"Outback Opal Hunters" In the Trenches

1 00:00:01,680 --> 00:00:03,319 Well, that's sweet. 2 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:06,319 I'm just going to have to send it. I'm hanging on. 3 00:00:07,640 --> 00:00:09,439 Ahh! 4 00:00:12,960 --> 00:00:16,559 So hopefully the claim's not flooded like, as in underwater? 5 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:19,919 Oh, I hope not.Like, there's a lot riding on this if we can't dig. 6 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:24,799 If we do make it, it could be hand tools only at this stage. 7 00:00:24,880 --> 00:00:28,679 Yeah, well, it's not worth risking the excavator.No. 8 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:30,439 If that it gets stuck, 9 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:32,519 no way we're digging out a 20-ton machine. 10 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:36,519 We've got to get digging before the next lot of rain comes. 11 00:00:39,720 --> 00:00:41,639 It gets worse the further you're going out, 12 00:00:41,720 --> 00:00:43,599 they must have had more rain out this way. 13 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:45,479 Oh, it's nice and wet here, too. 14 00:00:46,720 --> 00:00:48,719 Uh-oh. Maybe not. 15 00:00:52,280 --> 00:00:53,959 Oh, dear. 16 00:00:54,040 --> 00:00:56,639 No, we're stuck, eh? I think we're bogged. 17 00:00:57,880 --> 00:01:00,279 (OPENING THEME MUSIC PLAYING) 18 00:01:08,920 --> 00:01:11,879 I'm going to get out and see what big of a mess we're in. 19 00:01:11,960 --> 00:01:13,559 (GRUNTS) 20 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:18,439 This is going to set us behind for a while. We need to get mining. 21 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:22,599 Ooh, I've got that much mud on me tyres, they actually just can't grip up, hey. 22 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:25,239 My plan is, Issy, 23 00:01:25,320 --> 00:01:29,479 find something in the scrap heap, plastic, rubber, anything that won't hurt a rubber tyre. 24 00:01:29,560 --> 00:01:33,159 And we've got to freaking get this car out so we can go digging. 25 00:01:33,240 --> 00:01:35,959 NARRATOR: In Andamooka, South Australia, 26 00:01:36,040 --> 00:01:39,479 The Misfits, Angel Dempsey and Issy Glenn, 27 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,959 need to get their mining operation back on track 28 00:01:43,040 --> 00:01:46,999 after unseasonal storms flooded the Outback. 29 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:51,399 Yeah, that looks like just metal in there. 30 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:54,879 A bunch of hoses. I could even maybe bunch up a heap of belts. 31 00:01:55,800 --> 00:02:00,599 Angel and Issy kicked off their season with a huge discovery. 32 00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:02,839 ISSY: Wow! Oh, my God. Look at that. 33 00:02:02,920 --> 00:02:06,799 NARRATOR: But the crippling cost of fuel and diminishing opal fines 34 00:02:06,880 --> 00:02:09,039 are now threatening their business. 35 00:02:09,120 --> 00:02:12,519 So you're not finding opal? Jack (BLEEP). 36 00:02:12,600 --> 00:02:16,439 NARRATOR: And with mentor and financier Opal Joe Kalmar 37 00:02:16,520 --> 00:02:20,359 forced to step away from mining due to serious health issues... 38 00:02:20,440 --> 00:02:22,719 There is no solution for my circumstance. 39 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:24,839 I've got pain 24/7. 40 00:02:24,920 --> 00:02:28,759 ...it's down to Angel and Issy to turn their fortunes around. 41 00:02:30,240 --> 00:02:32,519 I need Angel to be able to run at all, 42 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:34,479 do everything that needs to be done. 43 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:39,759 Sadly, Joe's getting a bit older. He doesn't have a lot of time left, so he's just wanting to see that 44 00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:41,479 I've got the mining under control. 45 00:02:41,560 --> 00:02:44,359 For me to prove that to him is if I find opal. 46 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:49,119 We set a 300 grand target, about 100 more than last season. 47 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:50,799 So you know, it's a big ask. 48 00:02:51,560 --> 00:02:55,079 I just need enough to send all of our boxes over to 49 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:56,919 Queensland this year. 50 00:02:57,680 --> 00:03:02,199 We've got a boxing tournament on and we've got to pay for the flights and accommodation. 51 00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:04,879 It's a lot of money. Got to be finding opal. 52 00:03:04,960 --> 00:03:06,559 Issy's got to find her bits. 53 00:03:06,640 --> 00:03:11,999 I've got to find my bit to be able to expand my mining operation. I've just got to make it work. 54 00:03:12,080 --> 00:03:15,239 That big conveyor belt there, Issy, do you think we can drag it? 55 00:03:15,320 --> 00:03:18,039 Which one? This big one. 56 00:03:18,120 --> 00:03:21,159 We can give it a go. Come on. (GRUNTS) 57 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:25,599 Nearly got it.(BOTH GRUNT) 58 00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:33,599 It's going to have to work, Issy, because the clock's ticking. I'm going to get out. 59 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:36,039 All right.Fingers crossed. 60 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:38,319 Let's do this. Come on. 61 00:03:40,280 --> 00:03:43,599 Come on. Get up there. 62 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:51,479 Up. 63 00:03:54,880 --> 00:03:56,559 Come on, old girl. 64 00:03:56,640 --> 00:03:59,279 Woohoo!Let's go! Whoa! 65 00:04:01,160 --> 00:04:03,799 We are out.Awesome! Woohoo! 66 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:07,719 Now that the car is safe, we can empty it, 67 00:04:07,800 --> 00:04:10,719 take all our digging tools into the cut and get on with it. 68 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:16,599 Let's go see what condition this cut's in. 69 00:04:18,560 --> 00:04:20,719 I still don't even know if we can dig. 70 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:22,719 Don't know how much water is in our mine. 71 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:29,559 Oh, Issy, we got so damn lucky. 72 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:32,359 Yeah, it's not full of water, but it looks sticky. 73 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:35,839 I reckon it's still too sticky to even dig with a machine. 74 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:38,959 Cannot risk getting Joe's machines damaged in anyway. 75 00:04:39,040 --> 00:04:42,599 It's not going to dig itself. We don't have much of a choice. Let's go. 76 00:04:42,680 --> 00:04:44,479 That's a lot of dirt that's come down. 77 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:49,559 Yeah, and it's covered our working face where we're following that trace. 78 00:04:49,640 --> 00:04:52,119 All we can use today is jackhammers and pick. 79 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:56,479 The ground is quite moist, so bringing down an excavator 80 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:58,399 at this point in time is not an option. 81 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:02,999 This face is about six foot tall. If a rock falls, it's going to hurt. 82 00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:05,079 But if the side walls collapse on us... 83 00:05:05,160 --> 00:05:07,639 The big crack just up there that we've got to watch. 84 00:05:07,720 --> 00:05:11,599 Who knows if it's 100 kilos of dirt 200, 500? The whole wall? Who knows? 