Monday 31^st July

Upon entering Burra and the caravan park it didn’t take us long to decide to spend the next four days here and this may not even be enough to see everything which gives the town some notoriety.

We have begun to identify some of the characters who also use caravan parks.  The first encounter we had was with the man who likes to watch and comment as Bob backs the van into the allocated spot.  While I am trying to help Bob and give hand signals, this person wants to be the expert and get underfoot. Because caravan parks are small communities it is not worth telling him what I really want him to do, rather I just have to multi-task, help Bob and engage in some small talk with him.  By the next caravan park another character will emerge and different skills will be needed.

Burra is heritage listed town and the National Trust oversees the way visitors can access the historic sites by selling a “passport” which also includes key hire to unlock eight different sites. In 1845 outcrops of brightly coloured copper ore were found by shepherds at two localities near Burra Creek. Two groups named the Nobs and the Snobs vied for ownership of the copper bearing land. The Nobs were pastoralists and capitalists and included the owners of another mine, while the Snobs were a group of Adelaide shopkeepers and merchants. The Monster Mine measuring 32 square miles was jointly purchased by the two groups, however only one of them, The South Australian Mining Association (SAMA – The Snobs) went on to reap the rewards of what the ground held for them, and became one of the great copper mines of the world. Here is a piece of ore containing predominately copper found in the area.

We took a tour through the open air area which contained extensive remains of the mining operations.  Walking trails with interpretive signs have been provided along the way and by standing and pondering it is imaginable what the mine and buildings looked like back in the 1850’s.

Here is a selection of photos from the mine tour and lookouts from on top of the hill.

By 1851 the population of Burra had grown to 5000, so naturally the number of pubs increased and the town also needed a railway as well as police station, lock up and churches.

We hopped on our bikes and took off on the trail.

The Catholic Church of St. Joseph’s had a beautiful altar, lectern and pulpit made from local stone.  While visiting the local priest gave us a snapshot of the history of the parish. 

Next door was the Anglican Church of St. Mary’s and it displayed some wonderful kneeler tapestries.  

I always marvel at stained glass windows and appreciate the craftsmanship which has brought them to fruition. This church had some very fine windows.

After visiting the churches there was a hill to be ridden up, so again I played some serious mind games determined not to get off and push the bike. Like the little red engine story, I kept saying “I know I can, I know I can” – and I did, however I took a few minutes to recover.  All in the name of increasing fitness I tell myself.

We found the weather changed quickly to a very biting chill, so after completing the mine tours we headed for home to have lunch and plan the afternoon.

A few weeks ago we bought a yabbie net in the hope that somewhere along the trip there would be an opportunity to practice using it.  

We had read about Burra Creek Gorge having a yabbie population, so I visited the local Burra butcher to buy some tempting bait for them in the hope that we would be eating them for dinner. 

The afternoon had put on a glorious burst of sunshine, so after baiting the new net and putting it in the creek we headed for a good walk to explore the gorge.  

These photos show some of the scenes we enjoyed.  Unfortunately the yabbies were (i) on holiday, (ii) too full from someone else’s bait and not hungry, or (iii) too cunning to take our offerings. Despondently we came home empty handed, but also determined that another place and day we will try again.