We learnt very early in our travels that the best time to stroll around a new country town, camera in hand, is on a Sunday. Whilst the relatively empty streets may not convey the real commercial activities of the town, your intrepid correspondent can rubberneck and snap away with limited chances of ending up as the radiator ornament on a local vehicle.
So it was that, after our very short jaunt from Hebel, there was enough energy left in our physical tanks to 'see the town' here in Lightning Ridge on just such an afternoon.
I think I may have previously mentioned that my mental images of 'The Ridge', prior to our arrival, were at serious odds with reality. As we had discovered in Hebel, when our front bar friend, the redoubtable Laurance, had stated with some conviction that shopping in 'The Ridge' is more than adequate, this home of the world famous black opal (about which I'll have much more to say later) is a far cry from a collection of miners' shacks and humpies surrounded by piles of potch.
Mind you, having said that, there is no doubt that the town has grown up around the original diggings, and as I hope to be able to show you, there is little chance that Lightning Ridge could ever present as a serious contender in the NSW Tidy Towns contest! 'Stuff' is left lying around all over the shop.
As can be seen in this aerial shot of the town, the white blotches scattered hither and yon are actually piles of rock left on the surface as a result of the activities of the human moles scratching away underground in the hunt for the elusive black opal.
And as you can see here in this more limited town shot, the town has literally grown up around the various diggings sites.
But this is not to say that the commercial areas of The Ridge are other than quite ordered, and, as we were to discover, our erstwhile mate from Hebel was right when he commented that there was not much one could want which cannot not be found here.
Morilla Street, which is the main street of the Lightning Ridge CBD, is really an extension of the Bill O'Brien Way which brought us into town from the Castlereagh Highway.
We began our Sunday stroll at its eastern end where the garishly decorated walls of the 'Opal Cave' brought us face to face with one of the town's commercial realities.....flogging opals to the tourists!
Morilla Street, which is the main street of the Lightning Ridge CBD, is really an extension of the Bill O'Brien Way which brought us into town from the Castlereagh Highway.
We began our Sunday stroll at its eastern end where the garishly decorated walls of the 'Opal Cave' brought us face to face with one of the town's commercial realities.....flogging opals to the tourists!
Not surprisingly, opal shops abound. They come in all shapes and sizes.
Some outlets combine sales of what I have to admit is a startlingly beautiful gemstone with the second of the opal related ventures here, town and mine tours.
We have no way of knowing just how successful these various dealers really are, but the proprietor of the Cave was, on our passing observations, not struggling to find his next quid if his mode of transport is any indication. Here at the front of the 'shop' stood a flash Chrysler, plated '03'
and lo and behold, some distance down the road, we came across another....'02'...put to what seemed to us an almost unedifying use for such a grand sedan. But we were soon to learn that flashy and 'in you face' advertising is de rigeur in The Ridge,
and we soon realised that 'The Cave' is the largest and most highly promoted outlet along the strip. Its owner, 'Herman', is something of a local identity. On the one occasion we poked our noses into his establishment, we noted that he is attempting to retire, but clearly this is not going well. If you look closely at this notice you will see that his age, 77, has been painted over the outline of 76.
Another similar type notice inside the shop suggested he had announced his retirement at 74. Perhaps things are not quite as rosy in the opal game as may appear!
Photography is not encouraged inside, but I was allowed a couple of general shots. This is the scene which greeted us immediately inside the front door (complete with a Russell Crow selfie)
and this is what awaits those who progress further.
I should note at this point that apart from all that was on sale, this opal establishment did present a number of very informative displays relating to the formation of the stones, and the staff were unfailingly polite and helpful. Ah, but was this enough to find us leaving with a glistening gem? Not quite.....but I do have a new 'T' shirt!
As the promotional sign on the trailer behind one of Herman's Chryslers proclaims, the Post Office is indeed opposite 'The Cave', as is the home of the local real estate agent.
The town clothing emporium can also be found at this end of Morilla Street and from what we could see through the window, the range of goods on offer was more than acceptable. But what really drew my attention were the robust steel shutters...shades of Bourke!
The footpath umbrellas in front of one of this cluster of shops gave a hint that this might well be a 'nosh shop' of some description, and indeed it is. Liz and I indulged ourselves here one lunchtime to discover that the wood fired pizza on offer is of a very high standard.
One inescapable feature of the main streets of this town is the way in which groups of commercial premises are interspersed with reminders of the past. And here it seems, when a vehicle has come to the end of its useful life, it is dumped.....where appears to be of no consequence as we could see here. Imagine the reaction of the local authorities if this were to happen elsewhere!
As we wandered further abroad, and as some future shots show, I began to wonder if the practice of just abandoning old cars and trucks willy nilly is, if not formally encouraged, at least condoned as a means of adding to the town's character. Officially accepted or not, it is most certainly widespread.
Some half way long its length, Morilla Street intersects with the second of the main commercial streets in the town, Opal Street (there had to be one!). Here we are looking east from where we had just come,
whilst to the west, this view of an almost empty street was the only time we were to see it like this....this is a busy town during the week.
Prominent on one corner of what could be fairly described as the intersection which forms the hub of the CBD, are the wooden buildings of the Court House, complete with shade cloth covering the area in which those congregating to await their fate at the hands of the law can mill about in some degree of physical comfort irrespective of whatever metal turmoil they might be suffering.