85 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:15,559 So we're just going to have to be very mindful. Until I get the excavator down here, 86 00:05:15,640 --> 00:05:18,399 I can't make it a hundred percent safe. 87 00:05:21,520 --> 00:05:24,559 Ah! Oh, (BLEEP) (BLEEP) All right? 88 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:32,074 Watch Online Movies and Series for FREE www.osdb.link/lm 89 00:05:36,360 --> 00:05:38,279 Let's go find a new spot.Yep. 90 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:42,559 I like digging in new ground 'cause there's always that chance there's something special. 91 00:05:42,640 --> 00:05:45,399 When Dad and I worked, we always worked on that side. 92 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:50,359 We never come over this side, so I don't want to have to leave Digger's Gully with any maybes. 93 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:54,839 NARRATOR: Coober Pedy, South Australia. 94 00:05:54,920 --> 00:05:57,999 Beneath this parched and barren landscape 95 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:01,119 are some of the world's largest deposits of opal. 96 00:06:01,200 --> 00:06:04,039 Yeah, I'm pretty excited that we're going to give this a go. 97 00:06:04,120 --> 00:06:06,079 We're going to dig a trench on virgin ground 98 00:06:06,160 --> 00:06:08,239 and we don't know what we're going to find. 99 00:06:08,320 --> 00:06:09,919 NARRATOR: At Digger's Gully 100 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:13,799 the Opal Lovers, Dan Measey and Renee Everest, 101 00:06:13,880 --> 00:06:16,039 are digging an eight metre deep trench 102 00:06:16,120 --> 00:06:19,919 on a claim that's been in Dan's family for decades. 103 00:06:21,840 --> 00:06:23,959 At Digger's Gully, back in Dad's time, 104 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:26,719 we made good money off very bright crystal. 105 00:06:26,800 --> 00:06:28,999 We found 30 or 40 grand back then. 106 00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:31,599 I've still got good faith there's more here. 107 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:34,279 It's really important to Dan 108 00:06:34,360 --> 00:06:39,119 to sort of keep that opal mining legacy going and make his dad proud 109 00:06:39,200 --> 00:06:41,999 and finish off digging at Digger's Gully. 110 00:06:46,600 --> 00:06:49,479 What we find here in Digger's Gully, the top brown dirt, 111 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:52,119 which we call the biscuit, which we're still in now, 112 00:06:52,200 --> 00:06:54,799 really, very rarely, if ever, holds any opal. 113 00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:59,879 As soon as we break into what we call river rock, which is about probably here, 114 00:06:59,960 --> 00:07:02,279 eight to 10 ft. down, we shouldn't be far off it. 115 00:07:02,360 --> 00:07:06,999 Once we break into the river rock and get through there, that's straight into what we call sandstone 116 00:07:07,080 --> 00:07:08,959 and then we're within a chance of opal. 117 00:07:10,480 --> 00:07:13,719 I've come from my fulltime job back in the Adelaide Hills. 118 00:07:13,800 --> 00:07:17,399 The mine needs to be producing to be able to pay that wage. 119 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:23,359 Definitely want Renee to stay. We're happy together. Living together, working together. 120 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:26,079 We don't want that to change, but money does come into it. 121 00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:29,799 Without us finding opal, it's a serious risk of Renee having to go back to that. 122 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:34,199 We're only $90,000 into our $300,000 target. 123 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:38,319 So we've got a lot of work to do and we're coming towards the end of the season. 124 00:07:38,400 --> 00:07:40,239 So the pressure is on. 125 00:07:44,280 --> 00:07:49,319 I reckon we're first gonna see level around 16 ft. and along with levels, 126 00:07:49,400 --> 00:07:52,319 we get to see lots of ground that could hold crystal. 127 00:07:52,400 --> 00:07:54,839 Once we're in the sandstone, we're in a good chance. 128 00:07:56,400 --> 00:08:01,599 NARRATOR: Dan is excavating the trench in the remains of an ancient seabed, 129 00:08:01,680 --> 00:08:04,239 searching for seams of opal. 130 00:08:04,320 --> 00:08:09,159 Millions of years ago, Coober Pedy was covered by an inland sea. 131 00:08:10,040 --> 00:08:14,279 Over time, silica rich water drained into the ground, 132 00:08:14,360 --> 00:08:17,839 eventually hardening to form an opal level. 133 00:08:20,280 --> 00:08:24,319 The best way to check the wall is to physically go down and check it out. 134 00:08:24,400 --> 00:08:27,839 Yeah, when Dan finishes doing this length, 135 00:08:27,920 --> 00:08:31,319 Dan's going to lower me down in the bucket and I'm going to check it out. 136 00:08:32,320 --> 00:08:34,079 We can get a little bit of rock fall, 137 00:08:34,160 --> 00:08:36,359 we might have to rake back the edges a little bit 138 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:38,359 to make sure that rocks don't fall on me. 139 00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:43,759 Going down the bucket's the quickest and easiest way to check this trench. 140 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:46,639 We can muck around with digging ramps and ladders and stuff, 141 00:08:46,720 --> 00:08:48,959 but we don't have time to muck around with that. 142 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:51,439 Time is money, so I need to get Renee down, 143 00:08:51,520 --> 00:08:55,079 make a decision. Is there opal? Isn't there? Move on. 144 00:08:58,280 --> 00:09:00,079 You ready, Dan? 145 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:02,199 Ready to go. 146 00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:04,399 Okay, I'm getting in the bucket. 147 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:09,759 It's eight metres deep. It's a long way down. 148 00:09:09,840 --> 00:09:13,359 It's a confined space, so yeah, Renee is pretty brave to do it. 149 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:15,159 I get a bit claustrophobic. 150 00:09:15,240 --> 00:09:18,519 I actually haven't done this before, so I have to see how I go. 151 00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:20,479 Hopefully, I don't freak out down there. 152 00:09:21,560 --> 00:09:24,119 I'm going to try and look for some sort of fault line. 153 00:09:24,880 --> 00:09:27,519 And that's where opal can possibly be forming. 154 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:31,879 Then we'll develop a new plan if we need to, 'cause we'll need to dig it out. 155 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:34,199 All right. Maybe if we just stop there 156 00:09:34,280 --> 00:09:36,839 so that I can sort of acclimatise myself a little bit. 157 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:39,839 You look like you're nearly halfway there. So you're doing well. 158 00:09:39,920 --> 00:09:44,399 It's so narrow. I didn't realise how sort of narrow and scary it sort of feels. 159 00:09:45,400 --> 00:09:48,679 You are in a safe bucket, but I know it'll be a bit scary. 160 00:09:48,760 --> 00:09:51,559 All right, maybe just a metre more down. 161 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:03,119 All right, stop a sec. Yeah, stop. 162 00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:05,999 I'm getting there. There's probably two metres to go. 163 00:10:06,080 --> 00:10:08,279 But just if you can just keep at this level. 164 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:16,479 Really losing view of the bottom of the bucket there, so let me know if I'm not level. 165 00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:18,159 You're still level. 166 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:23,159 All right. You're nearly there. 