Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
- Bye Bye Oz
Brisbane, QLD - Australia
In a bit over 12 hours I'll be getting on a plane - the beginning of about 30 hours of traveling to get back home.
After 2 months of digging, I'll admit, I'm pooped . . . and once I get home I'll have a lot of work to do - many stones to cut as soon as possible for all of you folks who have been asking me for cabs and for rough.
Once I get back home, after I've had some rest, I'll post new photos and a few videos . . . and maybe a few tales from downunder.
Regarding the tales from downunder - while in the outback I see and experience a wide range of things. As you could imagine many of the folks who are involved in this business are wacky, idiosyncratic, marginal and colorful characters . . . and many of the experiences are a bit out there . . . that is part of the problem. There are many stories that you simply would not believe. There are many stories about fools and thieves that I shouldn't tell in public for many reasons.
Trust me, it has been a colorful experience that I'm trying to distill into a form that still would be true, but also would be suitable for public consumption.
I'm exhausted and need to go - thanks for taking a look.
In a bit over 12 hours I'll be getting on a plane - the beginning of about 30 hours of traveling to get back home.
After 2 months of digging, I'll admit, I'm pooped . . . and once I get home I'll have a lot of work to do - many stones to cut as soon as possible for all of you folks who have been asking me for cabs and for rough.
Once I get back home, after I've had some rest, I'll post new photos and a few videos . . . and maybe a few tales from downunder.
Regarding the tales from downunder - while in the outback I see and experience a wide range of things. As you could imagine many of the folks who are involved in this business are wacky, idiosyncratic, marginal and colorful characters . . . and many of the experiences are a bit out there . . . that is part of the problem. There are many stories that you simply would not believe. There are many stories about fools and thieves that I shouldn't tell in public for many reasons.
Trust me, it has been a colorful experience that I'm trying to distill into a form that still would be true, but also would be suitable for public consumption.
I'm exhausted and need to go - thanks for taking a look.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
- Digging & Finding
Cunnamulla / Koroit, QLD - Australia
After some equipment problems we're back to digging and, thankfully, finding. A few nice pieces were unearthed yesterday. In a few minutes, after picking up a few groceries, I'll be on my way back to the mine and hopefully find a bit more this afternoon.
The temperature has been cooperative, but it's getting warmer. On the way to town this morning I passed by 7 bearded dragons, a small goanna, an emu, a few kangaroos and a brown snake. There are many lizards and snakes around. As it gets warmer there will be even more around. The arrival of the snakes says it's almost time to go home. We'll keep digging for a bit longer, but it's getting close to the end of the season.
After some equipment problems we're back to digging and, thankfully, finding. A few nice pieces were unearthed yesterday. In a few minutes, after picking up a few groceries, I'll be on my way back to the mine and hopefully find a bit more this afternoon.
The temperature has been cooperative, but it's getting warmer. On the way to town this morning I passed by 7 bearded dragons, a small goanna, an emu, a few kangaroos and a brown snake. There are many lizards and snakes around. As it gets warmer there will be even more around. The arrival of the snakes says it's almost time to go home. We'll keep digging for a bit longer, but it's getting close to the end of the season.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
- What it's like
Cunnamulla / Koroit, QLD - Australia
When I first bought the opal mine in 2001 I was naive, ignorant and very inexperienced. Yes, I'm very bright, but I was doing something brand new in a very strange environment.
For a variety of reasons, when I first started mining, I decided to mine in a particular area toward one side of my mine. During that season a miner who works a mining lease next to mine decided he was going to dig along the border at the opposite side of where I was digging. A few times I went down in the tunnel my neighbor was digging to see what he was finding, but since it was on the opposite side of where I was working, I did not visit often. To me, the tunnel he was digging appeared to be very close to the border, but estimating where you are underground is tricky, particularly for a beginner. He was a very experienced miner. I did not want to bother him and I figured he knew what he was doing.
While my neighbor was digging in that tunnel he got lucky. He found a beautiful opalized log which he sold to another Koroit miner for several thousand dollars. He also found some other beautiful material.
