"Outback Opal Hunters" Episode #4.10

1 00:00:02,360 --> 00:00:07,600 I'm sick of this. ..the Bushmen battle opal thieves on land... 2 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:10,960 There he is. ..and in the skies... 3 00:00:11,040 --> 00:00:12,440 Bloody hell. 4 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,080 ..wild weather again forces the Boulder Boys... 5 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:19,160 There's no shortcut. ..to dig their way out of trouble... 6 00:00:19,240 --> 00:00:20,560 There we go. 7 00:00:20,640 --> 00:00:23,040 ..and, as summer heat end's their season... 8 00:00:23,120 --> 00:00:24,720 Too hot. Look out. 9 00:00:24,800 --> 00:00:28,200 ..Gav McFarlane puts rookie son Zac through his paces. 10 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:29,920 Get the out of here! 11 00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:37,074 Watch Online Movies and Series for FREE www.osdb.link/lm 12 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:58,760 Putting some fuel in it, are you, Les? Yep, get it ready for tomorrow. 13 00:00:58,840 --> 00:01:01,640 Did you know there's a car over here? Oh, yeah. 14 00:01:10,040 --> 00:01:14,640 Nigel, stay! I'm gonna go and see who this is, Les. I'm sick of this. 15 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,240 That's why you sort of pay attention to an unknown car around. 16 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:23,000 I've had a gutful of this. 17 00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:26,240 How many times do you have to deal with these bastards? 18 00:01:26,320 --> 00:01:31,440 Rod Manning is chasing down another suspected opal thief. 19 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:33,520 There he is. 20 00:01:35,360 --> 00:01:36,760 Gone down there. 21 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:38,840 He's a bit quicker than me. 22 00:01:39,960 --> 00:01:42,400 This season he and partner Les 23 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:45,760 have lost thousands of dollars to thieves. 24 00:01:45,840 --> 00:01:47,840 I got no hope of catching him. 25 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:50,000 'Makes you angry.' 26 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:53,160 Unfortunately on opal fields, you're always going to have raiders. 27 00:01:53,240 --> 00:01:55,160 Couldn't catch him, Les. 28 00:01:55,240 --> 00:01:59,040 They're just scummy little parasites, you know. 29 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:02,600 Not good. We'll have to keep a bit more of an eye out, that's all. 30 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:05,840 Makes you start thinking when you go to work in the morning, 31 00:02:05,920 --> 00:02:08,160 "What has some mongrel taken now?" 32 00:02:08,240 --> 00:02:12,520 That's what they do this time of year, see. The fields are starting to clear out. 33 00:02:12,600 --> 00:02:15,680 Not as many people around, not so many eyes watching them. 34 00:02:17,880 --> 00:02:22,440 What if we get the dogs on top the hole as our security while we're down there. 35 00:02:22,520 --> 00:02:25,840 That's a good idea. At least, they'll let us know if they come back. Yeah. 36 00:02:25,920 --> 00:02:28,600 All right, yous two, yous are on duty, all right? 37 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:31,080 You got to let us know what's going on. 38 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:35,480 Bondis, we've been doing all right there 39 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:38,880 and it's a race now to get as much out of there as we can. 40 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:41,720 There is only a certain amount of time 41 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:44,320 we can work there before that heat comes. 42 00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:46,840 Once that heat comes, you know, 43 00:02:46,920 --> 00:02:49,360 there is not much you can do. 44 00:02:49,440 --> 00:02:54,960 Summer temperatures in the region can reach well over 45 degrees Celsius, 45 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:57,560 making it impossible for miners to work. 46 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:03,400 The Bushmen have just weeks before they down tools. 47 00:03:05,280 --> 00:03:07,400 They're on the hunt for black opal, 48 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:09,760 but are still short of their season target, 49 00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:14,400 with most of this year's earnings eaten up by repair costs and debts. 50 00:03:16,760 --> 00:03:21,440 It's a vicious circle, you get a bit and then someone else wants it. 51 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:24,200 Bed's a bit bloody rough at the moment, 52 00:03:24,280 --> 00:03:27,120 the cupboards are pretty bare cos we buy in bulk. 53 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:31,600 The diesel man won't give me any more diesel till I've paid my bill. So... 54 00:03:31,680 --> 00:03:34,360 we've got to have some money come in very soon. 55 00:03:37,040 --> 00:03:40,640 First job, get their two-ton digger working again. 56 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:45,840 The leg ram that pushes her up into the roof to lock her in place, 57 00:03:45,920 --> 00:03:50,640 we got a hydraulic leak in the bottom hose so we just fixed it up. 58 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:53,800 We'll stick the leg back in now, shouldn't take too long. 59 00:03:55,560 --> 00:03:57,000 Whoa. 60 00:03:57,080 --> 00:03:59,080 Push a bit more. 61 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:08,280 There we go. 62 00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:14,960 When I have to tip it back this way, with this particular digger, 63 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:17,120 I've got to be a little bit careful 64 00:04:17,200 --> 00:04:21,000 cos if I let her come over too quick she's going to bloody keep on going 65 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:23,120 and end up laying on this other side again. 66 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,000 Let's push it. 67 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:31,320 Jesus...Christ! 68 00:04:36,920 --> 00:04:40,760 Everything is going not bad today, so far. We're on fire, mate. 69 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:44,080 Now, we're just about to dig up a big lump of opal. 70 00:04:52,680 --> 00:04:55,280 Too hot, hence why the ice. 71 00:04:55,360 --> 00:04:58,560 Oh, God. Sweltering. 72 00:05:01,240 --> 00:05:03,960 70 kilometres to the northeast, 73 00:05:04,040 --> 00:05:07,680 the first hot spell of summer is hitting the McFarlanes hard. 74 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:14,240 Over 40 - 42, 43, 44, 45 - every single solitary day. 75 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:22,840 Including my flushing toilet. Why the hell do you need wire... 76 00:05:24,800 --> 00:05:27,640 ..for a toilet? God give me strength. 