TEAR-OUT MAP #9 ADVENTURE TIME

OPALS, CREEKS AND PINK HOUSES

NORTHERN, SOUTH AUSTRALIA WORDS STUART WOODBURY PHOTOS JEFF CROW

This particular loop out of Coober Pedy, South Australia has lots to see and gives you a perfect taste of what the real, outback Australia is truly like. The dirt roads are usually in good shape, but check the road conditions before venturing out as a bit of rain can soon make them quite difficult to pass – this is a remote part of Australia and proper medical help is normally a long way away. You could make this a long one day trip, but to really experience all there is to offer, I suggest making it at least a three day trip, with overnight stays at William Creek and Oodnadatta.

COOBER PEDY

Knock yourself out with the amazing colours and formations of opals for which Coober Pedy is renowned. Coober Pedy has been supplying the world with the majority of gem quality opals for many decades.

Coober Pedy is a pretty major town in the middle of the outback. Just about all the major shops are there, some banks, fuel, post office and medical facilities. You can also stay at one of the underground motels for an experience you can’t find at too many other places.

If you want something to ride to and visit, the Dog Fence is 15km out of town. It is the longest continual construction in the world. Stretching some 5300km, it begins east of Surfer’s Paradise in Queensland and ends up north of Ceduna in the Great Australian Bight.

WILLIAM CREEK

William Creek is the entry point from Coober Pedy to Lake Eyre in the Tirari Desert. William Creek offers the only petrol station (make sure you call to confi rm they have enough fuel available for your requirements) between Coober Pedy and Oodnadatta on the Oodnadatta Track. There is a campground (can get very dusty and extremely windy), cabins and one of the world’s most remote pubs, which is well worth the visit. Consider whether you really need a shower, because the bore water is not very nice. Visiting the William Creek hotel is not only for the atmosphere, the food is pretty good too. The world’s largest cattle station is nearby at Anna Creek Station. The Woomera Prohibited Area, former testing ground for atomic weapons, is also nearby, and you will go past both of them on your way into William Creek.

OODNADATTA

Oodnadatta is a small town with a population around 300 people,surrounded by an area of 7800 square kilometres with cattle stations in semi-arid pastoral rangelands close to the Simpson Desert. There really isn’t much at Oodnadatta other than the Pink Roadhouse which has fuel, good food and coffee. The name is derived from Arrernte utnadata, meaning “mulga blossom”. Oodnadatta can also be very hot. Oodnadatta has a desert climate and has also recorded the highest reliably measured maximum temperature in Australia: 50.7°C on 2 January 1960. When I visited there in late May a couple of years ago, it was hot during the middle of the day, yet cool in the morning and evening

GREEN ROUTE

Head east out of Coober Pedy on William Creek Road and follow it for around 166km until you get to William Creek. Once you’ve finished at William Creek (remembering to fuel up) head north along the Oodnadatta Track for a couple of hundred kilometres to Oodnadatta.

Just remember that when you come to the T-intersection a few kilometres out of town, you need to turn right and get on into the Pink Roadhouse for some refreshments. To head back to Coober Pedy and to complete the loop, head south out of Oodnadatta on Oodnadatta Road around 195km back to Coober Pedy.

OPTIONAL ROUTE (ORANGE ROUTE)

If you want something a little more challenging along the way, the optional route will give you some pleasure. Around 45km south of Oodnadatta, turn right and head towards Arckaringa. You can see Mount Arckaringa along the way. Continue on to San Marino hut and further south down to Evelyn Downs where you need to turn/veer left back east over to Oodnadatta Road. Bear in mind there will be some deep sand along this route, so have fun, but remember that there is no fuel along this route.

ROAD CONDITIONS

Call 1300 361 033 William Creek Hotel – Ph: 08 8670 7880 Oodnadatta Pink Roadhouse – Ph: (08 8670 7822

TOTAL DISTANCE

560km (Optional Route – 148km)

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