Kalgoorlie is Australia’s golden city. It is the home of the richest square mile of earth on the planet and has been the site of a huge gold mine that has been mined continually since its discovery by Paddy Hannan in 1893. The open cut pit is now 1.6 kilometres wide, 3.7 kilometres long and has been excavated to a depth of 512 metres. The pit was created originally by a prospector called Alan Bond, who amalgamated a number of mine leases together. The mine now operates 24 hours per day and seven days per week and it now takes the massive ore trucks carrying 225 tonnes of rock about 35 minutes to wind their way up the slopes of the pit to the surface. Kalgoorlie now lies at the centre of a huge region that has had many more large mineral discoveries and Nickel, Iron Ore, Rare Earths and many other minerals are now exported from the region form the Port of Esperance some 400 kilometres to the south.

Kalgoorlie has had a huge impact on Australia’s history. The gold rush days have created a city that has grown into a busy commercial centre. The city is famous as an outback frontier city filled with colourful pubs, two up games great accommodation, heritage listed buildings, excellent restaurants and interesting tours both underground, and into the arid hinterland that surrounds the city. One of the hotel bars actually has an entry from an underground mine shaft. The Kalgoorlie Goldfields Visitors Centre will provide you with a visitor’s guide that will lead you to all the best points of interest and provide a comprehensive history of the local mining industry and how to best learn about it. The main office is located at 250 Hannan St which is named after the discoverer of gold in the region. The WA Museum of Kalgoorlie is also a wonderful attraction for visitors to see.

Kalgoorlie has a population of 28000 permanent inhabitants and around 25% of these are employed in the mining industry. Water for the city is piped underground all the way from Perth on the west coast. The suburbs of Kalgoorlie now boast modern shopping plaza’s, golf courses, several schools and public amenities and is now the fifth largest city in Western Australia. Kalgoorlie lies at the western end of the Nullarbor Plain and the Eyre Highway, which has the longest straight stretch of road in Australia.

Due to the inhospitable countryside and its arid environment, the wildlife in the Kalgoorlie region is quite unique. While some of Australia’s more colourful marsupials like kangaroo are prolific, the most common species are birds and reptiles.

Anyone travelling around Australia wanting to experience all that the country has to offer must pay a visit to the Kalgoorlie district and explore its fantastic history.

Kalgoorlie