Trev was up early and organised so we could drop the Ranger off at ARB for it’s repair job on the electrics. The others followed in their cars and we jumped into the Weiss Landcruiser for the journey out to Silverton.

As we came out of ARB we noticed cars up on top of the old mine site – and realised there was a lookout up there which we had previously thought was closed. We drove up for a look and came upon the Line of Lode miners memorial which was still open though undergoing major refurbishment.

There was a great view over Broken Hill and the mine from the lookout as well as interesting historical mining equipment on display.

The area included a memorial line with all the names of those who lost their lives in the mines since the beginning until current.

We then drove out to Silverton which was the early mining area where the first claim was staked in 1876.

The town was once home to over 3000 people in its heyday but now had a population of 7…. The town is now a tourist attraction with several galleries, museums, and old buildings to explore.

Camels had featured a lot in the early settler days and there was a camel farm – and camel rides to be had…

First stop was the bakery for morning tea – coffee and baked goods – always a good combo

The area had been used as a location to film Mad Max 2 – the pub had an interesting vehicle displayed out front looking like a baby interceptor…

We explored around the old buildings and marvelled at the harshness of the environment that the early miners and towns people had to live in. We really are blessed to live in the era that we do!

The Silverton Gaol had been converted into a museum with a huge array of items from the early town as well as many records of the people who lived here – very interesting! The volunteer working that day was full of information as well.

The cells were small and very basic….

No privacy for prisoners who needed the toilet!!

6 churches were built in Silverton between 1884 and 1886 – we saw the 2 remaining – Catholic and Methodist church buildings…

There were several quirky art galleries with local art for sale – well worth a look!

Klaus found time for yet another toilet stop!!! Old wineskins can be a problem…

After browsing the galleries we decided to have lunch at the pub before going up to the Mad Max 2 museum. The museum was run by an English guy who was a Mad Max enthusiast – very interesting displays of paraphernalia found on the old set locations as well as authentic and replica items such as costumes, weapons and vehicles…

Having seen all there was to see in Silverton, we drove out to the Mundi Mundi lookout which had spectacular views of the area and really displayed the aridness of the landscape around Broken Hill and Silverton.

We drove back and picked up the Ranger at ARB – the guy had found the issue with the blinker – a fuse that had gone! Difficult to locate due to the unusual nature of the wiring under the Ranger…..but no fix for the fridge issue – seems that lay on the caravan side so we will have to get it investigated when we return to Sydney…unless Branch has a better idea??

As Dave and Rose missed the Living Desert sculptures last time we were in Broken Hill due to Dave’s tooth issue, we went out at sunset for a look – there was quite a crowd out there looking around and taking the obligatory sunset pics….including a Japanese couple who had an apparent monopoly on one particular statue with their tripod and camera gear – the wife worked the camera better than Rosie and people in the crowd were getting a bit annoyed as it was hard to get a good pic of the sculpture due to the antics of the couple… and their thousands of images they were taking…

The sunset was not overly spectacular but the views from the hill and the sculptures themselves made for some interesting shots…

Back for dinner at the vans and planning for the trip to Menindee Lakes tomorrow….