020 - Kalgoorlie

Happy Easter Everyone!!

This isn’t our first Easter away from home, although given this van now is our home, some could stay it’s the first in a few years actually at home… enough play on words…

Either way, inspired by the Superpit yesterday (which is completely understandable) we decided to spend Easter Sunday here in the heart of the WA goldfields.

The last of the few loads of washing was thrown through our little machine before the little box was packed away. I must admit, it’s nice to know we can basically last 2 weeks without clothes washing if required. But geez… it’s a bit of work to play catch up!

The kids had been promised by park staff an Easter Egg hunt at 10am which eventually happened around 11.15am and essentially put to pay any productive touristy activities in the morning. Still the kids were happy so one shouldn’t complain too much.

And in hindsight we got all we wanted to do done, and some, so nothing lost really.

Once away from the park we took a tour down the iconic Burt St in Boulder to the Boulder markets. A little lame and quieter than what we were expecting but the weather continued to be impeccable and it’s a beautiful setting so no real complaints here.

"Do I get to eat for free Dad?"

"No Sam. But I like the cut of your jib"

The very pretty Burt St, Boulder

A quick spin up to the public Superpit lookout to once again admire one of the countries great holes in the ground. Also got to be touchy-feely with one of the buckets and snaffle a cheesy family shot.

See... it's just as cool as yesterday!

A bucket load of Marshians.

I love this shot. Proves it's not just me that finds the immense hole in the ground entertaining.

From there we headed, on recommendation to the Goldfields Museum in Kalgoorlie. Now this, this is a real ripper of a tourist spot. Incredibly informative, entertaining and engaging. Displays ranged from flora and fauna of the area, interactive displays of yesteryear living and even an impressive $4.5m gold display in the vault downstairs. And to top it off you can ride up to the top of the mine head and get a great view of the Kalgoorlie ‘CBD’.

All this for a donation of whatever you consider applicable, and it represents fantastic value for money. I can this place being an absolute staple for any primary or secondary school in the region. Excursion written all over it.

The impressive entrance into the museum.

The trophy for the 1888 Melbourne Cup.

Downstairs, you find the vault where you find...

...things like this bad boy. At $1300 an ounce, this bar is around $520,000 in value...

A view across the main drag of Kalgoorlie. Incidentally the town's clock tower is gilded with real gold according to our tour guide yesterday.

I reckon this section of water main might be up for renewal.

Early model caravan? Even came with built in fireplace.

Then, getting weary we took a quick, or so we thought, out to the Mt Charlotte lookout nearby. This lookout is located on the Mt Charlotte water storage, the end point to the Goldfields water supply line, an incredible engineering feat of the very early 1900s.

Around the lookout is a number of plaques and information boards regarding the scheme, how it was built and what it took to ‘get it done’.

For a ‘water engineer’ it was incredibly interesting and, dare I say it, inspiring. There are many synergies to the struggles of the times to those that I have experienced in my own career, although I would never want to compare working conditions or lifestyles.

A couple of good bits of inspiration, which anyone can possibly apply to their work, but I found particularly relevant to my workplace include:

Just because someone says it can't be done, or shouldn't be done, doesn't mean you are wrong. Just because it hasn't been done before, doesn't mean it's impossible. Think outside the box. Challenge convention and change perspective.

Accurate cost estimation is possible. And important to sell your plan. Don't be afraid to put big dollars against big solutions. Quality solutions rarely come cheap.

"This is the country where you can learn the true value of water and how to be economical in it's use" - John Aspinall, 1/4/1895

What a great quote. Without the water, the gold is worthless as it was impossible to mine it either economically or without dying. Without water, there is no life.

I particularly like this one given my work with rainfall and stats. Trying to extrapolate trends out of very little data can be a risky practice. In this example at least CY O'Connor took the conservative approach and played it safe. Wise move.

One for my fellow asset managers... A good example of trade off on pros and cons.

Don't be scared to be innovative, providing you've got quality in mind.

And my favourite quote of all the signs. Ignoring the biblical references if you are so inclined, the message is clear. Think of the future. Think of those that come after you and then after them. As someone who works in Asset Management I found this particularly relevant.

I think it is important to note that CY O'Connor, the guy in charge of the whole scheme, the head designer and engineer, killed himself just 10 months prior to commissioning of the scheme. The public pressure, the scrutiny, self-doubt and magnitude of being solely responsible for such a huge job quite obviously took it's toll.

CY O'Connor was a brilliant man, upon which whose work the success of the Kalgoorlie and surrounding areas, is so heavily based on. I think it's quite the tragedy that he didn't come to see his brilliant idea and incredible hard work come to fruition.

I took from this that it's important to remain balanced and to have perspective. Have a solid support network around you and when you are in trouble, ask for help. It's not a sign a weakness. It's a sign of strength and bravery. No single person makes the world turn.

Sorry for the moment of reflection... 

From there, it was back home. An entertaining lightning show was seen, and as I type this rain falls on the van, soaking the parched earth of the area.

And I’m damn glad I didn’t get the chance to wash the truck like I hoped.