The Northern Goldfields of WA. Part 2

As we continue our travels through the Northern Goldfields Region the outlook from the roadside doesn't change to any degree. "Breakaways" come and go. Entrances to Mine Sites come and go, some are Named but many are not. Gold is not the only commodity sought after in the region, companies are seeking and extracting Nickel, Cobalt, Uranium, Molybdenum and probably many others.

We were advised by several people to visit the town of Sandstone, that it stands out in the region. So that we did! And it does! The Population of The Sandstone Shire is only 111 but the CEO there is building a new Shire Office and new homes for many of the Shire Employees. That must be saddling the Ratepayers with Debt that will take decades to wipe out. The Locals we spoke to, are NOT HAPPY.

Our sweep through the Northern Goldfields region was an extravagant use of diesel fuel except for our visits to Menzies, Lake Ballard the Ghost Town of Kookinie and Niagara Dam and of course Sandstone. It was too much driving for too little Sight Seeing. Some wild flowers were evident but it was past the prime season.

The roads and highways that we have travelled up to date in W.A. have been of an exceptionally good standard, hope that trend continues for the remainder of our travels here. During our time in W.A. the breezes have been quite strong most days, maybe we have been lucky, but those days we seem to have been travelling in the right direction, that is with the breeze behind us.

The old Post and Telegraph Office in Sandstone.

Somebody in Sandstone has a shoe fetish.

The main business in town, The National Hotel.

Sandstone Historical Park honouring the pioneers of Mining and Wool Industries.

Gardens feature in the streets of Sandstone. The new Shire Offices are taking shape in the background to this garden.

We followed the 17 km Heritage Trail on the outskirts of Sandstone. This was the site of the Original Brewery in the area.

Looking from above The Brewery back towards the Black Range where the original Gold Mining activity took place.

"The London Bridge". Another feature created amidst the 'Breakaways', where soft under rock is eroded away from the very hard upper layer. It is estimated that the rock in the arch was formed over 2 Billion Years ago.

This is all that remains of The State Operated Battery.

Some old buildings and a well (I think) in the foreground near the Battery.

One of the State provided water sources in the earliest days. This well is 100 metres deep and water is lifted with the windlass.

Windsor Rest Area is typical of the free camps we have been using around The Northern Goldfields.

Irvinebank

We could have stayed longer in Chillagoe but decided to move on to other places. Having 'back tracked' along the Wheelbarrow Way to Petford we elected to take an alternative route to the historic town of Herberton through Emuford and Irvinebank. This route is about 70 km of mostly good gravel road with many causeways over the creeks at the the frequent gullies. This was a dusty and slow, but very interesting drive. We only met one other vehicle during our drive through the hills.

Not much here at Emuford.

A few ruins over the fence, that's all.

Emuford was once a Cobb & Co relay station. I guess that is what the remaining ruins are from.

We eventually reached Irvinebank, another of the many old mining towns throughout this area. There is a free camp in the centre of town with a donation box for the hot showers.

We were very relaxed until we noticed this sign in the free camp area. I think Jude would have been awake all night.

Once we located the Irvinebank Tavern our thoughts of being washed away during the night were allayed. We had dinner here and learned that the Ibis Dam had been drained and repaired and was still empty. That sign should have been removed before our arrival.

The town weir with some of the hilly terrain surrounding the town.

Another view of the town weir.

Some of the old buildings in town, the Mining Museum is perched on top of the hill. You can see how steep the hills are in the town.

An external view of The Mining Museum.