77 00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:30,320 For months, a shortage of opal 78 00:05:30,400 --> 00:05:34,160 and cash has put essential home improvements on hold. 79 00:05:35,560 --> 00:05:39,800 I will nag until the cows come home. I don't care what they say. Nagging will get there for me. 80 00:05:39,880 --> 00:05:44,560 Teagan, get your shoes off those sheets, get out of the bed. Move, go goodbye. 81 00:05:44,640 --> 00:05:50,040 For Connie and 16-year-old daughter Teagan, the uncomfortable has become unbearable. 82 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:54,200 My pillows are covered in dirt. They're filthy. Yes, they are. 83 00:05:54,280 --> 00:05:59,200 For privacy I only have a curtain and you can see through it. 84 00:05:59,280 --> 00:06:02,240 I'd like a wall and I would like for the roof 85 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:05,200 to not fall on me when I'm sleeping. 86 00:06:05,280 --> 00:06:08,800 This stuff just brings down dust and dirt. 87 00:06:08,880 --> 00:06:12,200 As you can see, dirt just falls and that's just gross. 88 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:15,600 I got a lot of pressure on me at the moment. 89 00:06:15,680 --> 00:06:18,240 I need to make money to get my camp sorted. 90 00:06:18,320 --> 00:06:22,840 Our roof is a priority. It would be just so nice to be able to get 91 00:06:22,920 --> 00:06:27,920 that one lot of money to be able to go and order all the materials in one hit and go, there's our roof. 92 00:06:28,000 --> 00:06:31,040 Just to make it a home and not a shack. 93 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:35,280 With a target of $20,000, 94 00:06:35,360 --> 00:06:39,360 Gavan has found just $2,200. 95 00:06:41,400 --> 00:06:43,880 The season's getting pretty much to the end. 96 00:06:45,200 --> 00:06:49,640 Time is ticking. Time is always ticking isn't it? 97 00:06:50,920 --> 00:06:55,160 With one last dig left of the season, Gavan needs help. 98 00:06:55,240 --> 00:06:58,880 Zac finally moved here. We're so excited to see him. 99 00:06:58,960 --> 00:07:01,800 The McFarlane's 19-year-old son, Zac, 100 00:07:01,880 --> 00:07:06,240 has just moved over 600 kilometres from the coast with his young family. 101 00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:08,320 Hello, everyone. 102 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:10,880 Yeah, so I've finally made the move up to the ridge 103 00:07:10,960 --> 00:07:13,240 and I'm real happy we're up here now. 104 00:07:13,320 --> 00:07:15,120 Closer to family, it's real good. 105 00:07:15,200 --> 00:07:16,760 We missed you. 106 00:07:16,840 --> 00:07:20,880 Is that your bottle? Hello, my other little man. Hey, Dad. Hiya, buddy. 107 00:07:20,960 --> 00:07:25,200 Dad's definitely trying to make sure he doesn't let the girls down with the shack 108 00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:28,400 and he wants to make them feel comfortable and happy. 109 00:07:28,480 --> 00:07:33,000 That's why I'm here to help him. I'm here to tell him that he can do it and I've got his back. 110 00:07:33,080 --> 00:07:36,520 Mwah! Yes, I'm going to work. I need to go to work. 111 00:07:36,600 --> 00:07:40,200 But Zac has never mined before. 112 00:07:40,280 --> 00:07:44,680 I'm here to learn, help out and provide. 113 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:47,280 I'm going to go help, Poppy. Where's Daddy going? 114 00:07:47,360 --> 00:07:50,680 There is plenty of pressures - young parent and whatnot, first kid. 115 00:07:50,760 --> 00:07:54,640 Work my arse off - seven days a week, 24/7 if I had to, you know. 116 00:07:54,720 --> 00:07:57,000 Anything to make him happy. 117 00:07:57,080 --> 00:07:59,080 Bye, guys. Bye, everybody. 118 00:08:01,120 --> 00:08:02,640 Ready to go. 119 00:08:02,720 --> 00:08:07,280 Finger's crossed and the opal gods are kind to us. He might even bring us a bit of luck. 120 00:08:11,920 --> 00:08:16,160 900 kilometres to the north, in tropical Queensland... 121 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:18,800 Have a look at that, Ron. 122 00:08:19,800 --> 00:08:22,040 Bloody hell. 123 00:08:23,520 --> 00:08:26,480 Wow! 124 00:08:26,560 --> 00:08:29,000 No wonder it's leaking in. 125 00:08:30,120 --> 00:08:32,120 That's a lot of water. 126 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:43,120 I was listening to the radio. It said 6 to 8 mil we'll be getting 127 00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:45,680 and got 75 and then 15 the next morning. 128 00:08:45,800 --> 00:08:50,200 Tomorrow is 90 mil. Well, we can't stop the rain. 129 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:57,440 A freak thunderstorm has saturated the Boulder Boys' 27-hectare mine site, 130 00:08:57,520 --> 00:09:01,200 including their main pit, and the water level is rising. 131 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:06,200 That's gushing in, look at it. 132 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:08,920 She's actually running in like a spring. 133 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:10,840 That's a gusher. 134 00:09:11,520 --> 00:09:15,840 The source of the rising waters - a flooded neighbouring open-cut mine 135 00:09:15,920 --> 00:09:18,880 known as Col's Cut. 136 00:09:19,960 --> 00:09:23,160 That's all coming from Col's Cut. That's coming through, mate. 137 00:09:23,240 --> 00:09:25,840 Look at that, eh? Back to square one, Ron. 138 00:09:25,920 --> 00:09:28,760 She's got us again. We can pump that out, 139 00:09:28,840 --> 00:09:32,800 but there's no point pumping that out if she just keeps running through here. 140 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:35,200 Just disheartening. 141 00:09:36,360 --> 00:09:41,360 For the Boulder Boys, the Dragonfly claim is nearly all dug out. 142 00:09:41,440 --> 00:09:45,600 The pit is their last chance of big opal. 143 00:09:45,680 --> 00:09:48,480 Well, I think there's opal up there in the pit. 144 00:09:48,560 --> 00:09:51,320 My dad said that's our best chance of getting opal. 145 00:09:53,840 --> 00:09:56,440 To stop water seeping into the pit, 146 00:09:56,520 --> 00:10:01,040 the boys must somehow lower the water level in Col's Cut. 147 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:06,080 We'll put in trench in there somewhere, eh? 148 00:10:06,160 --> 00:10:08,920 We're gonna have to. Yeah. 149 00:10:09,000 --> 00:10:11,080 Me and Ron will put a trench in from Col's Cut. 150 00:10:11,160 --> 00:10:14,840 At least, if we drop ten feet of water we won't have this problem here. 151 00:10:16,480 --> 00:10:18,640 It's all we can do. Let's do it, eh? All right. 152 00:10:31,760 --> 00:10:34,800 It's all costing time and money. 153 00:10:34,880 --> 00:10:39,720 Every hour, the excavator burns through $50 of diesel. 154 00:10:42,760 --> 00:10:45,880 There's no shortcut for what we're doing. 155 00:10:52,080 --> 00:10:54,080 We're nearly finished the trench now, 156 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:56,760 so, I'll get it forward and break the last bit out. 157 00:10:57,840 --> 00:10:59,840 Bit of luck, we'll get water coming out. 158 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:07,960 The best thing to come out of a mine at the end of the day is the miner. 