Australia by Red Nomad OZ
On the tarmac at William Creek

Freddie and the Flight over Lake Eyre! Coober Pedy, South Australia

I suspected it when I first saw him in the distance.  Then he slipped on his super-cool aviator sunnies* and I knew it for sure. Our pilot and tour guide for the flight over Lake Eyre was a dead ringer** for Freddie Mercury! Of course looking like the Queen ex-frontman didn’t guarantee anything.  But a top priority—not just for Freddie[…]

Read more
Goolwa Beach, Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia

Red’s BEST Activities in South Australia!

So what are Australia’s best activities?  A simple state by state word association test will more than likely give you results like these: Northern Territory = Uluru. Queensland = Barrier Reef. New South Wales = Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House. Tasmania = Cradle Mountain. Victoria = The Great Ocean Road. Western Australia = Wildflowers. Australian Capital Territory = Parliament[…]

Read more
White Cliffs New South Wales

Aussie ABC: O is for Opal!

Australian Opal I didn’t understand all the fuss about SiO2.nH2O until 2004. That’s when I first visited Coober Pedy.  It’s slap bang in the middle of absolutely freakin’ nowhere in the South Australian Outback.  And it’s where I first found a piece of SiO2.nH2O I wanted to take home with me. You might know SiO2.nH2O better as Hydrous Silica. Or[…]

Read more
Mindil Beach Sunset, Darwin (pic by Pilchard)

7 Days … from Adelaide to Darwin!

Does it REALLY take 7 days to drive the ~3000 km from Adelaide to Darwin? Only if you want to see a few sights along the way on a REAL adventure! Driving yourself is the best option (try Car hire if your vehicle isn’t up to scratch) to experience a cross-section of Australia’s unique countryside from the dry south, through the Red[…]

Read more
Truck Stop, Coober Pedy, South Australia

Only in OZ #12 – Driver Reviver Rest Stop, Coober Pedy, South Australia

South Australian traveller ‘Rest’ stops are a perfect amalgam of political correctness, public safety and parsimony.  Endless signs lining outback highways encourage drivers to stop, take a break and revive – and to facilitate the traveller take-up rate, rest stops like this one are provided!  Just the inducement needed to pull over and break ones journey, don’t you think??? There’s a[…]

Read more

Only in OZ #11 – The Big Winch, Coober Pedy, South Australia

Big Winch, Coober Pedy, South Australia Like a giant sword of Damocles, Coober Pedy’s Big Winch looms over the head of a hapless tourist. Well … actually, it’s Pilchard, sacrificing himself for the photgraphic greater good – so you can see just how big the ‘Big Winch’ actually is! Luckily for him, the perspective is an optical illusion – and[…]

Read more