They have wheely bin races in between the goat races as well, it gives them time to catch the fresh goats and harness them up. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

[Linked Image from i7.photobucket.com]

Lightning Ridge is purely an opal mining town and is the home of the world’s black opals

[Linked Image from blackopalmine.com]

Here is a little history about them:

Black opal is the rarest and most valuable type of opal.Black opal is generally found as an opal bar (or bars) of various colours forming natural water horizontals in dark grey to black opal 'potch nobbies' or 'opal nodules'. The unique patterns in black opal are as complex as an artist's imagination
Few realize that 99.9% of the world's opal supply of this radiant, dark, lustrous gem is mined at only two pinpoints on the globe-- the Australian towns of Lightning Ridge in New South Wales (the black opal capital) and Mintabie in South Australia (Home of Mintabie black opal).

Back when I was ten years old I was living in a small town called Collarenebri with my Auntie and uncles who were both shearers. We passed through there coming home this time, it’s a town of 150 today, I think there was more there then though?
For pocket money I used to accompany the mail contractor on the 60 mile dirt road to Lightening Ridge and open the many gates for him to save him getting out of his truck, the pay wasn’t good but the adventure for a kid of ten was. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> it wasn’t always a quick trip, sometimes we would get bogged out on the black soil for a few days. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

There were so many Kangaroo’s out there then you would have measured them in their tens of thousands and you could really walk up to them.

I used to lay on the ground and peddle my legs in the air and the Emus being inquisitive would walk right up to me to see what I was up to. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

My wife wants to go back for a few weeks with me to fossic for opals; so we might head back during our next winter.

I told my wife I wanted to be cremated. She made me an appointment for tomorrow afternoon. grin