones below, so as not to miss the cobblestones, which may contain opal, relying on experience and intuition.

Rade, opal hunter:“I found black, pink, green, crystalline – all kinds of opals. True, I was not as lucky as other prospectors. I had enough to pay the bills and live on. I must be the biggest loser of all the old people who work in Coober Pedy!”

COOBER PEDI, AUSTRALIA: The famous boulder opal found in Coober Pedy. Boulder is a type of opal in the form of a layer in the rock. The world's largest boulders are found in Coober Pedy. © Dmitry Chulov.

The pride of Rade and Roger is the huge “ boulder" - opal, which they keep at home. There is no other thing like it in the world! They are in no hurry to sell it and show it only on special occasions.

In small Coober Pedy there are several dozen shops that sell opals. The most valuable of them are pink and black. Depending on the size and quality, the price of processed opals can reach several tens of thousands of dollars!

Dubica works in one of the opal shops in Coober Pedy. Prices here are lower than in big Australian cities: stones are sold here by those who find and process them themselves.

Dyubica, seller: “This stone is a crystalline opal, large in size, transparent and clear. Look, you can see all the colors of the rainbow in it, and the more red there is in the opal, the more valuable it is.”

This stone glows devilishly in the light, its flickering is enchanting. But during processing, opal loses up to 2/3 of its volume, and may even crack, losing its value. Opal is as fragile as glass. It is enough to drop it, and the holographic beauty can break into thousands of fragments. Therefore, only experienced craftsmen can work with opal.

Gennady, opal carver: “If the stone is very expensive, sometimes up to $1,000 per carat, it is very difficult to cut it...”

Cutting is the most critical stage of opal processing. Sometimes a master stares at a stone for hours, not knowing how to approach it.

Gennady, opal carver:“Opal processing is always a surprise, a lottery. You can just cut it and get a colorless stone in two parts, and sometimes you see how the stone begins to play in your hands!”

Carvers say that opal must be felt with your hands, only then will the master have success in his work. And luck is exactly what the Australian town of Coober Pedy, gripped by the “opal fever” of our time, needs!

You can watch the video version of this article in the form of a report about Coober Pedy, filmed by me for the program “Their Morals” (NTV) here:

Write in the comments what you would like to know about Australia in more detail?