An eccentric and charming gem in the Outback
The Car Doors Tours
Discovering the best activities in a new town is easy—just hit the tourist information centre. They're super friendly and offer excellent tips to enhance your trip. For a mere $1, we got self-guided tour maps marked by coloured car doors. You can start from one of 4 corners of the town and just follow these signs to uncover amazing sights in just 30 minutes.
The Yellow tour took us to Lunatic Hill, so named because "only a lunatic would attempt to mine opal in this location" Yet it turned out to be the most lucrative spot, with the miners now owning $20m mansions in Sydney – maybe not so crazy, after all.
The Green tour brought us to Lightning Ridge's highest point, offering a breathtaking view of Corcoran’s Opal Fields and a stunning sunset, with the moon rising behind us.
On the Blue tour, we ventured into an open opal mine to fossick through the mullock heaps. I thought I'd struck it rich with my shiny finds, as did a lady nearby. When we proudly showed then to the landowner, my fellow fossicker had found a gem worth about $300. Alas, whilst mine were technically opals, they were worthless ‘potch’. Still pretty though, and I will treasure them.
The Red tour introduced us to "Amigo's Castle," the home of a once hopeful Italian immigrant who, instead of finding his fortune with opal, spent decades building a castle from local ironstone (without skills, help or machinery). Now 76, Amigo's unfinished castle is a heritage-listed site.
So long Amigo
Curiosity piqued by Amigo's tale and his abrupt departure from his lifelong project, I asked the tour guide about Amigo's whereabouts (perhaps he was still in town, or in an old folk's home). When he replied “Dunno, I’m just a lowly-paid worker, I don't have that intel”, my HR lie-detector radar went into overdrive. Something here was really "suss".
Back at camp, a quick Google search led me to the shocking truth. Amigo had been sentenced to 18 years in prison for the cold-blooded murder of a local woman a few years back. He had apparently reached his breaking point after being tormented by local drug addicts for years. It's a truly sad story all round. ABC news report here: Amigo Castle Murder
We loved our short visit to the quirky outback town of Lighting Ridge, and will definitely visit again.
If you’ve got this far, wishing everyone a safe, happy, chocolate-filled Easter.