As some of you know, last season, two other Koroit miners with excavators came to my mine and dug a large open cut. When digging tunnels underground it can be hard to tell where you are or what direction you are digging. When you do an open cut it opens up everything to be seen clearly - there are no doubts. You probably can guess the punch line . . . that tunnel my neighbor dug several years ago, supposedly along the border on his side of the line, was actually completely on my side . . . not at all along the border, but clearly, by at least 5 feet on my side.
Earlier this season I mentioned what we had found in the open cut to my neighboring miner. Based on his rather confused kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar type response, I am led to believe he knew exactly what he was doing and where he was digging the entire time. He knew he was taking advantage of the new guy.
At the end of the season several years ago when he mined that very nice opalized wood, he sold that other material he found to me for $7,000. The opalized log has since been bought and sold a few times. Last year it appeared at a show in Tucson with a price tag of probably over $50,000.
That's what it's like to be an opal miner . . .
Over the weekend I spent some time crawling under a 40 ton excavator to help tighten several nuts while various excavator fluids dripped on me and I had to duck as the grunting and groaning beast moved just above my head.
Now the excavator is back to digging. Hopefully some treasure will be unearthed before the end of the week.
When I first bought the opal mine in 2001 I was naive, ignorant and very inexperienced. Yes, I'm very bright, but I was doing something brand new in a very strange environment.
For a variety of reasons, when I first started mining, I decided to mine in a particular area toward one side of my mine. During that season a miner who works a mining lease next to mine decided he was going to dig along the border at the opposite side of where I was digging. A few times I went down in the tunnel my neighbor was digging to see what he was finding, but since it was on the opposite side of where I was working, I did not visit often. To me, the tunnel he was digging appeared to be very close to the border, but estimating where you are underground is tricky, particularly for a beginner. He was a very experienced miner. I did not want to bother him and I figured he knew what he was doing.
While my neighbor was digging in that tunnel he got lucky. He found a beautiful opalized log which he sold to another Koroit miner for several thousand dollars. He also found some other beautiful material.
As some of you know, last season, two other Koroit miners with excavators came to my mine and dug a large open cut. When digging tunnels underground it can be hard to tell where you are or what direction you are digging. When you do an open cut it opens up everything to be seen clearly - there are no doubts. You probably can guess the punch line . . . that tunnel my neighbor dug several years ago, supposedly along the border on his side of the line, was actually completely on my side . . . not at all along the border, but clearly, by at least 5 feet on my side.
Earlier this season I mentioned what we had found in the open cut to my neighboring miner. Based on his rather confused kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar type response, I am led to believe he knew exactly what he was doing and where he was digging the entire time. He knew he was taking advantage of the new guy.
At the end of the season several years ago when he mined that very nice opalized wood, he sold that other material he found to me for $7,000. The opalized log has since been bought and sold a few times. Last year it appeared at a show in Tucson with a price tag of probably over $50,000.
That's what it's like to be an opal miner . . .
Over the weekend I spent some time crawling under a 40 ton excavator to help tighten several nuts while various excavator fluids dripped on me and I had to duck as the grunting and groaning beast moved just above my head.
Now the excavator is back to digging. Hopefully some treasure will be unearthed before the end of the week.
Friday, October 8, 2010
- A Bargain?
Cunnamulla / Koroit, QLD - Australia
A few days ago I heard a neighbor had found some opal and had sorted and priced it. In addition to mining my own material, I'll also buy rough opal from my neighbors if the price is right. I was curious and went to take a look.
He had twenty-something containers of very low-grade rough priced between $20 and $220 per container. Some miners are firm with their prices and some are willing to haggle a bit. When asked how much room he had on his prices he said that the prices to pick and choose were as marked, but if I took everything I could have the lot for $3,000. After spending a few minutes looking I wondered how much of a discount the lot price would be off of the marked prices. I asked him. He was not sure, so he added up the prices. The total of the marked prices if I were to buy the containers separately was $2,960. Obviously, the lot price was not a very impressive discount.
That's what it's like to be an opal miner.
A few days ago I heard a neighbor had found some opal and had sorted and priced it. In addition to mining my own material, I'll also buy rough opal from my neighbors if the price is right. I was curious and went to take a look.