159 00:11:08,040 --> 00:11:10,160 For Zac McFarlane, 160 00:11:10,240 --> 00:11:12,760 it's day one of mining school. 161 00:11:12,840 --> 00:11:16,560 And you'll hear it in our voice and I want you to move like a gazelle. 162 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:19,080 Faster than you can move, OK? Yep. 163 00:11:19,160 --> 00:11:22,800 Zac's training ground is his dad's claim, 164 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:25,160 littered with old, condemned mines. 165 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:31,040 First lesson: how to survive a tunnel collapse. 166 00:11:31,120 --> 00:11:34,480 So, we're gonna give you a go, give you a run at the emergency exit. 167 00:11:34,560 --> 00:11:38,280 It's a necessity. It's... This will save your life. You need to know. 168 00:11:38,360 --> 00:11:42,640 It could happen any time like, "Get the out of here!" Yep. And then go? 169 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:48,400 You need to know the route, 170 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:51,240 you need to know which way your emergency ladders are. 171 00:11:52,600 --> 00:11:55,680 You just gotta keep going, moving forward. Don't look back. 172 00:11:55,760 --> 00:11:58,640 Look forward and go. Go, go, go, go. 173 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:01,880 Excellent. Well done. 174 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:05,040 That's just to give you an idea that that's how quick it can happen. 175 00:12:05,120 --> 00:12:08,720 Zac has moved to Lightning Ridge with his young family 176 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:11,120 to build a new life as an opal miner. 177 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:14,040 You did well, it was good. At only 19, 178 00:12:14,120 --> 00:12:17,880 I'm a dad now with a little... a little boy, Levi. 179 00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:21,360 I love him to death. he's my whole world. He is. 180 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:24,960 My number one priority, really, is to make sure he's happy and healthy. 181 00:12:27,160 --> 00:12:30,360 The ultimate price anyone can pay in this game is death. 182 00:12:30,440 --> 00:12:34,720 So, we've put in as much safety and precaution as we can 183 00:12:34,800 --> 00:12:38,000 to stop anything like that happening to us. 184 00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:42,320 Now to move in and start in on the face. 185 00:12:42,400 --> 00:12:45,960 One of the most dangerous and difficult tasks underground 186 00:12:46,040 --> 00:12:48,120 is moving the one-ton digger. 187 00:12:49,240 --> 00:12:52,200 Movin' the diggers...it's hairy stuff. 188 00:12:52,280 --> 00:12:55,400 It can happen so quick, it can go over, tip over. 189 00:12:55,480 --> 00:12:58,360 And then that... Tippin' it over, you just gotta 190 00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:00,680 run away as far as you can. You don't wanna try 191 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:03,000 and stop it from tippin', mate, it'll kill ya. 192 00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:05,720 If I say, "Get," Just get... The back. Yeah. 193 00:13:05,800 --> 00:13:08,080 Get away from it. Don't go anywhere near it. 194 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:10,240 Look out. 195 00:13:12,760 --> 00:13:14,760 See, it's that quick. 196 00:13:14,840 --> 00:13:17,280 The arrival of experienced 197 00:13:17,360 --> 00:13:21,480 digger operator Tim Bryant is a welcome relief. 198 00:13:21,560 --> 00:13:23,920 Ah, aren't you a sight for sore eyes. 199 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:26,400 What're you doing you silly, old freak? 200 00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:29,240 How are you going? How are you? Trying not to roll the digger. 201 00:13:29,320 --> 00:13:31,960 Well, mate, you know what? It's all yours. 202 00:13:32,040 --> 00:13:34,480 It's all right, mate. Thanks, buddy. Good to see you. 203 00:13:37,720 --> 00:13:40,080 This is the last dig of the season. 204 00:13:40,160 --> 00:13:44,920 And for Zac, his first and last chance to find opal. 205 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:48,080 That's what we want. We want colour, colour. 206 00:13:51,560 --> 00:13:54,640 Dad. What have you got? Look at that. 207 00:13:54,720 --> 00:13:57,400 Can you see it? 208 00:13:57,480 --> 00:14:01,520 Down there having a bit of scratch, sees himself a bit of trace. 209 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:03,920 I think he might be bringing us the luck we need. 210 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:06,720 Right there, where your light is. 211 00:14:06,800 --> 00:14:10,160 Up. To the left a touch. Look at that. Yeah? 212 00:14:12,520 --> 00:14:15,120 Bet that's a nobby. Yeah, it is. 213 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:18,160 Yep. Yep. There is it. It is, it's a nobby. 214 00:14:18,240 --> 00:14:20,560 Jesus, let's hope there's some colour in it. 215 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:32,840 So, yeah, another five minutes, we should start draining Col's Cut. 216 00:14:32,920 --> 00:14:35,760 In remote Queensland, Aaron and Ron, 217 00:14:35,840 --> 00:14:38,240 are digging a 60-metre-long trench 218 00:14:38,320 --> 00:14:42,720 to relieve water pressure on their last remaining opal pit. 219 00:14:45,320 --> 00:14:47,320 There we go. 220 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:53,480 That should take a lot of the pressure off. 221 00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:06,240 I'll reckon that'll drop a third of it, that's all we need. 222 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:10,160 Well, it's doing the job. Good gutter, eh, Ron? Yes. 223 00:15:10,240 --> 00:15:13,280 The water level in the pit is dropping, 224 00:15:13,360 --> 00:15:15,360 but there's still a problem. 225 00:15:15,440 --> 00:15:18,000 We can't tunnel now. No, that'd be too dangerous. 226 00:15:18,080 --> 00:15:21,920 The walls of the pit are too wet to tunnel into. 227 00:15:22,000 --> 00:15:24,720 We do want a mine in there, at least get a tunnel in. 228 00:15:24,800 --> 00:15:28,200 We don't want the tunnel to fill up with water, which it will. 229 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:29,960 It gets a bit disappointing. 230 00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:33,080 If they're going to find opal, 231 00:15:33,160 --> 00:15:36,520 the Boulder Boys will need a new plan. 232 00:15:36,600 --> 00:15:40,440 Well, the Dragonfly's had 95% of it dug. 233 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:44,920 We can't dig anywhere around here. They're all too big a jobs. 234 00:15:45,000 --> 00:15:47,960 I think I'm gonna start looking for new ground. 235 00:15:48,040 --> 00:15:50,040 We'll get another lease out here. 236 00:15:50,120 --> 00:15:53,280 Two-and-a-half kilometres to the east, 237 00:15:53,360 --> 00:15:56,760 Aaron has an exploration permit, or EP, 238 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:59,720 covering 1,000 hectares. 