Kalgoorlie-Boulder, WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Airing Date: Aug 29th, 2005
Kalgoorlie-Boulder is about a one hour flight east of Perth and is a constantly expanding, fully functioning gold mining town.
The name Kalgoorlie-Boulder itself is a little confusing. Kalgoorlie and Boulder used to be totally separate towns, however with constant growth in the region the two have now come together seemingly as one, hence the joining of the names. However locals will still tell you they hail from one or the other.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder is one of the most important mining areas in the world and 1893 is the year it really started, when Paddy Hannan accidentally discovered gold in the area.
When riding through the area his horse became lame. Stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no fresh water, this accident was the beginning of Kalgoorlie's gold fever.
At the height of the gold rush the town's population soared to 30,000 and to cater for the crowds, more than 90 pubs sprouted around the town. There are now only 50 of them including The Palace Hotel, The British Arms and The Metropole, where a mine shaft detour was conveniently located beneath the bar.
Kalgoorlie's pubs are now famous for their skimpies. The girls serving drinks and food in the bars, wearing little more than their underwear, have become a part of Kalgoorlie's culture, being popular with the miners for more than 20 years.
Nowadays, after a steep decline, the population is now back up at 30,000 following the discovery of nickel deposits in the north of the goldfields.
But of course the town's main feature is its mines. The Super Pit is one of the richest gold mines in the world. It measures four kilometres from end to end and is 380 meters deep, and they aren't finished yet. In 2004 they mined 904,000 ounces of gold from this site alone, which was worth $476 million.
With mines this size it's no wonder they need large trucks to cart the gold around. The tyres measure two meters in height and alone are worth $26,000. The whole truck costs $4 million.
Tours are run through the mines, so you get to go all the way down to the bottom of the pit and measure up against one of the massive trucks.
The $25 million Miners Hall of Fame is the Kalgoorlie's museum dedicated to gold, rocks and mining, and is definitely worth a look.
Paddy Hannan is well commemorated around town, in fact there's really no escaping the name. Hannan Street is the main thoroughfare, there's also a memorial, drinking fountain statue, pub and even a beer named after the guy who accidentally found gold.
Nothing in Kalgoorlie is done by halves. Not only do they have the worlds largest open cut mine, they also have WA's largest indoor swimming pool and in September the Boulder and Kalgoorlie Cup captures the attention of the majority of the state, and has been running for over 100 years.
Wide streets and turn of the century grand old buildings backed against the sheer contrast of the red outback, culminated with nearby ghost towns make Kalgoorlie-Boulder a fascinating place to visit.
Further information:
Standard single rooms at the Palace Hotel start from $60 a night.
Balcony Queen rooms start from $100 a night.
Contact The Palace Hotel on 08 9021 2788.
Prices correct at 29/8/05
