Coober Pedy, SA
7.5 km (3 hrs )
★★★★☆

This was my third visit to Coober Pedy, a hot, rough and fascinating town in the middle of a vast and treeless desert, located approximately halfway between Adelaide and Alice Springs. The name of the town is derived from the Aboriginal term whitefellas' hole, aptly describing the numerous opal mines and dugout homes. Many of the original homes (dugouts) are underground, a necessity where summer temperatures often exceed 40 degrees Celsius.

My friends and I spent an interesting day at Cooper Pedy, exploring many of the attractions, including an underground opal mine and museum, a number of underground churches and the town's original sole tree - made out of metal! The town is definitely worth a visit to experience something out of the ordinary.