239 00:16:01,800 --> 00:16:04,120 Let's hope we get it. It allows them 240 00:16:04,200 --> 00:16:06,960 to explore for signs of opal. 241 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:11,200 If successful, they can take out a lease and start mining. 242 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:16,000 Well, we're hoping to find opal, a lead on the EP that we can some shallow opal. 243 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:18,360 Pretty easy to dig in. 244 00:16:18,440 --> 00:16:22,480 Most boulder opal lies 10 to 15 metres below ground, 245 00:16:22,560 --> 00:16:24,880 but clues lie on the surface. 246 00:16:24,960 --> 00:16:27,640 It's good to see we're still getting throw-outs of rocks 247 00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:31,080 coming up towards the hill. So, we're gonna try it. 248 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:34,680 Throw-outs are traces of opal. 249 00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:37,200 Queensland boulder opal is formed 250 00:16:37,280 --> 00:16:40,840 when silica-rich water becomes trapped in cavities 251 00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:43,160 within hard ironstone rocks. 252 00:16:46,120 --> 00:16:48,880 This lot, I reckon it's close to blue. 253 00:16:50,640 --> 00:16:55,480 Purple anyway. Yeah. Wherever we've got purple, we've always got opal, eh? We have. 254 00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:58,480 Probably bring the excavator in and trench right through. 255 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:01,080 No use doing a little trench. We'll trench the whole lot. 256 00:17:01,160 --> 00:17:03,240 Might take a day, but we'll get result. 257 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:12,440 Borrowed from a neighbouring miner, is this 35-ton excavator. 258 00:17:12,520 --> 00:17:15,840 But they have only two days before it must be returned. 259 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:20,720 We haven't got the excavator for long, so we'll get into it. 260 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:40,320 Like a half a boulder. 261 00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:42,920 Not quite like a...the right colour. 262 00:17:43,000 --> 00:17:45,080 We're gonna have a look at everything. 263 00:17:48,560 --> 00:17:50,560 Not right, eh, Ron? 264 00:17:50,640 --> 00:17:53,560 Well, Ron, that looks like absolute...to me. 265 00:17:55,080 --> 00:17:57,280 It can turn it into gold, though, you know that. 266 00:18:10,800 --> 00:18:12,960 I really like the ground. It's changing. 267 00:18:13,040 --> 00:18:15,560 So we might be onto something, mate. 268 00:18:15,640 --> 00:18:18,160 Bloody hope so, it's about time. 269 00:18:19,600 --> 00:18:21,880 With summer temperatures on the rise 270 00:18:21,960 --> 00:18:24,400 and the end of the season just weeks away, 271 00:18:24,480 --> 00:18:28,480 the Bushmen are pushing hard to end with a big find. 272 00:18:28,560 --> 00:18:31,000 We just gotta get stuck in to start movin' dirt. 273 00:18:31,080 --> 00:18:33,080 And hopefully we'll hit a little bit. 274 00:18:33,160 --> 00:18:36,480 Watch yourself while I'm doing this roof, Les. 275 00:18:36,560 --> 00:18:39,680 Just not sure about this bloody roof. 276 00:18:39,760 --> 00:18:41,760 One of the concerns with this hole 277 00:18:41,840 --> 00:18:44,000 is the amount of sand we got in the roof there. 278 00:18:44,080 --> 00:18:47,120 Two foot, three foot up in there, up into the roof, 279 00:18:47,200 --> 00:18:49,640 there could be another thin layer of sand. 280 00:18:49,720 --> 00:18:52,000 Where that sand seam is, 281 00:18:52,080 --> 00:18:55,080 it'll separate and your roof will drop. 282 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:59,400 It matters if the roof drops because...it'll kill ya. 283 00:19:01,280 --> 00:19:03,720 Yeah, the way that's going up in there where it's... 284 00:19:03,800 --> 00:19:05,480 It's as soft as buggery. 285 00:19:05,560 --> 00:19:08,200 Yeah, I... I don't know what's happening, mate. 286 00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:10,280 There's a line. 287 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:13,600 You all right? Yeah. 288 00:19:13,680 --> 00:19:17,200 The harder you push, the more chance you've got of something going wrong, 289 00:19:17,280 --> 00:19:19,280 uh, and getting' hurt. 290 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:27,600 Leakin' oil again. The weld. 291 00:19:27,680 --> 00:19:30,600 Where Les welded it up, it's cracked again. 292 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:33,760 It wouldn't have been my weld that let go, it would've been another - 293 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:37,320 Oh, of course it wasn't your bloody welding. An air block hole. 294 00:19:39,280 --> 00:19:41,840 You don't find opal on the end of a spanner. 295 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:44,560 And I'm sick of fixing things, so if we can get it to last 296 00:19:44,640 --> 00:19:47,080 we'll pull it out at the end of the day, 297 00:19:47,160 --> 00:19:51,320 and we'll fix it up tonight, and it'll be ready for the mornin'. 298 00:19:54,400 --> 00:19:56,720 It's hard but... Jeez, it's hard. 299 00:19:56,800 --> 00:19:59,080 The whole digger's struggling. 300 00:20:01,360 --> 00:20:03,920 That hard stuff's getting thicker, Les. Yes. 301 00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:06,120 We might have a bit of bother here. 302 00:20:08,160 --> 00:20:10,160 Man! 303 00:20:13,200 --> 00:20:16,920 Nah. We've got trace, so... 304 00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:20,640 it would be a shame to stop going this way. 305 00:20:20,720 --> 00:20:23,440 But there's no way I can get through that. That's hard. 306 00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:33,360 It'd be good to get a payday before the end of the year, 307 00:20:33,440 --> 00:20:35,760 but we gotta keep trenching. That's how opal is. 308 00:20:35,840 --> 00:20:39,800 Start a trench there, then we're gonna trench right through. 309 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:42,600 Flooding has forced the Boulder Boys, 310 00:20:42,680 --> 00:20:46,280 to abandon work at their productive Dragonfly claim. 311 00:20:46,360 --> 00:20:49,040 Two-and-a-half kilometres away, 312 00:20:49,120 --> 00:20:52,120 they're now pinning their hopes on their exploration lease 313 00:20:52,200 --> 00:20:55,600 delivering signs of opal. 314 00:20:55,680 --> 00:20:58,120 The name of the game in this job, 315 00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:01,120 you gotta find new leads to go to mine. 316 00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:03,640 They have less than two days, 317 00:21:03,720 --> 00:21:06,160 before they must return the borrowed excavator. 318 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:16,240 Where you wanna go now? Right straight through the guts? 319 00:21:16,320 --> 00:21:18,680 There's the next one, then the next one. Right. 