'The Isa'

Mount Isa's falic mining chimney
'The Isa' as it is known by locals is surrounded by red hills and blessed by an abundance of minerals. In 1923 John Campbell Miles camped on the banks of the Leichhardt River whilst prospecting for gold. Sampling rocky outcrops nearby he discovered that they were full of minerals, he had inadvertantly found one of the worlds richest copper, silver, lead and zinc ore bodies. He named the area Mount Isa after hearing tales of the Mount Ida goldfields in Western Australia.

We try out our billy can

Today Mt Isa is one of the most productive single mines in world history and the town is now the administrative, commercial and industrial centre for Queenslands vast North-West region. The early pioneers however faced many problems including a lack of water, extreme summer temperatures and a scarcity of essential items.
Mayor John Molony drew international press attention to Mt Isa in August 2008 when he told the Townsville Bulletin newspaper that Mt. Isa's gender imbalance makes it a good place for "not so attractive" women to live. "With five blokes to every girl, may I suggest that beauty-disadvantaged women should proceed to Mount Isa," he said.

Everybody we had met along the way had reinforced this idea with tales of how desperate, lonely men would be drooling and fighting over Anne and we feared for Gareth with his pink thongs and matching boardshorts. We were expecting a dusty square with a line of saloon bars on each side and had visions of brawling men spilling out into the square through saloon doors to settle their differences. In reality Mt Isa is a city with a modern feel, acentral business district and due to its early immigrant workforce is about as cosmopolitan as any outback settlement is likely to get.


We arrived in the late afternoon and after asking around managed to get a spot for the night at Mt Isa caravan park.
The next morning we were up early and it was over for a visit to the School of the Air Radio.






IGA staff members present us with fuel and food

We then called our old friends at the IGA and they agreed yet again to donate some groceries and fill up our tank if we did a days work for one of their chosen charities. Needing another couple of nights in Mt Isa the lovely couple at Copper City Caravan Park donated two nights in an air-conditioned cabin, a gesture most appreciated in the intense heat. This meant we could do a days work at St Vinnies hospice the next day and pick up our food and fuel before moving on.



Our work at St Vinnies involved sorting through endless bags of clothes that people had generously donated and sorting them in terms whether or not they could be used again for resale. A great many generous people donate items to St Vinnies however a great percentage of these donations can't be used as they are of poor quality and as we witnessed a huge number of people donate clothes that haven't been washed. Much to our amusement (but not Anne's) and frequent wretching these items included used undercrackers with soiled gussets and baby suits covered in vomit. Whilst St Vinnies appreciate donations, it is impossible for them to do anything with these soiled or dirty items as to wash clothes given to them would cost them way too much. Sadly a lot donated items just get binned. It felt good to help one charity by working for another one and the staff at St Vinnies also made a generous donation to our cause.



Gareth chases Anne with a pair of soiled knickers found in a donation bag, puke!



A mountain of donated clothes


The next morning after an interview with the local ABC Radio station we were on our way and heading up the longest main street in the world. Camooweal lies 188km North-West of Mt Isa and is included in its city limits, for this reason Mt Isa was once listed in the Guinness Book of Records as being the biggest city in the world. Unlike most main streets however this one is lined on both sides with bushland. We were now leaving Queensland and about to enter the Northern Territory but first we would have to find a replacement for the fuel cap, which was lost at one of the fuel stations on the road. Toyota parts in Mount Isa come to the rescue and donate a brand new cap for our cheeky van.



Toyota Parts donate a missing fuel cap for our cheeky van




We are given frueit and veg by one of Mount Isa's independent stores







One of the many lizards we see in our path