We awoke to a grey Easter Sunday for the pack up and move to our next destination, Milparinka. The race track at Broken Hill looked colourful against the grey skies.

As it was Sunday, we found a church in Broken Hill to go to before leaving town. The Saltbush Community Church which meets in the Community Centre in the heart of Broken Hill had a 9AM service which we went to. The people there were few in number but very friendly and welcoming. The message on the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus was timely and a great reminder to all of the sacrifice Christ made to provide forgiveness and reconciliation with God for those who come to him – and the change that this makes in people’s lives. It was also a good reminder of the eternal consequences it has for those who turn their back on Christ.

It was a fairly cool, windy day – Klaus had to assist the photo shot of the church banner….

As we walked back to the vans Beryl could not resist a photo at the street named after her…. And we all admired the beautiful gardens and huge trees in the main park of the city – some very old!

The Silver City Highway to Milparinka was long and straight….and passed over arid areas of red dirt, stony desert areas, saltbush, and scrubby bush. Dry creek beds were evident, although a small amount of rain had fallen overnight which was evident in an occasional roadside puddle…

Some small lakes had water in them…. there were hills and mountains in the distance at some points and endless flat desert areas at others….The skies were now blue with only wisps of white cloud and the temperature had risen.

We stopped at Packsaddle Roadhouse for lunch. The local gymkhana was on that day, and it was pretty busy…The roadhouse was uniquely decorated with many hats, saddles and riding equipment.

Outside were many vehicles parked with their destination obviously the gymkhana or a local station….

Milparinka is a small gold mining town that started after gold was discovered in the area in 1880. The Albert Goldfields were the first arid area goldfields in Australia and covered the area of Mt Brown, Milparinka and Tibooburra.

We set up camp in the caravan area behind the old courthouse and then went to look at the museums, historical displays and walk around the town.

Gold mining in the area continued despite the harsh drought conditions until 1904 when severe drought made the conditions untenable. In 2020 mining companies did some exploration around Mt Brown and some small yields are coming from there. Fossicking is popular in Tibooburra with gold still being found in the area.

Sheep farming and wool production is a big industry across a wide area of northwestern NSW. One of the most famous pastoralist family, the Kidmans, had donated early footage of the farming in the area which we watched.

A barn housed a lot of early mining and farming equipment exhibits. It must have been a very difficult and challenging era to live in working such heavy machinery in a very unforgiving and harsh climate….

In the old courthouse was a room dedicated to outback women – full of many records of courage, resilience, and heartbreak. Many died at a young age, lost children, babies, and husbands to the harsh conditions of outback life…

The Sturt exhibit was interesting – Sturt and his exploration party had been camped close by for 6 months at Depot Glen during a drought. The cairn they built as well as James Poole’s grave were still there and so we planned to take a quick trip out there tomorrow morning to take a look.

A few of the old buildings had been restored, and other were under restoration. Streets were still marked, and a lot of ruins remained so you could really get a feel for the town.

We walked around the streets and watched the sun set, before heading for the pub for dinner to support the local economy. There are only a handful of permanent residents here now, with the tourist information centre being manned by volunteers who come and stay for a few weeks’ rotation from all over Australia. The current volunteers who were very friendly and helpful were from Sydney…

Sunset was beautiful with the ruins in the foreground adding to the vista…our campsite looked great in the moonlight….

Dinner at the pub was delicious – the local chef was a real character, and I had the best t-bone steak I have ever eaten – full of flavour and so tender. Everyone really enjoyed their meals and chatting with various locals and volunteers….