320 00:21:21,160 --> 00:21:23,880 They're looking for hard ironstone rocks 321 00:21:23,960 --> 00:21:26,320 embedded in the sandstone. 322 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:33,160 But trench after trench...nothing. 323 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:41,720 I can't go any slower. 324 00:21:41,800 --> 00:21:44,920 That yellow... To me it ain't a level, mate. There's a level skin - 325 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:46,960 We going broke here. 326 00:21:47,040 --> 00:21:49,240 I'm not impressed with it. 327 00:21:49,320 --> 00:21:51,320 Come on, Ron, give me your opinion, mate. 328 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:55,200 Violet Crumble gone wrong. 329 00:21:57,160 --> 00:21:59,640 I'm sick of looking at potch, Ron. I know. 330 00:21:59,720 --> 00:22:03,640 We used 200 litres of fuel here and all we're seeing is yellow and potch. 331 00:22:03,720 --> 00:22:07,360 Yep. Every trench we put in, every level's been flat, Ron. 332 00:22:07,440 --> 00:22:09,800 Nothing to write home about, is there? 333 00:22:09,880 --> 00:22:12,880 No. You wouldn't be able to afford a postage stamp. 334 00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:15,880 Wanna go over and have a look at this? Yeah, let's do that 335 00:22:15,960 --> 00:22:18,400 We'll keep going, Ron. Well, we will. 336 00:22:20,880 --> 00:22:23,800 You wont believe this, Ron. I pulled up right here. 337 00:22:23,880 --> 00:22:26,560 I'm seeing a bit of blue on the ground. We got surface trace. 338 00:22:26,640 --> 00:22:28,640 Have a look here. 339 00:22:28,720 --> 00:22:31,760 That's good trace. Hey, look at this. 340 00:22:31,840 --> 00:22:35,840 Green. Oh, that is too. That's a very good sign. 341 00:22:35,920 --> 00:22:38,320 Blue, green. Colour. Wow. 342 00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:42,320 Well, that's the best sign we've seen for a few weeks, mate. It is. 343 00:22:42,400 --> 00:22:46,040 I think we just have a good look around and decide where to put a trench. 344 00:22:53,400 --> 00:22:56,680 I think you wanna get a screwdriver and come and dig this out, mate. 345 00:22:56,760 --> 00:22:59,120 Little bit at a time, mate. Yeah. 346 00:22:59,200 --> 00:23:02,560 There's no rush. It's been sittin' there waitin' for millions of years. 347 00:23:02,640 --> 00:23:04,920 Few more minutes ain't gonna hurt it. 348 00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:07,000 On his first-ever opal dig, 349 00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:09,920 Zac McFarlane is hoping to be the good-luck charm 350 00:23:10,000 --> 00:23:12,520 his dad so desperately needs. 351 00:23:13,520 --> 00:23:16,320 Oh, here we go. 352 00:23:16,400 --> 00:23:19,440 Here we go. There it is. There it is. 353 00:23:19,520 --> 00:23:23,560 There you go, Tim. Take 'em up into some real light and have a look. 354 00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:25,760 That's one hell of a big nobby. 355 00:23:25,840 --> 00:23:30,240 Oh, look at that. Look at that green there and the purple. 356 00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:35,160 In the last dig of the season, 357 00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:38,720 a good find now could save the McFarlanes. 358 00:23:42,560 --> 00:23:44,560 Oh, yeah. Yes. 359 00:23:47,120 --> 00:23:49,760 Some greens, some blues. 360 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:52,440 Purples, yeah. Seeing purple too. Look in there. Yeah. 361 00:23:52,520 --> 00:23:56,320 Beautiful nobby. Finger crossed it's got some colour in there 362 00:23:56,400 --> 00:23:58,400 and there's gonna be a bit of pay for us. 363 00:23:58,480 --> 00:24:01,800 So, hopefully, that's a sign of what's coming up in front of us. 364 00:24:05,120 --> 00:24:08,640 Who knows what's in that pile of dirt? We'll know when we wash it 365 00:24:08,720 --> 00:24:10,920 and tail her out. 366 00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:13,760 Last bucket. Last bucket goin' up. 367 00:24:13,840 --> 00:24:16,840 Well, that's a full truck. Yep. 368 00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:20,560 We'll, uh, go up, shut her all down, lock her all up. 369 00:24:20,640 --> 00:24:24,040 Take her over to the agi. Sure. Put her in the agi. 370 00:24:28,000 --> 00:24:32,240 We've got a loaded truck and we're about to head off over to Pete Cooke's agi. 371 00:24:32,320 --> 00:24:34,840 He's doing some washing for us. 372 00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:39,880 The agi, or agitator, is a converted cement mixer 373 00:24:39,960 --> 00:24:43,760 that washes rocks to expose any opal. 374 00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:46,040 I'll show you how we load the agi, buddy. 375 00:24:46,120 --> 00:24:49,400 It's just like rowing a boat. 376 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:51,720 Every now and then you give it a kick. 377 00:24:51,800 --> 00:24:55,640 Don't worry about scratchin' anything. 378 00:24:55,720 --> 00:24:58,800 Got the first load in the agi. 379 00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:03,400 She's turnin' over, makin' mud. Washin' down nicely. 380 00:25:03,480 --> 00:25:08,160 It's Zac's first and last chance this season to make opal pay. 381 00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:13,320 Fingers crossed. Lots of rainbows called opal. 382 00:25:21,080 --> 00:25:25,240 Ratters, you know, they're a scourge but they're smart buggers. 383 00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:29,560 They're listenin', they're watchin' all the time. 384 00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:36,680 Opal thieves, repairs and now, impenetrable rock 385 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:42,120 are keeping the Bushmen from mining the best ground they've seen in weeks. 386 00:25:43,120 --> 00:25:45,120 All hard opal mining. 387 00:25:46,400 --> 00:25:49,480 This is why probably 95% of the guys 388 00:25:49,560 --> 00:25:51,800 that come down here to go opal mining fail. 389 00:25:51,880 --> 00:25:56,600 The 95% that go home have got a few brains and the 5% of us that stay here 390 00:25:56,680 --> 00:25:58,680 got none at all. 391 00:25:58,760 --> 00:26:02,440 Yeah, I can't dig that any more, Les, it's too hard. This digger won't dig that. 392 00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:06,360 Seem to have more bloody days not minin' than minin' 393 00:26:06,440 --> 00:26:08,880 because of things that go wrong. 394 00:26:08,960 --> 00:26:11,120 What you doin' mate? Nige. 395 00:26:12,440 --> 00:26:15,920 Oh, Amanda's tried to call me a couple of times. Four times. 396 00:26:16,000 --> 00:26:19,400 What's the problem? There's been four missed calls from 'ya. 397 00:26:19,480 --> 00:26:21,120 Oh. 398 00:26:21,200 --> 00:26:24,240 Les. Yeah? We gotta go home. 399 00:26:29,600 --> 00:26:32,080 Go and see what the problem is, Les. Yeah. 400 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,160 What's happened, girl? We've run out of water. 401 00:26:35,240 --> 00:26:36,880 Yeah. 402 00:26:36,960 --> 00:26:40,440 Was about to do the washin' up, and then... Ew. Yeah. 403 00:26:40,520 --> 00:26:43,760 Yes, we have run out of water. 