167 00:10:23,240 --> 00:10:28,239 Probably a foot. All right. Yeah. All right. I made it. 168 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:32,159 How you going down there? Everything all right? 169 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:36,479 I'm still a bit nervous. It's still quite claustrophobic and a bit weird down here. 170 00:10:36,560 --> 00:10:38,439 Ah! Now I've just got rocks on my head. 171 00:10:38,520 --> 00:10:41,919 That's what you've got a hard hat for. The rocks will bounce off that. 172 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:43,999 Yeah, I'm going to keep looking around. 173 00:10:44,680 --> 00:10:48,079 I think there is a level, but it's up quite high and I can't see it. 174 00:10:49,600 --> 00:10:51,599 Dan's done a good job of this. 175 00:10:52,320 --> 00:10:53,919 She's a long way down. 176 00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:56,479 So Dan taught me this crisscross method. 177 00:10:56,560 --> 00:11:01,559 I'm actually listening for any tinging, like a ting sound 178 00:11:01,640 --> 00:11:04,639 which means you're crossing over opal. 179 00:11:11,840 --> 00:11:15,439 I reckon I might have seen something drop down there. 180 00:11:16,800 --> 00:11:19,399 Whoa. Look at that. 181 00:11:20,160 --> 00:11:21,879 Yeah, I reckon I found something. 182 00:11:23,960 --> 00:11:26,159 Hey, Dan, I reckon I found something down here. 183 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:28,319 (OVER RADIO) What, you found opal? 184 00:11:28,400 --> 00:11:31,999 Yeah, it's a green-blue colour. It looks fantastic. 185 00:11:32,080 --> 00:11:33,759 Wow. Excellent. 186 00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:36,679 Um, there's opal here, but I can't see it. 187 00:11:36,760 --> 00:11:39,119 So I'm going to have to come back and black light. 188 00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:41,199 Good idea. We know we've gone deep enough. 189 00:11:41,280 --> 00:11:44,359 If you've found a piece of colour already, there's got to be more. 190 00:11:44,440 --> 00:11:47,599 Yes, I'm looking for the other half or another little piece of that. 191 00:11:47,680 --> 00:11:51,199 I'm pretty excited now that we've found that little stone. 192 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:55,279 (RUMBLING) 193 00:11:55,360 --> 00:11:57,839 Oh, my God. 194 00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:12,119 Can you get up there and just jackhammer a couple of plates for me foot? 195 00:12:15,440 --> 00:12:18,159 Just need a flat surface. Just take this bit here out. 196 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:19,959 The plan for today is pretty simple. 197 00:12:20,040 --> 00:12:22,919 We just keep shifting dirt and hopefully we find some colour. 198 00:12:23,440 --> 00:12:25,039 Opal mining ain't rocket science. 199 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:28,719 Shift dirt till to your find colour. Shift dirt, find colour, party. 200 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:32,839 (DRILLING) 201 00:12:32,920 --> 00:12:35,199 Just sort of where the feet are, mate. 202 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:38,199 Take that lump, yeah. 203 00:12:39,560 --> 00:12:42,879 That'll bloody near do that one, I think. 204 00:12:45,680 --> 00:12:50,079 BOGGER: Flat, you reckon? It might be a bit better. Bogger. 205 00:12:50,160 --> 00:12:51,959 Looks better now. 206 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:55,119 NARRATOR: In Grawin, New South Wales... 207 00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:59,439 We might have to break some of them big ones up with the pelican pick, Bogger! 208 00:12:59,520 --> 00:13:05,599 NARRATOR: The Bushmen, Rod Manning, Sam Mehan, rookie recruit Jake "Bogger" Wallace 209 00:13:05,680 --> 00:13:08,639 and veteran miner Les Walsh 210 00:13:08,720 --> 00:13:12,359 are desperate to find opal at their new Froggie's Claim. 211 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:18,959 Retirement is not looking real flash at the moment. 212 00:13:19,040 --> 00:13:21,919 Unless I find a big pocket of opal. 213 00:13:24,160 --> 00:13:26,879 I think Froggie's will turn out all right for us. 214 00:13:26,960 --> 00:13:30,919 But we've still got to move dirt to get where we want to go, where we reckon it is. 215 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:32,999 You go nowhere if you give up. 216 00:13:34,600 --> 00:13:40,919 NARRATOR: But with the brutal summer and the end of the season in sight, time is running out. 217 00:13:41,800 --> 00:13:44,879 Our target was 150, and we've only got 50 218 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:47,239 and we're not going to get in much more than that, 219 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:50,199 I don't think. Just running out of time unless we do find 220 00:13:50,280 --> 00:13:52,279 one good pocket. 221 00:13:52,360 --> 00:13:54,799 We're struggling at the moment. We're all low on cash. 222 00:13:54,880 --> 00:13:58,239 We've all got things we need paying for, bills to pay, cars to fix. 223 00:13:58,320 --> 00:14:01,319 So, it's pretty crucial we find something while we're down here. 224 00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:03,879 Otherwise, we're just burning diesel for nothing. 225 00:14:09,160 --> 00:14:11,359 Yeah, mate, that pin's coming out again. 226 00:14:11,440 --> 00:14:13,559 Bloody hell. 227 00:14:16,360 --> 00:14:18,279 Give that pin a bit of a tap, Bogger. 228 00:14:23,560 --> 00:14:26,759 Every bloody five minutes it's coming out. 229 00:14:27,960 --> 00:14:29,919 See if it comes right out of this side 230 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:31,719 and I put pressure on this, 231 00:14:31,800 --> 00:14:35,639 it twists and bends all this metal, and then we're proper (BLEEP). Yeah, righto. 232 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:40,439 Without the digger, we're pretty well stuffed. 233 00:14:40,520 --> 00:14:43,879 At the end of the day, if we had to, we'd have to pull jackhammers out. 234 00:14:43,960 --> 00:14:46,639 And that's just, you know, a lot slower, much slower. 235 00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:53,959 It's coming out every 5 minutes. Les was going to weld it up ages ago, 236 00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:57,999 but never got bloody around to it. (BLEEP) I'll get him down here. Now, he can do it. 237 00:14:58,080 --> 00:14:59,879 Hey, Les, you got me? 238 00:15:00,880 --> 00:15:03,159 (OVER RADIO) Yeah, mate, what's happening? 239 00:15:03,240 --> 00:15:06,359 That pin that we were going to fix months ago keeps coming out, 240 00:15:06,440 --> 00:15:08,799 and we're going to end up (BLEEP) the whole show. 241 00:15:08,880 --> 00:15:11,679 Do you reckon you could come down here and have a look at it 242 00:15:11,760 --> 00:15:14,039 and see what you need to do to fix it, mate? 243 00:15:14,120 --> 00:15:15,759 Okay, I'll come down. 244 00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:21,839 Every five seconds, we're banging the bloody thing in. 245 00:15:21,920 --> 00:15:25,599 So if you want to get some measurements or do whatever it is that you do. 246 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:30,959 We need a piece of plate on, welded on here, go down here and... 247 00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:34,119 just stick a bolt in it to hold it in. 248 00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:37,279 So that'll take a little while to do. 249 00:15:37,360 --> 00:15:40,239 Rod, I'll just do something with this with a bit of duct tape 250 00:15:40,320 --> 00:15:42,759 to hold it in for a little while. 