He had twenty-something containers of very low-grade rough priced between $20 and $220 per container. Some miners are firm with their prices and some are willing to haggle a bit. When asked how much room he had on his prices he said that the prices to pick and choose were as marked, but if I took everything I could have the lot for $3,000. After spending a few minutes looking I wondered how much of a discount the lot price would be off of the marked prices. I asked him. He was not sure, so he added up the prices. The total of the marked prices if I were to buy the containers separately was $2,960. Obviously, the lot price was not a very impressive discount.
That's what it's like to be an opal miner.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
- Color and Big Grasshoppers
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
. . . or should I say locusts? . . . yes, they are locusts and they are all over. Australia is a land of feast and famine. This latest plague of locusts could do serious damage to a variety of crops throughout this peculiar island continent. Even out here I have driven through clouds of the flying beasts - I'll spare you the details, but driving through such a cloud can be very noisy.
. . . back to the opals . . . yes, I have been digging and finding . . . and yes, I will be willing to share some of the goodies . . . in the next few days I'll be mailing some new material home to Dawn. She'll be photographing it and listing it - feel free to email her for details - please email her using the email address on our website (www.koroit.com) - to get to the email address on the website, please click HERE.
Opal production throughout Australia is way down. Production in Koroit is also down. I have been very lucky to be able to find some very nice rough. I have already shipped home over 5 million carats of rough this season. (I have already shipped home a bit over a ton of Koroit rough. My shipping agent said that US Customs wanted to know how much rough I had shipped and needed to know the amount in carats. A metric ton - 1,000 kgs - is equal to 5,000,000 carats.) I hope to be shipping home much more before this season is over.
Rain has been falling for the last several days which has gotten in the way of mining and has made for gloomy skies. Today the sun is once again shining.
. . . or should I say locusts? . . . yes, they are locusts and they are all over. Australia is a land of feast and famine. This latest plague of locusts could do serious damage to a variety of crops throughout this peculiar island continent. Even out here I have driven through clouds of the flying beasts - I'll spare you the details, but driving through such a cloud can be very noisy.
. . . back to the opals . . . yes, I have been digging and finding . . . and yes, I will be willing to share some of the goodies . . . in the next few days I'll be mailing some new material home to Dawn. She'll be photographing it and listing it - feel free to email her for details - please email her using the email address on our website (www.koroit.com) - to get to the email address on the website, please click HERE.
Opal production throughout Australia is way down. Production in Koroit is also down. I have been very lucky to be able to find some very nice rough. I have already shipped home over 5 million carats of rough this season. (I have already shipped home a bit over a ton of Koroit rough. My shipping agent said that US Customs wanted to know how much rough I had shipped and needed to know the amount in carats. A metric ton - 1,000 kgs - is equal to 5,000,000 carats.) I hope to be shipping home much more before this season is over.
Rain has been falling for the last several days which has gotten in the way of mining and has made for gloomy skies. Today the sun is once again shining.
Monday, September 13, 2010
- Tonight . . .
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
Shame on me for not thinking of mentioning this earlier . . . in a few ways I'm still like a 7 year old kid and still go WOW at some things . . . tonight likely will involve a wow . . . even though I've been visiting the outback for years and have a lot of work to do here, the night sky in Koroit, the southern hemisphere stars with no light pollution, the clear and bright night sky of a gazillion stars in the outback - makes me go wow . . . the milky-way looks so, so very milky here.
. . . I'm looking forward to the wow of the sky tonight and a very deep sleep and maybe a few curious dreams . . . between you and me Koroit is one of those places on Earth that has a special connection with the heart of the universe - you really can feel it here - particularly at night . . .
Shame on me for not thinking of mentioning this earlier . . . in a few ways I'm still like a 7 year old kid and still go WOW at some things . . . tonight likely will involve a wow . . . even though I've been visiting the outback for years and have a lot of work to do here, the night sky in Koroit, the southern hemisphere stars with no light pollution, the clear and bright night sky of a gazillion stars in the outback - makes me go wow . . . the milky-way looks so, so very milky here.
. . . I'm looking forward to the wow of the sky tonight and a very deep sleep and maybe a few curious dreams . . . between you and me Koroit is one of those places on Earth that has a special connection with the heart of the universe - you really can feel it here - particularly at night . . .
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