404 00:26:43,840 --> 00:26:46,760 We'll have to go and get a load, Les, and then go back to work. 405 00:26:49,520 --> 00:26:52,880 With temperatures now over 40 degrees Celsius, 406 00:26:52,960 --> 00:26:55,640 a constant supply of water is critical. 407 00:26:58,240 --> 00:27:01,120 70 kilometres from the nearest town, 408 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:05,520 249 people live out in the opal field. 409 00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:09,520 Let her rip, Les. For them, the only source of water 410 00:27:09,600 --> 00:27:12,600 is this 1,500-metre-deep well. 411 00:27:18,560 --> 00:27:20,560 Got him? Yeah. 412 00:27:26,640 --> 00:27:29,480 Amanda! Yeah. Try that now. 413 00:27:30,080 --> 00:27:32,080 Or I can, I suppose. 414 00:27:32,600 --> 00:27:35,960 Ho, ho.Eww. 415 00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:38,520 It's a bit dirty-looking. It's a little bit. 416 00:27:39,120 --> 00:27:42,640 Should clear. There. 417 00:27:46,520 --> 00:27:48,520 Yuck. 418 00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:51,080 Ohh! You get a feed and a drink. 419 00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:54,760 The drought's broken. It has. Yeah, we're going to go to work, OK? 420 00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:57,760 All right, then. See you later. 421 00:27:57,840 --> 00:27:59,840 See ya'. 422 00:27:59,920 --> 00:28:01,800 I can't... Mwah! 423 00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:03,760 Go away. 424 00:28:03,840 --> 00:28:08,200 The water's flowing so we better get back to work. Yep. 425 00:28:08,280 --> 00:28:10,680 What's that up there? Is that a drone? 426 00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:13,520 Yeah, we've got someone following us. 427 00:28:13,600 --> 00:28:16,880 Why would a drone be followin' us, Les? 428 00:28:16,960 --> 00:28:18,960 Don't know. 429 00:28:19,040 --> 00:28:21,160 I'll slow down. 430 00:28:28,200 --> 00:28:30,400 It's slowing down with us. Yeah. 431 00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:34,080 Somebody's spying on us. That's a bit dodgy. 432 00:28:34,160 --> 00:28:38,480 If it's us, it is. It's flyin' off there now, look. Yep. 433 00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:41,960 We might have some bloody hi-tech ratters. 434 00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:50,600 Yeah, that's a bit of a worry, Les. 435 00:28:50,680 --> 00:28:55,160 It is. What do you do? Bring the rifle over. 436 00:28:55,240 --> 00:28:57,800 The .45-70 should be able to reach him, shouldn't it? 437 00:28:57,880 --> 00:28:59,880 I reckon it would. 438 00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:04,400 I'd like to find out who's flying the first. 439 00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:07,240 The ratters have been active in a couple of places. 440 00:29:07,320 --> 00:29:10,160 We'll just have to keep an eye on it and 441 00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:14,360 if they get caught, well, they're gonna have to suffer the consequences. 442 00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:19,520 That might have a bit of potch in it. 443 00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:22,720 It's a very good sign. 444 00:29:26,520 --> 00:29:28,040 The Boulder Boys 445 00:29:28,120 --> 00:29:33,040 are on their final day of an exploration dig with a borrowed excavator. 446 00:29:33,120 --> 00:29:36,360 We found the sandstone. 447 00:29:36,440 --> 00:29:38,640 We just need to hit the level where 448 00:29:38,720 --> 00:29:41,640 the sandstone ends and the clay begins. 449 00:29:46,680 --> 00:29:49,160 Oh-ho. Ron, have a look at that. 450 00:29:49,240 --> 00:29:52,160 That's all right. Look at that. What have you got, Ron? 451 00:29:52,240 --> 00:29:54,880 You on a a bid too, are ya? Yeah, what is it? 452 00:29:54,960 --> 00:29:58,440 That's a pair of earrings. Whoa, have a look at this. 453 00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:00,720 We've got colour here. Wow. 454 00:30:00,800 --> 00:30:04,640 That's nice, it's a good feeling. We might get onto what we've been looking for, 455 00:30:04,720 --> 00:30:08,600 bit of shallow opal. True. About time too. Very good. 456 00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:11,960 If we don't have a little bit of success, 457 00:30:12,040 --> 00:30:16,080 we've just got to be a bit patient and we'll work through it. 458 00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:28,920 Oi! Oi! What, mate? Bring it back down. Eh? 459 00:30:34,560 --> 00:30:37,800 You mongrel! 460 00:30:43,280 --> 00:30:45,480 Lucky Ron got on to me. You can blow hoses on these 461 00:30:45,560 --> 00:30:47,920 and drop 200 litres of oil pretty quick, actually. 462 00:30:48,680 --> 00:30:51,280 Today she just went - and I got a shower. 463 00:30:52,280 --> 00:30:54,520 A major loss of hydraulic oil 464 00:30:54,600 --> 00:30:57,240 will cripple the excavator and the mission. 465 00:30:57,320 --> 00:30:59,920 See how it's all dirty? It's been leaking for a while. 466 00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:02,280 It's a simple fix, replacing the O-ring. 467 00:31:02,360 --> 00:31:05,840 Probably done an O-ring, mate. We've got the O-rings, that's one. 468 00:31:05,920 --> 00:31:08,000 Now I've just gotta get one of these to fit. 469 00:31:08,080 --> 00:31:10,360 That one there. 470 00:31:10,600 --> 00:31:12,600 No, we don't have the right size. 471 00:31:12,680 --> 00:31:15,800 I got every other spanner, but I got bugger all Allen keys. 472 00:31:15,880 --> 00:31:20,240 With no excavator, the dig is over. 473 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:24,080 We've done an O-ring. It's not that bad but we haven't got the 474 00:31:24,160 --> 00:31:27,400 gear to fix it. We were just starting to get a bit trace too. 475 00:31:27,480 --> 00:31:31,600 Well, the opal gods will put everything in front of you when there's colour there. 476 00:31:31,680 --> 00:31:35,960 The more you chase it, the less you find it, eh? You stumble across it sometimes. 477 00:31:36,040 --> 00:31:39,360 Sometimes you do, mate. And then you blow an O-ring. 478 00:31:44,720 --> 00:31:46,720 Back at camp... 479 00:31:48,600 --> 00:31:52,080 ..time to assess if the opal trace holds enough promise 480 00:31:52,160 --> 00:31:54,960 to lay claim for next season. 481 00:31:55,040 --> 00:31:57,880 There's potential there Ron, eh? There is. 482 00:31:57,960 --> 00:32:00,760 It's a good sign, Ron, eh? 483 00:32:00,840 --> 00:32:03,880 What about that? It's got a flash to it. Yeah. 484 00:32:03,960 --> 00:32:06,920 That one goes into red, look at that. I know. 485 00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:10,400 Aaron and Ron's opal is boulder opal. 486 00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:12,840 It's in the rough, 487 00:32:12,920 --> 00:32:16,600 blue/green in colour, and weighs 3kg. 488 00:32:17,880 --> 00:32:20,600 What do you reckon it's worth, Ron? 489 00:32:20,680 --> 00:32:22,960 Two grand? Nah, 1,500. 1,500. 