Put a bit of Sparkle in your Life
Experiencing the Sapphire Gemfields of Queensland is an adventure Terry and Iwill never forget. As an Aussie you owe it to yourself to just do it. The Sapphire Gemfields are situated in Central Queensland – on the Tropic of Capricorn. It embraces Sapphire, Rubyvale and Anakie.
We came into the town with no expectations other than to say we would like to do some fossicking. This area is just like a shanty town on the moon... You can stay in caravan parks in Rubyvale or Sapphire, and we chose the latter, or you can camp out on the gemfields and many do this. The caravan park we chose was friendly with happy hour and some singing and activities around the campfire.
Fossicking was to present us with a steep learning curve. Where do you start? First we went to the miners hut and purchased a bucket of dirt so we would know what we were looking for !! We were soon to find this was to give us false expectations as we found small sapphires in every bucket!! Well, real fossicking involves digging, digging and more digging to find what is affectionately called “the wash”. Let me tell you it is bloody heard work. But we wanted the experience of fossicking and we really value the process and have a whole new respect for what we call precious stones. The next time I gaze at a precious Australian gemstone in a ring setting it will have a whole new meaning.
You can buy a lease for about a nine hundred dollars and many come in the winter months and camp out and fossick . There is any amount of four wheel driving, Come to Sapphire and put a sparkle in your life and try your luck,
Terry and I just loved Sapphire and this area..
Then to continue our journey we went to a little place called Ilfracoombe 25km before Longreach. A great little town, at night the owner of the park turns into story teller and bush poet. Just up the road is a magnificent spa at a constant 34c. From there you can go into Longreach and visit the Qantas Museum and the Stockmans Hall of Fame, both fantastic.
Winton is the real outback and the place where Banjo Patterson first recited Waltzing Matilda, the town celebrates this. At night in the caravan park around the campfire we heard the best bush poet ever who made us laugh and made us cry. Then on to Cloncurry to the home of the first flying doctor John Flynn.Here we went off road to fossick for garnets at Maronan Station. Glad someone told us what to look for. In the rough they look like rabbit poo!! Now we are in the Isa with the mine as the focal point of the town. Here they mine silver, lead and copper. Tomorrow we finally cross the border to the Northern Territory. The Outback is amazing,
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