251 00:15:42,840 --> 00:15:46,319 This is only a temporary fix to keep them going a bit longer 252 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:50,319 while I get the gear to do the job, fix the job with. 253 00:15:50,400 --> 00:15:53,679 Might not look good, but it'll do the job. 254 00:15:53,760 --> 00:15:58,999 With old machines, there's always something that's going to go wrong. 255 00:15:59,080 --> 00:16:01,279 You can't expect it not to. 256 00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:04,079 It's just one of them things, wear and tear. 257 00:16:04,160 --> 00:16:05,959 That'll hold it, Les. 258 00:16:09,840 --> 00:16:11,679 (MACHINE WHIRRING) 259 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:17,639 At the moment, Les is just fixing this little pin on the front of the digger. 260 00:16:17,720 --> 00:16:20,359 And he's quite inspirational at the end of the day. 261 00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:24,719 He's in his late 70s. He's got just about every tool and he knows how to use all of them. 262 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:27,879 There's not a problem that we have, that Les can't fix for us. 263 00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:30,519 So he's a really good asset to have down here. 264 00:16:35,320 --> 00:16:38,039 That'll do it for now, anyway. 265 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:41,279 That'll hold it there. It'll stop the pin coming out. That will. 266 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:44,159 I reckon it's time to go home. I reckon you're right. 267 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:45,879 Come on, Les, lead us out of here. 268 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:47,759 It's getting real late in the season. 269 00:16:47,840 --> 00:16:50,639 We've still got a hundred grand to bloody find. 270 00:16:52,240 --> 00:16:53,879 And it's just too slow. 271 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:58,079 The only chance we've got of saving this season is to hit a big pocket 272 00:16:58,160 --> 00:17:02,599 and we're not going to find a pocket going as slow as we are. It's just too slow. 273 00:17:07,160 --> 00:17:08,759 RENEE (STRAINED): Oh, my God. 274 00:17:08,840 --> 00:17:11,759 Dan, I'm getting out of here. There's rocks falling down. 275 00:17:11,840 --> 00:17:14,279 Yeah, come out of there. It's no good. 276 00:17:19,640 --> 00:17:21,719 I'm in, you can lift me up real slow. 277 00:17:21,800 --> 00:17:25,079 Real careful, Dan, 'cause the rocks just fell over the bucket. 278 00:17:26,520 --> 00:17:29,279 Ahh! Oh, my God, I'm glad to get out of there. 279 00:17:32,400 --> 00:17:36,479 Yeah, I don't know. Something crumbled there and come in on the bucket, eh? 280 00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:39,239 I'm okay. It just gave me a big fright, that was all. 281 00:17:39,320 --> 00:17:41,039 Okay. Where's that piece of opal? 282 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:44,079 Look at that!Ooh. 283 00:17:44,160 --> 00:17:46,919 Isn't that nice?That's good. Green and red. 284 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:50,199 Yeah. That's a good stone there. You have to clean that right up. 285 00:17:50,280 --> 00:17:53,199 No wonder you want to come back and blacklight that.Yeah. 286 00:17:53,280 --> 00:17:55,119 The darker the better tonight.Yep. 287 00:17:57,320 --> 00:18:01,759 NARRATOR: In Coober Pedy, the Opal Lovers are returning for a night shift 288 00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:04,959 in their freshly dug 8-metre-deep trench, 289 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:11,199 using ultraviolet blacklight torches to make any opal fluoresce. 290 00:18:12,680 --> 00:18:16,839 All right, so I'm just going to throw this rope down because it's a bit easy to climb up. 291 00:18:16,920 --> 00:18:19,119 Yeah, your ramp's pretty steep there, Dan. 292 00:18:19,200 --> 00:18:22,039 Yeah, I sort of got squashed up against that dump a bit, so. 293 00:18:23,680 --> 00:18:25,479 Come back tonight to blacklight. 294 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:28,519 Dan's just organising a rope to go down his ramp. 295 00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:30,359 The ramp is really steep. 296 00:18:30,440 --> 00:18:33,199 It's a bit like a slide, so then it's going to be easier 297 00:18:33,280 --> 00:18:34,879 to climb up and climb out of it. 298 00:18:34,960 --> 00:18:37,399 Pretty excited to go back down and blacklight it 299 00:18:37,480 --> 00:18:41,359 and hopefully the whole wall lights up.It's a bit steeper than I would have liked, 300 00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:43,799 but we run into this dump in the back ground here, 301 00:18:43,880 --> 00:18:47,359 so I sort of ended up being a bit short. But that's all right. We'll manage. 302 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:49,559 Okay, so this is my blacklight. 303 00:18:51,280 --> 00:18:55,479 So it's like a blue colour, but it will shine opal 304 00:18:55,560 --> 00:18:57,439 like an aqua colour, fluorescence. 305 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:03,319 Send Dan down first, he can go down, I'll follow him 306 00:19:03,400 --> 00:19:05,559 and then we'll just start scanning the walls. 307 00:19:05,640 --> 00:19:07,599 Dan will probably start down the other end 308 00:19:07,680 --> 00:19:10,239 and I'll start down here and we'll meet in the middle. 309 00:19:14,200 --> 00:19:16,239 Okay? All safe? 310 00:19:16,320 --> 00:19:19,119 Yep.All right, let's do it. Lights off. 311 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:21,199 Yep.Let's find it. 312 00:19:22,120 --> 00:19:25,319 Look, at the moment I'm just seeing this interesting level 313 00:19:25,400 --> 00:19:27,879 at about right at my elbow height here. 314 00:19:27,960 --> 00:19:30,599 We're not going to ignore anything above and below that, 315 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:32,999 but that's looking really nice. 316 00:19:33,080 --> 00:19:36,079 Yeah.Almost looks like a bit of bone and chalk in there. 317 00:19:36,160 --> 00:19:39,919 So, we call it bone and chalk when it's sort of not opal yet. 318 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:44,439 Yeah.But it shows silica and water have been through there. 319 00:19:46,400 --> 00:19:48,119 I can't see anything. 320 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:52,199 No, there's no actual opal material standing out. 321 00:19:52,280 --> 00:19:54,479 But that level... 322 00:19:54,560 --> 00:19:56,279 is interesting. 323 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:00,919 I kind of thought it would be... 324 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:04,759 all over the place. 325 00:20:04,840 --> 00:20:08,199 Yeah, well, definitely hasn't lit up like a Christmas tree. 326 00:20:08,280 --> 00:20:11,079 Obviously, there's the other half to that piece you found, 327 00:20:11,160 --> 00:20:12,799 but, good luck finding that. 328 00:20:12,880 --> 00:20:16,559 We might have to... We might have to check the tailings dump for that. 329 00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:19,999 Yeah, that's what I was thinking. We might have to blacklight the dump. 330 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:23,559 We're going to be pretty lucky to find half a piece, but yeah. 331 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:26,679 Let's go up the top, like you say. We've got to check it. 332 00:20:26,760 --> 00:20:28,799 Let's go for it.All right. 333 00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:33,359 Yeah. we've got quite a big pile of dirt here. Quite a big dump. 334 00:20:33,440 --> 00:20:36,639 So Dan will blacklight the other side. 335 00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:39,079 I can't see much at the moment. 