490 00:32:25,200 --> 00:32:30,160 The signs are good for the boys to return here next season. 491 00:32:30,240 --> 00:32:32,120 No worries, Ron. 492 00:32:32,200 --> 00:32:35,240 Finished up on a good note but let's see what happens. 493 00:32:35,320 --> 00:32:37,400 Bit of luck, we've got a bit of luck going with us. 494 00:32:37,480 --> 00:32:41,480 And you never know, this opal mining's a funny game. 495 00:32:42,520 --> 00:32:45,480 When you think you know it, you got no idea. 496 00:32:55,720 --> 00:32:59,120 This is what all the hard work underground leads up to. 497 00:32:59,200 --> 00:33:03,760 This is the...the washing and then the tail-out. The tail-out's the exciting bit. 498 00:33:03,840 --> 00:33:07,680 For the McFarlanes, it's their last tail-out of the season 499 00:33:07,760 --> 00:33:11,080 and son Zac's only chance of an opal payday. 500 00:33:11,160 --> 00:33:15,960 This is the first time I've helped them with the dirt going in the agi, so that's pretty exciting. 501 00:33:16,040 --> 00:33:19,800 Fingers are crossed it's going to be a big Christmas tree, full of colour. 502 00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:23,560 All right, you ready, boys? Yeah, mate. Yeah. Send her down. 503 00:33:23,640 --> 00:33:25,640 Righto. 504 00:33:28,000 --> 00:33:30,240 Yeah, this is the pointy end of the business. 505 00:33:30,320 --> 00:33:35,040 We want to tail out and hopefully find ourselves some beautiful gems. 506 00:33:35,120 --> 00:33:39,320 Oh, yeah. It would amazing if I could go home to the missus and 507 00:33:39,400 --> 00:33:43,520 me boy with a good handful of nobbies and colour. That'd be great. 508 00:33:46,320 --> 00:33:50,080 It's trace mainly at the moment, mate. Mainly trace. 509 00:33:50,160 --> 00:33:55,960 They're just bits of potch and amber and what we call trace. 510 00:33:56,040 --> 00:33:58,600 Yeah, it wasn't looking too good at the start. 511 00:33:58,680 --> 00:34:00,960 We were all starting to lose a little hope. 512 00:34:03,240 --> 00:34:05,160 Pete. 513 00:34:05,240 --> 00:34:07,960 Hey. Hey, yeah. Hey, er, boys. 514 00:34:08,040 --> 00:34:10,720 Hey. I found something, too. 515 00:34:10,800 --> 00:34:14,080 What have you got? Oh, mate. 516 00:34:14,160 --> 00:34:16,640 I think it might beat yours, mate. I think so. 517 00:34:16,720 --> 00:34:19,360 Maybe not in size but definitely in colour. 518 00:34:19,440 --> 00:34:21,280 Oh, beautiful. 519 00:34:21,600 --> 00:34:23,600 Can't stop kissing it? No, I can't. 520 00:34:25,680 --> 00:34:29,880 That's what it's all about. That's what you're looking for. That's what we're looking for. 521 00:34:29,960 --> 00:34:33,560 Really cool. I'm pretty happy about it, not gonna lie. 522 00:34:33,640 --> 00:34:35,880 Look, see that? Yeah. 523 00:34:35,960 --> 00:34:38,240 Isn't that sensational? 524 00:34:38,320 --> 00:34:40,520 I saw that and I was like, "Oh, yeah! 525 00:34:40,600 --> 00:34:43,000 Yeah, this is cool. I like this." 526 00:34:43,080 --> 00:34:46,000 He's goin', man. Yeah, that's it. He's hooked. He's hooked. 527 00:34:46,080 --> 00:34:48,600 He nearly licked it. What do you reckon? Guesstimate. 528 00:34:48,680 --> 00:34:51,720 Two, maybe three grand? Beautiful. 529 00:34:51,800 --> 00:34:54,200 Well done, mate. Phew. 530 00:34:55,600 --> 00:34:57,320 Whoo-hoo. 531 00:35:04,480 --> 00:35:07,040 Another beautiful day in paradise, eh? 532 00:35:07,120 --> 00:35:10,280 They've battled ratters, repairs 533 00:35:10,360 --> 00:35:15,880 and rocketing temperatures. Now the Bushmen are facing cement-like rock. 534 00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:20,520 Big solid wall that comes in there that we couldn't dig through. 535 00:35:20,600 --> 00:35:22,600 Too bloody solid. 536 00:35:22,680 --> 00:35:26,680 And it's running right across there, so we've changed direction a little bit. 537 00:35:39,880 --> 00:35:42,360 Whoa. Whoa! 538 00:35:42,440 --> 00:35:45,680 We're in diamonds. All around the way? Yep. 539 00:35:45,760 --> 00:35:47,960 Where's my... Wait a minute. 540 00:35:48,040 --> 00:35:50,200 Oh, we're getting the prayer mat!" 541 00:35:50,280 --> 00:35:52,440 Bloody hell. It is serious. 542 00:35:52,520 --> 00:35:54,520 Whoa-ho! 543 00:35:55,520 --> 00:35:58,040 It's big and it's cheesy. 544 00:35:58,120 --> 00:36:00,240 About two inches long, isn't it? Yeah, 545 00:36:00,320 --> 00:36:02,880 and there's a fair bit on the ground too, Les. Yeah. 546 00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:04,960 We've hit some nice colour. 547 00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:07,360 It's big, thick. There's a fair bit on the ground. 548 00:36:08,560 --> 00:36:11,120 We've got colour in the wall. 549 00:36:11,200 --> 00:36:14,440 Gotta be happy with that, Les. Yes. 550 00:36:14,520 --> 00:36:16,520 We're on it again maybe, Les. 551 00:36:16,600 --> 00:36:20,240 This hole might be all right for us. We're doin' all right down here. 552 00:36:20,320 --> 00:36:22,120 I hope the money doesn't go to my head. 553 00:36:22,200 --> 00:36:24,960 I don't wouldn't know how that'd work cos I've never had money 554 00:36:25,040 --> 00:36:27,240 to go to my head in the first place. 555 00:36:27,320 --> 00:36:29,720 We'll have a look at it, right. 556 00:36:29,800 --> 00:36:32,000 That's a nice little piece. 557 00:36:32,080 --> 00:36:34,240 It's not bad colour, really, is it? 558 00:36:34,320 --> 00:36:36,400 It's bright. 559 00:36:36,480 --> 00:36:38,520 We just need more of it, Les. 560 00:36:38,600 --> 00:36:42,320 I think we'll take this up and chuck her in the tumbler, Les, 561 00:36:42,400 --> 00:36:44,920 and see what it does for the morrow, eh? Yeah. 562 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:47,160 All right, I'll see you on the top side. 563 00:36:50,920 --> 00:36:53,080 Back at Rod's camp, 564 00:36:53,160 --> 00:36:56,080 the Bushmen need this find to stack up. 565 00:36:56,160 --> 00:36:58,400 Yeah, we're fast running out of time. 566 00:36:58,480 --> 00:37:01,320 The heat's coming. Nothing's going to stop it. 567 00:37:03,080 --> 00:37:06,520 We'll give this a bit of a wash, mate, and see what's in it. Yep. 568 00:37:07,760 --> 00:37:09,440 OK. 569 00:37:11,720 --> 00:37:14,920 Can you hear that? No, I can't hear anything, mate. 570 00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:17,000 Yeah, well, I bloody can. 571 00:37:18,800 --> 00:37:22,280 The claim's one thing, but not at the bloody camp. 572 00:37:31,440 --> 00:37:33,720 Where did it go? 573 00:37:33,800 --> 00:37:37,080 I sort of reacted before I thought too much. 574 00:37:37,160 --> 00:37:40,120 He looked out and seen it and then he ducked straight inside... 575 00:37:41,480 --> 00:37:43,400 ..and got the artillery out. 576 00:37:43,480 --> 00:37:45,880 The claim's one thing, your camp's different. 577 00:37:45,960 --> 00:37:48,440 It's where I live, it's where my missus is. 578 00:37:48,520 --> 00:37:50,720 I can't see it from this side. 579 00:37:50,800 --> 00:37:53,160 They can't go spying on your camp so 580 00:37:53,240 --> 00:37:55,480 you gotta take real action when that happens. 581 00:37:56,760 --> 00:38:00,360 Yeah, we're gonna stick it in the tumbler, and all the tumbler is, 582 00:38:00,440 --> 00:38:03,000 is a couple of rotating little drums. 