White Cliffs, NSW
11.3 km (1 hr )
★★☆☆☆

White Cliffs is a small opal mining town, located approximately 95 km north of Wilcannia. Opals were discovered in the area in the 1880's, with a small settlement established in 1890. Lucrative finds drew miners to the area, with the town growing over 5,000 people at the turn of the 20th century. Today the permanent population of White Cliffs is less than 200 people, although this does increase during winter when temperatures are much cooler.

My friends and I spent an interesting morning exploring this rough outback town. We visited the former White Cliffs Solar Power Station (the world's first), Smith's Hill with its dugouts and the White Cliffs Underground Motel where I had stayed a few years before, and Potch Gully, with its hundreds of holes and mullock heaps.

While the Opal Miners Way from Wilcannia is sealed, most roads in the area are unsealed and subject to closure when wet.