336 00:20:39,160 --> 00:20:40,799 Hey, Renee.Yeah? 337 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:43,999 Get over here. There's some serious chunks sitting on this dump. 338 00:20:59,720 --> 00:21:02,599 Ah, not only is it getting hotter later in the season, 339 00:21:03,800 --> 00:21:08,239 we're nowhere near our target, but we've lost Bogger and Sam at the moment. 340 00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:11,599 Bogger got into a bit of strife up the pub the other night. 341 00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:16,039 Got his jaw broken, so Sam's taking him down to Sydney 342 00:21:16,120 --> 00:21:17,719 to get a big plate put in it. 343 00:21:19,120 --> 00:21:21,199 So she's due back this morning. 344 00:21:22,400 --> 00:21:25,519 (BLEEP) if I know where Les is, he should have been here an hour ago. 345 00:21:30,080 --> 00:21:35,479 NARRATOR: In Grawin, the Bushmen have taken a big hit with crucial team member 346 00:21:35,560 --> 00:21:38,999 Bogger hospitalised with serious injuries. 347 00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:44,799 Hey, Rod.You're back. 348 00:21:44,880 --> 00:21:46,919 Yes, we made it back in one piece 349 00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:49,519 and Bogger's got his jaw in one piece, too. 350 00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:53,279 Instead of two it's in one, eh? It's in one, but he's fixed up now. 351 00:21:53,360 --> 00:21:57,199 I've left him in town to rest up. He'll be out for a while then, I would imagine. 352 00:21:57,280 --> 00:21:59,959 They said at the hospital, at least six weeks.Bad break. 353 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:01,839 Yeah, it's going to be a big recovery. 354 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:04,799 Leisurely 20-hour drive, eh? Yeah, absolutely. 355 00:22:04,880 --> 00:22:08,839 I was expecting you a bit later, actually.I wanted to get back as soon as possible. 356 00:22:08,920 --> 00:22:11,999 Get straight into it. That's the way. You've been to Sydney and back 357 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:15,439 and you've still beaten Les here. Sure, I have. Don't know how I did it. 358 00:22:21,720 --> 00:22:25,399 Don't stand in front of him. He'll run you over. I don't want to get run over. 359 00:22:25,480 --> 00:22:27,959 Look at this. Yeah, the light and everything. 360 00:22:28,600 --> 00:22:30,759 Did you run into someone? Look at it. 361 00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:33,719 Yeah. Three bloody red kangaroo. Three of them? 362 00:22:33,800 --> 00:22:36,279 Three, that's a lot. Made a hell of a mess. 363 00:22:36,360 --> 00:22:39,319 Jeez, Les, your whole front end's (BLEEP), mate. 364 00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:41,079 Not happy.Not good, Les. 365 00:22:41,160 --> 00:22:44,519 Not happy about it at all. Bloody roos. 366 00:22:44,600 --> 00:22:47,519 Well, mate, we can't do nothing about this. No, we can't. 367 00:22:47,600 --> 00:22:50,399 We just soldier on, eh? That's all we can do. 368 00:22:51,360 --> 00:22:55,879 Righto, Sam. Let's get into it, mate. Let's do this. Find some opal. 369 00:22:55,960 --> 00:22:58,359 See you down there. Yeah. I'll see you down there. 370 00:23:04,480 --> 00:23:08,359 Yeah, our target's not going real good. 371 00:23:08,440 --> 00:23:12,879 We've only got to 50 and we need 150. 372 00:23:12,960 --> 00:23:16,759 So I think at the end of the day, I don't think we're going to get there 373 00:23:16,840 --> 00:23:20,919 unless we have a lot of good luck. And at the moment, that's not following us at all. 374 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:24,199 Notice how these walls are all cracking? 375 00:23:24,280 --> 00:23:27,159 I was noticing that before, there's a full split coming through. 376 00:23:27,240 --> 00:23:30,039 There's a split coming through there. On that side, as well. 377 00:23:30,120 --> 00:23:32,199 Look at that crack there.Yeah. 378 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:34,599 It just seems weird that it's cracking that much. 379 00:23:34,680 --> 00:23:39,159 I don't know whether it's a problem unless the cracks are developing from the weight of the roof 380 00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:42,719 coming down. Have to watch that, Sam.Yep. I'll keep an eye on it. 381 00:23:42,800 --> 00:23:44,759 (MACHINE WHIRRING) 382 00:23:52,720 --> 00:23:54,879 Hey, look out! You all right? 383 00:24:00,880 --> 00:24:02,959 Crikey. That was almost my head. 384 00:24:04,480 --> 00:24:07,919 I don't know about you, Issy, but I reckon we should call it quits on that. 385 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:11,159 I need to scrape back with the excavator the weather damaged soil, 386 00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:13,239 because that could have ended badly. 387 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:15,959 It could have ended very bad. Let's call it a day, yeah? 388 00:24:16,040 --> 00:24:18,879 Yeah, call it a day. Hopefully it dries up tomorrow 389 00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:21,919 and we can scrape it back because, yeah, it's just too dangerous. 390 00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:28,999 Compared to yesterday, I couldn't even get the car there yesterday.No. 391 00:24:29,080 --> 00:24:33,839 And I haven't got any mud sticking to my boots today. I reckon it's looking pretty good. 392 00:24:33,920 --> 00:24:37,799 That wall, going to clean it up, create a bit more room for us to continue digging. 393 00:24:37,880 --> 00:24:41,119 You wanna organise the hand tools and I'll get the machine down here. 394 00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:43,759 Let's go. So I'm just going to follow you from behind. 395 00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:47,599 (ENGINE STARTS) Woohoo! Ready to roll. 396 00:24:52,560 --> 00:24:57,839 The trickiest thing after the rain is getting rid of all the damaged soil. 397 00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:00,959 That's a bit of a relief, being able to get this machine in there 398 00:25:01,040 --> 00:25:03,719 because now we can make super-fast progress. 399 00:25:03,800 --> 00:25:06,079 And to move a bucket full of dirt by hand, 400 00:25:06,160 --> 00:25:08,399 it will take us 20 minutes, 30 minutes. 401 00:25:08,480 --> 00:25:12,799 With this machine, we can move a bucketful of dirt in 10, 15 seconds. 402 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:14,639 Awesome. 403 00:25:16,880 --> 00:25:20,359 You can see how wet this dirt is, still. That colour change. 404 00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:27,239 I'm just letting Angel clear the hole out for us. 405 00:25:27,320 --> 00:25:30,079 We should be mining soon. 406 00:25:31,640 --> 00:25:35,479 As I'm cleaning out this hole, I'm also going a little bit deeper 407 00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:37,839 to expose a bit more of that face. 408 00:25:37,920 --> 00:25:40,919 I reckon that'll be the last scoop for now, we'll have a look. 409 00:25:44,920 --> 00:25:47,919 Nothing. It's disappeared on me. 410 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:49,599 (DRILL WHIRRING) 411 00:25:50,960 --> 00:25:54,359 Starting to get a bit chilly, Issy. Yeah, it is. 412 00:25:54,440 --> 00:25:56,399 The night air's starting to kick in. 413 00:25:56,480 --> 00:26:00,279 With it being dark, with the blacklight we'll be able to pick it up so much easier, 414 00:26:00,360 --> 00:26:03,639 we'll pick up every little bit. We're risking losing it at the moment. 415 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:09,399 And if Joe finds out we missed 20 grand, 10 grand, 30 grand, that's not going to be a good day. 416 00:26:12,440 --> 00:26:16,279 The sun is going down, allowing the black lights to shine. 417 00:26:16,360 --> 00:26:17,999 So we're able to spot everything. 418 00:26:18,080 --> 00:26:19,799 All opal glows under UV light. 