583 00:38:03,080 --> 00:38:06,880 You stick 'em in there, and they rotate around on themselves, a bit of water. 584 00:38:06,960 --> 00:38:10,800 Knocks all the bloody dirt and clay and stuff off 'em 585 00:38:10,880 --> 00:38:13,240 just so you can see 'em a bit better. 586 00:38:13,320 --> 00:38:16,680 Right-o, Les. We'll let this spin around for a little while, eh? Yeah. 587 00:38:21,760 --> 00:38:24,680 Now, Les, let's have a look what we got here, eh? Yeah. 588 00:38:27,440 --> 00:38:30,760 That didn't clean up too bad. Look at that. 589 00:38:30,840 --> 00:38:33,920 Looks better now the dirt's off it a bit. 590 00:38:34,000 --> 00:38:36,560 That one's all right. 591 00:38:36,640 --> 00:38:40,760 Ah, yeah, it's got some nice bloody blues in there. Look at that. 592 00:38:40,840 --> 00:38:43,320 Yeah, that come up better, didn't it? 593 00:38:43,400 --> 00:38:46,240 On black too, mate. Yeah. Bit of purple. 594 00:38:48,680 --> 00:38:50,320 Oh, yeah. 595 00:38:50,400 --> 00:38:53,400 We probably got a few dollars here, Les. 596 00:38:53,480 --> 00:38:56,720 There's not a lot but there's a few nice colours, 597 00:38:56,800 --> 00:38:59,200 that's going to make a decent stone. 598 00:38:59,280 --> 00:39:02,480 Yeah, there's a few nice pieces amongst them. 599 00:39:02,560 --> 00:39:06,200 The Bushmen have uncovered crystal opal. 600 00:39:06,280 --> 00:39:10,440 It's in the rough. Mostly blue/green in colour. 601 00:39:10,520 --> 00:39:15,080 Les, what are you guessing? Oh, 1,500, couple of grand. 602 00:39:15,160 --> 00:39:18,120 If we sell it we'd ask for two, but take 15. 603 00:39:18,200 --> 00:39:20,440 1,500 it is, mate. 604 00:39:20,520 --> 00:39:23,120 1,500 it is. 605 00:39:23,200 --> 00:39:26,120 Gettin' closer all the time, Les. 606 00:39:26,200 --> 00:39:30,200 With an estimated value of $1,500, 607 00:39:30,280 --> 00:39:32,760 the Bushmen are inching ever closer 608 00:39:32,840 --> 00:39:34,920 to their season target. 609 00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:37,760 But the way these ratters are, mate, 610 00:39:37,840 --> 00:39:40,480 I reckon we ought to put this away and get a bigger batch. 611 00:39:40,560 --> 00:39:42,720 Bigger parcel. Yeah. 612 00:39:42,800 --> 00:39:46,680 Couple of dollars more than we had yesterday, so that's gotta be good. 613 00:39:47,120 --> 00:39:52,120 Yeah. You know, even if you're only just finding diesel money, it keeps you goin' 614 00:39:52,200 --> 00:39:55,720 Yeah. Well, it keeps the diesel fella happy anyway. 615 00:40:03,880 --> 00:40:06,320 Whoo-hoo. 616 00:40:06,400 --> 00:40:09,760 This is what it's all about. This beautiful thing here. 617 00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:12,640 To get something like that out of the pointy end of the business, 618 00:40:12,720 --> 00:40:15,960 makes it all worthwhile. Doesn't always happen, 619 00:40:16,040 --> 00:40:21,120 but when it does happen - elation. It makes you feel damn good inside, I can assure you. 620 00:40:21,200 --> 00:40:23,760 In his first-ever opal dig, 621 00:40:23,840 --> 00:40:27,880 Zac McFarlane has discovered opal, valued conservatively 622 00:40:27,960 --> 00:40:30,440 at $2,000. 623 00:40:30,520 --> 00:40:33,360 Oh, pulling the stone out. Finding the colour, 624 00:40:33,440 --> 00:40:37,320 I'm through the roof happy. Through the roof. 625 00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:38,720 Well done. 626 00:40:38,800 --> 00:40:41,920 For the McFarlanes, the season is over. 627 00:40:42,760 --> 00:40:46,760 With a total of $4,200, they've fallen well 628 00:40:46,840 --> 00:40:49,400 short of their $20,000 target. 629 00:40:49,480 --> 00:40:54,160 But for Gav, there are some things more important than opal. 630 00:40:54,240 --> 00:40:56,600 The biggest highlight I think for the season for me 631 00:40:56,680 --> 00:40:59,600 is having my family unit back together and having my son working 632 00:40:59,680 --> 00:41:03,520 side-by-side with me underground. Watchin' him pick up the little things, you know. 633 00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:07,200 Gettin' in there, gettin' his hands dirty and doin' it, you know. 634 00:41:07,280 --> 00:41:08,600 Beautiful. 635 00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:13,400 You still get a few things done around the camp for the girls. 636 00:41:13,480 --> 00:41:16,560 One of the main ones for Connie, I guess, would be 637 00:41:16,640 --> 00:41:19,160 the ability to flush a toilet. 638 00:41:22,240 --> 00:41:26,360 But Teagy, you know, she wants a little bit more privacy in her room. 639 00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:28,560 So, just those little things. 640 00:41:29,760 --> 00:41:32,240 G'day, g'day. Hey, Pete. How are you, mate? 641 00:41:32,320 --> 00:41:35,840 You ready to go to work? Got a few of the lads comin' round, 642 00:41:35,920 --> 00:41:39,440 bit of a workin' bee, and I told 'em I'd put a barbecue on, a few beers. 643 00:41:39,520 --> 00:41:43,440 I'd like to put one of them panels there. The refrigeration panels. 644 00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:45,520 We'll get that up today, mate, real quick. 645 00:41:45,600 --> 00:41:48,080 Onto the table. 646 00:41:48,160 --> 00:41:52,040 Yeah. Oh, yeah, 2-3. Yeah, 2-3 30. 647 00:41:52,120 --> 00:41:56,000 That should stand up there, Tim, with a bit of luck. If we stand him up... 648 00:41:56,080 --> 00:41:59,000 like that... Mate, that's perfect. 649 00:42:12,840 --> 00:42:15,440 Hello, lovely. Hello, darling. 650 00:42:15,520 --> 00:42:17,640 OK. How are you, Connie? 651 00:42:17,720 --> 00:42:21,080 So what do you reckon? We haven't got the peephole happening any more, 652 00:42:21,160 --> 00:42:23,520 got a door closed, got to be happy about that. 653 00:42:23,600 --> 00:42:25,440 I love it, darlin'. OK. I love it. 654 00:42:25,520 --> 00:42:28,760 Dad's done a pretty good job, actually. Not half bad. 655 00:42:28,840 --> 00:42:32,440 It's actually so good. You got a wall. I got a wall. 656 00:42:32,520 --> 00:42:36,240 It's pretty good. I got a wall. Thank you, Dad. That's all right. 657 00:42:38,440 --> 00:42:40,560 Look, watch, watch. No, I want to do it! 658 00:42:40,640 --> 00:42:42,800 Do it once. 659 00:42:42,880 --> 00:42:45,920 It flushes! How cool's that? 660 00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:50,800 It works. I'm so proud of you! Gold stars. 661 00:42:50,880 --> 00:42:54,280 Thank you. You're welcome, my gorgeous. 662 00:42:54,360 --> 00:42:56,360 So, who would like a beer? 663 00:42:56,440 --> 00:43:00,200 It was cool. It was an experience. I'm really enjoyin' it. 664 00:43:00,280 --> 00:43:04,600 I'm keen to keep goin' for years and years, that's for sure. 665 00:43:04,680 --> 00:43:08,440 Thanks for the season, great season, great to have my boys with me. 666 00:43:08,520 --> 00:43:10,760 I couldn't have done it without yous all. 667 00:43:10,840 --> 00:43:14,480 My girls are happy, I'm happy, everybody's together now 668 00:43:14,560 --> 00:43:16,560 and I just want to say cheers and thank you. 669 00:43:16,640 --> 00:43:19,400 Here's to you guys.Cheers! 669 00:43:20,305 --> 00:44:20,642