We started the day slowly as we farewelled Gordie and Kerry who were making their way back to the Eastern Seaboard to assist with childminding in the school holidays…. It was sad to see them go but I am sure it won’t be long before we will be all back at home…..

We took the final group pic…..

and then they were off….

Trev needed to see someone about fixing the blinker on the van…and also the fridge connection so he did a quick trip early into town and was able to book the Ranger into ARB tomorrow…so that assisted us with planning our days here. We decided to explore the town today as well as get some much-needed supplies so after careful perusal of the town map we started at the Albert Kersten Mining and Minerals Museum.

The museum was housed on the old Bond Store which was built in 1892 and told the history of Charles Rasp the boundary rider who discovered the silver deposit on Broken Hill. This led to the discovery of the world’s largest deposit of lead, silver and zinc and the formation of BHP.

The museum had the most amazing display of minerals found in Broken Hill including a 42kg silver nugget.

We continued our walk down Argent Street and the old part of town with lovely building including the courthouse, police station, pubs and cafes. The mine site was a towering entity over the town…

Our next destination was the Regional Art Gallery which was unfortunately closed indefinitely – unsure why but it must be said that Broken Hill did seem a little lack lustre….

Next stop was the Big Picture at Silver City Mint and Art Centre – the world’s largest acrylic on canvas painting measuring 100m x 12 m. The painting depicted the harsh desert scenery around Broken Hill and was painted by Peter “Ando” Anderson.

Hopping into the cars we drove past the mine to the “famous” 20s era Bells milkbar for lunch – but unfortunately it did not have much in the way of food – really just milkshakes and icecreams so we headed back to town to Café Alfresco…

All around the town were remnants of old mining history making for interesting scenery….

That afternoon Dave, Rose, Trev and I drove out to the Pro Hart Gallery on the edge of town while the Weiss clan relaxed back at the Lotus.

Pro Hart was born in Menindee and grew up there on his family’s sheep farm. He started work as a miner in Broken Hill and developed a love of painting amongst other hobbies.

His artwork is famous worldwide and he painted in different and unique styles. Much of his works related to his own life experiences. In later life he became a Christian and was an active member of the Christian Revivalist Church in Broken Hill. He died in 2006 at the age of 77 of motor neuron disease.

The gallery housed quite a lot of his original paintings as well as other items of interest from his life. He had several Rolls Royce vehicles in the garage there – one of which he painted which looked amazing.

We watched a short film on his life and then headed back to the racecourse to catch up with Klaus and Beryl for dinner…