We were excited this morning about our Super Pit tour, especially after the non-event of yesterday’s blast. We met the Owner and guide of the tour Matt just before 9, who having worked in the massive KCGM Superpit before starting the company just last year, was the perfect guide.
Firstly we had to watch an OH&S video so we were aware of the safety precautions needed to enter the site. We were then given hard hats, safety vests and safety glasses, and boarded the bus as ‘inducted visitors’. One the way Matt kept up a running commentary about the Kalgoorlie Gold fields and how they came to be, then we were able to view the mining and milling operations through the Fimiston Milling Plant from the safety of the Truck. We were amazed by the size of the CAT 793 Haul trucks, the Komatsu PC 8000 face shovel loading the trucks and the view of the Super Pit from Harvey Hut where we could see the old miner’s workings with old shafts on the other side of the pit walls, and gained some understanding of the ore processing as we drove through the Firmiston Milling Plant. Lastly we visited the ‘sticks’ piles where all the old wood shaft supports, carts, candle holders etc are sorted from amongst the gold bearing rocks. The only one of its kind in the world, it was a graveyard of old mining equipement.
Up to 850,000 ounces of gold a year are produced from the Fiiston Open Pit (Super Pit) and the underground operation at Mount Charlotte. At AUD$1000/ounch that’s $850Million!
Arriving back to town we spend an hour or so wandering around, buying lunch and window shopping. By early afternoon we were all exhausted and so had a video fest watching ‘Charlie Wilson’s War’ while the kids took in ‘Nims Island’. The rain began soon afterwards and we spent the rest of the afternoon inside.
Kalgoorlie Accommodation Village (Powered $30.60)
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