The nearby police station
has also hitched a ride on the tourism bandwagon with this quite impressive statue of a miner at work featuring large in the station front gardens.
After this quick detour down the shorter end of Opal Street it was back to the main drag, past the Catholic Church buildings
and on to the first of Lightning Ridge's formal 'water holes', the very impressive Bowls Club, where the expanses of the rinks provide a welcome touch of green on the otherwise dry street.
We did tarry here just the once, the day before we left the town in fact. It was a Saturday, but not any Saturday......this was the AFL Grand Final day. We even delayed our departure to make sure I could watch the match on a big screen (I was uncertain about TV reception in Cobar, our next planned destination).
Demonstrating an unexpected and commendable forbearance, Liz joined the party, and for such a small group of AFL devotees we did manage to make considerable noise during what was a cracker of a match.
But for now, back to the present. I did mention previously that the main street presents a real mix of architecture. Our Sunday stroll next took us past this local residence, clearly well past its prime, but still occupied.
It abuts another small cluster of commercial buildings including a cafe and one of the several Lightning Ridge neighbourhood/community centres,
beyond which, on the next junction, stands the Wallangulla Motel, one of the more impressive of the several main street motels.
And here again, we have another of the absolute contrasts which typify this town, and provides passers-by with a glimpse of early Lightning Ridge.
This 'original' is directly opposite the motel. It gives some idea of the conditions in which the early miners lived. Imagine this place in 40 degrees with no airconditioning....a veritable human oven.
Morilla Street is also home to another of Lightning Ridge's early buildings, but in this case its inevitable decay if left to the ravages of nature has been arrested by a local group who have banded together to preserve the building and promote the town's history.
The small plaque at the foot of the statue standing prominently in front of the cottage provides succinct but adequate details of the building's provenance.
Morilla Street's commercial hub comes to and end at its western extreme with the large complex which is the Lightning Ridge Outback Resort and Caravan Park.
Here at reception, the competing tourist operators all have their advertising boards prominently displayed
to hopefully ensnare custom from those who make the motel units their temporary home,
or perhaps from those who have brought their home with them and have set up in the park at the rear of the motel.
Whilst wandering around the resort we came across another very large piece of John Murray art (you might remember the paintings on the walls and windows of the Hebel Hotel.
As could be expected, there is a story attached to this extraordinary edifice. The van which forms the body of this flying machine is that in which John actually came to The Ridge many years ago and for some time was his home. With his decision to remain and upgrade his domestic circumstances, he decided to put his erstwhile bedroom to good use.....in typical Murray fashion (we'll take a look at another of his 'different' statues later).
And although I just missed capturing it properly, the title of this work, streaming behind the John Murray Art slogan, is 'Emus On The Plane'. I just love this bloke's work!
More artwork (not Murray's) adorns one of the motel walls,
behind which is the somewhat modest building which is the Lightning Ridge pub (a bar never breasted by the Mobile Marshies).
Again, in a reminder of the origins of the town, these abandoned vehicles and a few piles of diggings waste fill the block opposite the Outback Resort.
On the other corner at this end of the street is one of the town's more prestigious opal shops. The 'Lost Sea' and adjoining cafe were both abidingly popular, although from what we saw in our one quick jaunt around the display cases all those who leave here with local product on board would do so with a considerably lighter wallet! I can't comment on the coffee shop.
But The Ridge caters for all tastes and budgets, particularly when it comes to accommodation. There are the three caravan parks, the Opal, the Resort and the third, the improbably named Crocodile Caravan Park (yep, that's a very large model croc stretched out near the main entrance....must have been a bloody good swimmer to have made it all the way here from the tropics!)
and a number of motels, including the 'Chasin Opal' holiday units,
the 'Buey' motel complete with 'comfy accommodation', (that's a relief)
and, back on the corner of Morilla and Opal Streets, the Black Opal motel where the proprietors will '....make your stay a gem!"
As we turned the corner into Opal Street and walked past the row of motel rooms, I spotted two signs which presented two ever present but vastly varying aspects of Lightning Ridge life.
The windows of several of the rooms displayed signs indicating that the occupant was ready and able to do opal business, be it buying, selling or cutting,
whilst in the small gazebo at the end of the row of rooms
patrons were pointedly reminded of their social obligations and the consequences for a breach of decorum. Hardly the Hyatt Regency or the Glenelg Grand we decided!
Our foot slog around Lightning Ridge was almost over for today as we made our way south along the all but deserted Opal Street
where we passed the home of 'my mate' John Murray
and the shops of yet more opal dealers.
We were taken by the large mural on a wall abutting the Opal Street service, complete with the sign across the top asking that folk do not park in front of it. Fat chance. Even on Sunday one ignorant motorist ignored the plea completely, and as for week days....well, wall to wall vehicles!
Opal Street is also home to the large and most impressively stocked Khan's Supa IGA supermarket, where, on our assessment, the claim posted on the outside wall is upheld by the prices of goods inside. We were very pleasantly surprised.
Let me conclude this quick Lightning Ridge town tour with another example of what we came across all over town and beyond....advertising for various tours and local attractions.
We did manage to resist most offers preferring to wander about under our own steam and at our own pace, but we did darken the doorway of The Chambers of the Black Hand before leaving. This is a story for another day. Before we share that with you, we venture further afield, to one of the most incredible areas we have yet come across in our travels......the 'Pubs in the Scrub'.
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