419 00:26:20,960 --> 00:26:24,119 If I didn't have the black lights, I wouldn't be seeing this stuff. 420 00:26:25,480 --> 00:26:29,599 We're really focusing on this area 'cause the two slips we were following 421 00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:32,079 seems to be joining at the bottom. 422 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,479 What the old timers say are opal pockets are at the bottom of a slip. 423 00:26:35,560 --> 00:26:37,279 We're going down to find the bottom. 424 00:26:37,360 --> 00:26:40,719 Oh, it's...Lots of little bits. Little bits. 425 00:26:40,800 --> 00:26:43,639 Oh! Oh!No, big one. 426 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:48,599 Every time I stick my little screwdriver in here, I hear that crunch, crunch. 427 00:26:48,680 --> 00:26:52,199 That is so cool, in all these little pieces. 428 00:26:52,280 --> 00:26:55,679 And I still reckon it's coming from here. It's just some pile here. 429 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:02,679 Oh, what...Have you got colour? Oh! Look at it!You are kidding me! 430 00:27:03,280 --> 00:27:04,879 Purple, green. 431 00:27:04,960 --> 00:27:08,039 See that? Wow, that's cool. (LAUGHS) 432 00:27:08,120 --> 00:27:10,799 Now it just needs to get a little bit bigger. 433 00:27:12,880 --> 00:27:14,599 Look at that one. 434 00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:18,479 Look at the way that sucker's glowing. And weirdly enough, Issy, 435 00:27:18,560 --> 00:27:21,439 the better it's glowing, the more likely it is to have colour. 436 00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:23,479 This is fully charged. 437 00:27:28,120 --> 00:27:30,679 Oh, Angel.Yeah? Look at this. 438 00:27:30,760 --> 00:27:32,799 (LAUGHS) Issy. 439 00:27:32,880 --> 00:27:36,759 That looks good. Oh, my God, look at the size of that! Don't break it. 440 00:27:36,840 --> 00:27:38,719 It's got colour. 441 00:27:38,800 --> 00:27:40,399 You're on the money. 442 00:27:41,960 --> 00:27:44,439 Wow.That's a good size, eh? 443 00:27:45,440 --> 00:27:47,639 Let's see if it's got colour. That is...Whoa! 444 00:27:47,720 --> 00:27:50,559 Oh, my God! Oh, look at that red. 445 00:27:50,640 --> 00:27:53,199 Finally, we hit it.Finally. 446 00:27:53,280 --> 00:27:55,399 That's going to be awesome, cleaned up. 447 00:27:55,480 --> 00:27:57,399 This is going to make Joe smile. 448 00:27:57,480 --> 00:28:01,719 Joe's put a lot of money into this cut and to have this cut finally turn 449 00:28:01,800 --> 00:28:06,439 after all these years, all these hours and effort put in, is just so rewarding. 450 00:28:20,400 --> 00:28:22,679 Bit of roof let go up there! 451 00:28:22,760 --> 00:28:25,039 Yeah, I'm okay. I'll come back here. 452 00:28:32,520 --> 00:28:35,559 Give us that jackhammer, mate. I'll get it off before it... 453 00:28:35,640 --> 00:28:37,279 Where is the jackhammer? 454 00:28:37,360 --> 00:28:39,039 There you go. 455 00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:43,319 All this bit here just fell out. Yeah. 456 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:46,519 Good thing you weren't standing there, Sam.I know, right? 457 00:28:48,480 --> 00:28:50,199 Yeah. Look how loose it all is. 458 00:28:50,280 --> 00:28:53,559 It was just sitting there, wasn't it?Yeah. 459 00:28:57,480 --> 00:28:59,279 NARRATOR: In Grawin, 460 00:28:59,360 --> 00:29:01,359 The Bushmen are a man down 461 00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:04,919 after Bogger was seriously injured in a pub brawl. 462 00:29:07,000 --> 00:29:08,999 We don't have Bogger with us at the moment. 463 00:29:09,080 --> 00:29:11,799 There's some pretty rough guys crawling out of these holes 464 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:15,119 of an afternoon. Friday night down the pub, 465 00:29:15,640 --> 00:29:19,959 the boys all kicked off and started just swinging hands 466 00:29:20,040 --> 00:29:22,639 and Bogger weaved when he should have ducked. 467 00:29:22,720 --> 00:29:24,399 It's a pretty decent break. 468 00:29:25,320 --> 00:29:27,439 The jaw broke in half right there. 469 00:29:27,520 --> 00:29:30,999 So he's going to be out for a little while, I would think. 470 00:29:34,480 --> 00:29:38,559 It's been hit and miss here. Froggie's is always like that, 471 00:29:38,640 --> 00:29:41,079 but it makes it a lot harder having Bogger out. 472 00:29:41,160 --> 00:29:43,959 He is a good worker and he moves a lot of dirt. 473 00:29:44,040 --> 00:29:47,319 So without him here, we're not as efficient 474 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:49,159 as when all four of us are together. 475 00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:57,359 The ground's starting to look pretty bloody good, Sam.It is, and it's changing a lot, too, I've noticed. 476 00:29:57,440 --> 00:29:59,919 We're getting that purple stuff coming through as well. 477 00:30:02,760 --> 00:30:06,039 Just go in and have a look around that slip there for me. 478 00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:07,759 I reckon I can see something. 479 00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:12,319 Yeah. There's purple coming through.Purple, is there? 480 00:30:12,400 --> 00:30:15,679 It's coming through just here. I'll give it another scrape if you want. 481 00:30:15,760 --> 00:30:17,399 Yeah, that'll be good. 482 00:30:18,880 --> 00:30:21,919 If we can get five more, 10 more metres 483 00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:25,479 and we can hit a big patch, we can save our season, you know? 484 00:30:25,560 --> 00:30:27,999 Otherwise we are absolutely (BLEEP). 485 00:30:31,560 --> 00:30:34,799 Have a look at that up in the corner for us, Sam!It looks good! 486 00:30:36,080 --> 00:30:39,679 Ooh! There's green! Down the back. Got green! 487 00:30:39,760 --> 00:30:42,759 It's a bit mixed up, but it's green on black. 488 00:30:42,840 --> 00:30:46,359 Well that's the best green you can get Sam, isn't! On black.Sure is. 489 00:30:46,440 --> 00:30:49,039 Les? You there? 490 00:30:49,120 --> 00:30:51,679 Yeah!I need ya! 491 00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:53,479 (OVER RADIO) OK, I'll come down. 492 00:31:03,040 --> 00:31:04,639 Hang on. 493 00:31:05,480 --> 00:31:11,319 I've got plenty to do above ground. That's what I was doing and then Bogger got himself a broken jaw. 494 00:31:11,400 --> 00:31:15,559 So I have to come down and take his place. That's the way it is. 495 00:31:15,640 --> 00:31:17,359 That's blue, isn't it? 496 00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:19,119 No, but it's green. 497 00:31:19,200 --> 00:31:21,239 Right, better get up there with a hammer. 498 00:31:21,320 --> 00:31:22,959 (DRILL WHIRRING) 499 00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:26,879 Ohh!Come on. 500 00:31:30,400 --> 00:31:31,999 (ROD LAUGHS) 501 00:31:33,480 --> 00:31:36,719 We got colour!Yes! That's a nice piece of blue. 502 00:31:36,800 --> 00:31:38,519 We've picked up a piece of stone here. 503 00:31:38,600 --> 00:31:43,999 It's got green in it. Yeah, a bit of purple on it. It's not a bad chunk of rock actually. 504 00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:47,599 Oh sure is. There's even a bit of green in there too. Bit of everything, Sam! 505 00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:49,279 It's really bright. 506 00:31:53,960 --> 00:31:57,079 I think there's a bit of nice stuff dropped in there. 507 00:31:57,160 --> 00:31:59,639 Oh, ho-ho! 508 00:31:59,720 --> 00:32:04,479 That's bloody good. Thought I saw a big chunky bit of blue fall in there, Les. 509 00:32:04,560 --> 00:32:06,279 Yes.Well done. 510 00:32:08,040 --> 00:32:09,839 Good work! 511 00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:15,119 Oh, wow. Okay, I'm coming. 512 00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:16,799 DAN: Come have a look at this. 513 00:32:16,880 --> 00:32:20,519 That's what we want to see, big chunks like that. We're gonna hope they're colour 514 00:32:20,600 --> 00:32:23,559 but that's nice. Nice seeing that. Look at that. What have you got? 515 00:32:23,640 --> 00:32:27,399 Oh, my God. That is lighting up like a Christmas tree. This is what I've seen first. 516 00:32:27,480 --> 00:32:30,279 Oh! Look at that. Look at all that material. 517 00:32:30,360 --> 00:32:33,599 Wow!It looks so much like that piece you found on the floor. 518 00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:37,999 Does that have colour in it? No, I can't see any colour in it, but it's got a dark skin on it. 519 00:32:38,080 --> 00:32:41,719 So we've got to clean that up, tumble it properly. But look at those chunks. 520 00:32:41,800 --> 00:32:43,719 Let's go have a look. Let's get 'em.Yeah. 521 00:32:46,200 --> 00:32:50,319 Ooh. Look at that.Wow, look at that, Dan! (LAUGHS) That's nice. 522 00:32:50,400 --> 00:32:53,159 That's cool.Let's do it in the light and see if it's colour. 523 00:32:53,240 --> 00:32:54,839 Yeah! I will. 524 00:32:57,440 --> 00:32:59,839 That's colour. Pretty happy with that. 525 00:32:59,920 --> 00:33:02,839 Wow, Dan, that's cool. Nice stuff, isn't it? 526 00:33:02,920 --> 00:33:05,719 They're big chunks. There's got to be more. Yeah! 527 00:33:05,800 --> 00:33:09,039 I think we're going to do all right. Oh! You found another piece? 528 00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:11,719 Yeah.I haven't even moved and you found another bit. 529 00:33:11,800 --> 00:33:14,999 Wow! Oh, my God look at that! That is beautiful, Dan. 530 00:33:15,080 --> 00:33:18,999 All right, so that's it. We're going to have to blacklight this whole dump.Yeah. 531 00:33:19,080 --> 00:33:20,959 This is a big dump. Might take us a while. 532 00:33:21,040 --> 00:33:25,359 So you're gonna grab some bags and then we can just chuck it in the bags and tumble it tomorrow. 533 00:33:25,440 --> 00:33:30,079 We're going to have to with colour like that.Yeah, that's amazing. I'm going to put that in my pocket. 534 00:33:30,160 --> 00:33:32,319 Yep. We're gonna have some money in this dump. 535 00:33:32,400 --> 00:33:37,679 Yeah. All right, let's grab some bags and keep black lighting. Just gonna black light it. Big job. 536 00:33:51,680 --> 00:33:54,319 Hopefully, we've got a heap of opal in there, Dan. 537 00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:56,239 You've got the muscles. 538 00:34:00,400 --> 00:34:02,479 Lot of material.Yeah, it's heaps. 539 00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:06,359 How many hours is this going to take to tumble, Dan? 540 00:34:06,440 --> 00:34:09,199 I think we'll need probably two hours to tumble that up.Yep. 541 00:34:09,280 --> 00:34:10,879 Give it a good wash. 542 00:34:12,560 --> 00:34:14,879 That's going to be massive, then, that one. 543 00:34:18,200 --> 00:34:22,039 There you go.All right. I'm not sure this is going to start. 544 00:34:22,920 --> 00:34:24,519 There we go. 545 00:34:26,600 --> 00:34:31,559 Tumbler's a pretty simple concept. It's a drum with a sieve around it. We put the opal in, 546 00:34:31,640 --> 00:34:35,319 moves it all around, washes it through the water, and it chips the sandstone 547 00:34:35,400 --> 00:34:37,639 and dirt off as it goes. Cleans the opal up. 548 00:34:37,720 --> 00:34:42,479 Saves us cleaning it with grinding and knives and clipping. Does the job. 549 00:34:42,560 --> 00:34:46,159 Let's go get a drink.Yeah. Come back, a couple of hours and see what we've got. 550 00:34:56,040 --> 00:34:59,799 Right. Let's see how good we've done this week, hey? 551 00:34:59,880 --> 00:35:03,319 I think we haven't done too bad actually, Sam.Yeah? 552 00:35:03,400 --> 00:35:05,559 A bit of water? 553 00:35:05,640 --> 00:35:08,639 Tip a bit of water on that, Sam. Make it look prettier. 554 00:35:08,720 --> 00:35:10,799 There we go.Oh-hoo. 555 00:35:10,880 --> 00:35:14,399 Look at the bar on that, will ya? Oh, that's pretty. It's nice, isn't it? 556 00:35:14,480 --> 00:35:17,719 See that, Les? See that bar goes right through. Goes all the way around. 557 00:35:17,800 --> 00:35:19,399 Oh, yeah.So, you'll cut that. 558 00:35:19,480 --> 00:35:22,399 Yep.You'll get probably two stones out of that. I like that one. 559 00:35:22,480 --> 00:35:24,719 Green.It's got that gold colour in it, hasn't it? 560 00:35:24,800 --> 00:35:29,559 NARRATOR: The Bushmen have a small parcel of grey based and crystal opal, 561 00:35:29,640 --> 00:35:33,719 featuring blue, green, purple, gold and orange. 562 00:35:33,800 --> 00:35:37,639 It's in the rough and weighs 90 grams. 563 00:35:37,720 --> 00:35:40,239 I reckon we need to put a value on this, Sam. 564 00:35:41,440 --> 00:35:44,759 Well, this is at least a grand in itself. Probably more.Yep. 565 00:35:44,840 --> 00:35:47,759 And you've got some really nice green and gold in here.Mm-hmm. 566 00:35:47,840 --> 00:35:50,599 You're going to cut some nice stones. I reckon... 567 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:53,239 Three grand. You happy with that, Les? 568 00:35:53,320 --> 00:35:57,079 Yeah, that doesn't seem to be a bad little price for that little parcel. 569 00:36:01,920 --> 00:36:05,439 We'll ask for four and settle on three.Sounds good. 570 00:36:05,520 --> 00:36:10,039 I think that's a pretty fair price for that, I would reckon.Yeah, I think it's a very fair price. 571 00:36:10,120 --> 00:36:11,879 I think we've done pretty bloody well. 572 00:36:15,800 --> 00:36:18,559 Under all the circumstances, everything that's gone wrong, 573 00:36:18,640 --> 00:36:21,719 so we'll just keep on doing what we're doing. Happy with that? 574 00:36:21,800 --> 00:36:24,519 Yes.Good on you. All right. Come on. 575 00:36:24,600 --> 00:36:26,399 Let's go find somewhere cool. 576 00:36:26,480 --> 00:36:29,399 I reckon that sounds all right. It's got to better than this. 577 00:36:41,680 --> 00:36:45,119 Alright. So we'll weigh it up now. That's our classing there.Yeah. 578 00:36:45,200 --> 00:36:51,519 One, second class, third. Shell. And that's our fourth class. 579 00:36:51,600 --> 00:36:53,839 The first class obviously has got the best colour. 580 00:36:53,920 --> 00:36:56,959 It's beautiful. It almost looks purpley. Purpley, pinky. 581 00:36:57,040 --> 00:36:58,999 Be really easy to move this stuff. 582 00:36:59,080 --> 00:37:04,159 Yeah, someone will be able to make some nice jewellery out of this. Beautiful. 583 00:37:04,240 --> 00:37:05,919 And then, of course, your shell. 584 00:37:06,000 --> 00:37:09,319 Yeah, of course that's my favourite because I found that one.Yeah. 585 00:37:09,400 --> 00:37:11,399 Could do with a little bit more of a cleanup. 586 00:37:11,480 --> 00:37:14,079 The tumble hasn't got it all the way there, but beautiful. 587 00:37:15,480 --> 00:37:19,239 NARRATOR: The Opal Lovers have a parcel of crystal opal 588 00:37:19,320 --> 00:37:21,879 displaying the full spectrum of colours. 589 00:37:21,960 --> 00:37:25,159 Plus, a single opalised shell. They're in the rough 590 00:37:25,240 --> 00:37:28,119 and weigh 970 grams. 591 00:37:28,200 --> 00:37:30,559 So how much do you reckon, Dan? Weigh it up? 592 00:37:30,640 --> 00:37:34,959 We'll have to weigh it up, erm. I reckon we start with the tops. You should put it down. 593 00:37:37,680 --> 00:37:40,439 So, it's four and a half ounces. 594 00:37:40,520 --> 00:37:42,639 2,000 an ounce. So, seconds. 595 00:37:43,680 --> 00:37:45,839 Also four and a half ounces. 596 00:37:45,920 --> 00:37:48,799 Six hundred an ounce.600? 597 00:37:50,880 --> 00:37:52,479 Three. 598 00:37:53,960 --> 00:37:58,359 Ten ounces. 200 hundred an ounce on that. 599 00:37:59,640 --> 00:38:01,319 Four is 15 ounces. 600 00:38:02,480 --> 00:38:04,879 I think we average that at $100 an ounce. 601 00:38:06,320 --> 00:38:08,959 The shell's weight is not really going to be that relevant. 602 00:38:09,040 --> 00:38:11,679 Because for me, it's more of a specimen or a one off. 603 00:38:11,760 --> 00:38:13,439 Yep.800 bucks. 604 00:38:13,520 --> 00:38:16,399 800. Oh, that's alright. And 800. 605 00:38:23,120 --> 00:38:25,719 Sixteen grand.Sixteen thousand! 606 00:38:30,560 --> 00:38:32,599 Well, that's not bad, isn't it, Dan? 607 00:38:32,680 --> 00:38:34,559 After that long night and everything. 608 00:38:34,640 --> 00:38:37,519 Yeah, it's worth it. Add that onto our total. 609 00:38:37,600 --> 00:38:40,919 I didn't think from that one little trench with one piece of potch in it, 610 00:38:41,000 --> 00:38:43,359 we could end up earning 16 grand. Yeah. Yep. 611 00:38:47,320 --> 00:38:50,199 We're gonna have to celebrate, aren't we?I think lunch for you. 612 00:38:50,280 --> 00:38:53,119 Take it out for a nice lunch. Yeah, okay. Beautiful. Excellent. 613 00:38:53,200 --> 00:38:54,999 Well done.All right. 614 00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:02,159 Well, that was great, wasn't it, Dan?It's a pretty good result. 615 00:39:02,240 --> 00:39:05,959 Took us a while to get there. Sixteen grand's worth a cheers, I think. 616 00:39:06,040 --> 00:39:07,799 Cheers.Well done. 617 00:39:18,400 --> 00:39:21,359 ISSY: You home, Angel? Come on in, Issy. 618 00:39:21,440 --> 00:39:24,799 I'm just about to chuck this opal in the tumbler, see what we've got. 619 00:39:24,880 --> 00:39:27,439 So we need to clean it up, tumble it for... 620 00:39:27,520 --> 00:39:32,199 I don't know, an hour? And then we'll be able to see exactly what kind of value we've got. 621 00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:37,439 This is my handy dandy little opal tumbler. 622 00:39:37,520 --> 00:39:42,479 We just fill it half with water, and the opal, as it's hitting each other, it cleans itself off. 623 00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:45,879 The more we can see in each stone, the more we're gonna get for it. 624 00:39:45,960 --> 00:39:47,759 We'll see what we got at the end of it. 625 00:39:47,840 --> 00:39:50,399 First thing this morning I gave Joe a call. 626 00:39:50,480 --> 00:39:53,479 And he said there was a buyer in town knocked on his door. 627 00:39:53,560 --> 00:39:57,359 Really?Yep. We're going to bring him around just after it's all cleaned up. 628 00:39:57,440 --> 00:39:59,559 Hopefully we get a sale in today. Awesome. 629 00:39:59,640 --> 00:40:01,279 We've got to get this oven going too. 630 00:40:01,360 --> 00:40:04,479 Was it 160 you said?160, yep. 631 00:40:04,560 --> 00:40:09,399 Gonna have a choc orange cake today. And fingers crossed it turns out. 632 00:40:09,480 --> 00:40:11,559 Stop drooling. It's not ready yet. 633 00:40:11,640 --> 00:40:13,679 No, it's not looking edible yet. 634 00:40:14,560 --> 00:40:17,079 We still need to get this sale across the line. 635 00:40:17,160 --> 00:40:22,559 If we don't, well, it could be God knows when we get an opportunity again. 636 00:40:22,640 --> 00:40:25,479 Well, I reckon the opal should be about done. 637 00:40:25,560 --> 00:40:28,199 Good timing. Let's see what we've got. 638 00:40:28,280 --> 00:40:31,839 Look at that.That's cleaned up really, really nice. 639 00:40:31,920 --> 00:40:34,239 It has. Got a fair bit. 640 00:40:34,320 --> 00:40:37,359 Yeah. I'm just trying to think of the value here. 641 00:40:37,440 --> 00:40:39,719 Just going by those colours... 642 00:40:39,800 --> 00:40:41,679 It has to be... 643 00:40:43,200 --> 00:40:45,639 Twenty grand for the lot. Ask 25. 644 00:40:45,720 --> 00:40:48,959 I guess we're just going to have to wait for the buyer to get here.Yeah. 645 00:40:50,680 --> 00:40:53,919 Never met these buyers before, so hopefully we can close a sale. 646 00:40:54,000 --> 00:40:57,999 I'm not budging off the 20 grand 'cause this material is definitely worth it. 647 00:40:58,880 --> 00:41:02,839 Ah, here's Joe now. That must be the buyers behind him, hey.Yep. 648 00:41:02,920 --> 00:41:05,319 Morning.Morning. Hello. 649 00:41:05,400 --> 00:41:07,719 This is Brenton and his son, Aiden. 650 00:41:07,800 --> 00:41:10,039 Hi, Issy.Hi, Aiden. Nice to meet you, mate. 651 00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:13,159 Angel.Nice to meet you. Hi, Angel, I'm Brenton.Brenton. 652 00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:15,839 So you're here to buy some opal, eh? 653 00:41:15,920 --> 00:41:18,719 Yes. I've been in the game for a while, but young Aiden here, 654 00:41:18,800 --> 00:41:20,759 it's time for him to get into the game, too. 655 00:41:20,840 --> 00:41:24,039 Awesome. Good to see you. I've come to sponsor him for his first deal, 656 00:41:24,120 --> 00:41:26,039 and we're gonna to see how he goes with it. 657 00:41:26,120 --> 00:41:29,879 Well, this is a pretty good parcel that Issy and I found last night. 658 00:41:31,280 --> 00:41:33,279 About 10 ounces there. 659 00:41:33,360 --> 00:41:36,959 NARRATOR: The Misfits have a parcel of white and crystal opal 660 00:41:37,040 --> 00:41:39,759 featuring the full spectrum of colours. 661 00:41:39,840 --> 00:41:45,039 It's been washed in a tumbler and weighs 283 grams. 662 00:41:45,120 --> 00:41:47,119 So what are you looking for? 663 00:41:48,000 --> 00:41:49,959 I'm asking 25 grand for it. 664 00:41:50,040 --> 00:41:51,759 Decent parcel, lots of colour. 665 00:41:51,840 --> 00:41:53,919 Full spectrum in there. 666 00:41:59,440 --> 00:42:01,919 There is a mix of the quality in there. 667 00:42:02,000 --> 00:42:04,439 I think you might be misjudging it there a little bit. 668 00:42:04,520 --> 00:42:09,279 But yeah, what's the numbers that's coming to mind for you guys? AIDEN: From what I'm seeing... 669 00:42:09,360 --> 00:42:12,639 Sixteen.Really? That's pretty low. 670 00:42:12,720 --> 00:42:15,479 No way.It's a joke. 671 00:42:15,560 --> 00:42:17,319 That's just way too low. 672 00:42:17,400 --> 00:42:21,239 Travelled a bloody long way to get here and I was expecting a bit more volume... 673 00:42:21,320 --> 00:42:23,519 Yeah....in that parcel. It is what it is. 674 00:42:24,280 --> 00:42:26,039 I mean, I can go down to 23 grand. 675 00:42:26,720 --> 00:42:28,399 This is your deal, Aiden. 676 00:42:28,960 --> 00:42:30,559 Eighteen and a half. 677 00:42:30,640 --> 00:42:32,399 We can't let it go for that. 678 00:42:32,480 --> 00:42:34,879 Twenty one? 679 00:42:34,960 --> 00:42:37,559 You're getting closer.Twenty. 680 00:42:41,760 --> 00:42:43,719 All right, we'll go with twenty. 681 00:42:43,800 --> 00:42:45,879 Done deal. 682 00:42:45,960 --> 00:42:48,199 Awesome.Cool bananas.Well done. 683 00:42:51,480 --> 00:42:55,959 Awesome. Thank you. My phone should buzz me when I receive it. 684 00:42:56,040 --> 00:42:57,919 Yep. There we go. Thank you very much. 685 00:42:58,000 --> 00:42:59,959 All right.Pleasure doing business with you. 686 00:43:00,040 --> 00:43:01,959 That's what we need to keep going. 687 00:43:02,040 --> 00:43:04,599 I want to be a successful miner. And in order to be that, 688 00:43:04,680 --> 00:43:06,599 you've got to know how to sell your opal. 689 00:43:06,680 --> 00:43:10,479 Joe said, "Well done, girls." You know, he doesn't say that often. 690 00:43:10,560 --> 00:43:14,519 And when he says that, it's really good for me because it's like I'm on the path. 691 00:43:14,600 --> 00:43:16,239 I'm very happy. We can keep digging. 692 00:43:18,440 --> 00:43:22,919 I thought you'd left before you had your cake, Joe. Holy hell.There you go. 693 00:43:23,000 --> 00:43:25,399 This is a good round-up to a heavy--duty week. 694 00:43:25,480 --> 00:43:27,159 I think yous done well this week, 695 00:43:27,240 --> 00:43:31,239 even though you had to go night shift, you know? But... It paid off. 696 00:43:31,320 --> 00:43:34,159 You can't afford to be missing stuff, you know? 697 00:43:34,240 --> 00:43:38,119 Well, here's to a good sale and a good week.Cheers.Cool bananas. 698 00:43:38,200 --> 00:43:39,799 (ALL LAUGH) 699 00:43:39,880 --> 00:43:41,879 Subtitles by Deluxe 700 00:43:42,305 --> 00:44:42,794 Watch Online Movies and Series for FREE www.osdb.link/lm