Opalton - Opal Fossicking - Full Day Tour
We head south of Winton to the opal mining community of Opalton – a location on the TV series Outback Opal Hunters. We meet up with our local Opalton guide for a tour the old town site and opal mining areas before you try your hand at fossicking for opals. Hear how opal is formed, different types of opal and different ways of mining it.

Tour Includes: Morning tea, BBQ lunch Opal Fossicking licence on tour
Departs on: Tuesdays only, from May to October
Time: Pick up at approx 8.00am, return approx 5.00pm
Price:   Adult: $185    Senior: $180    Child: $120    Family (2+2): $550 (extra child $95)

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• ​Tour Combination Savings

More about Opalton...
During the 1890s there was a huge demand for opals, and Australia has the finest opals in the world. Opal is typically found in ironstone and spinifex-covered ridges in places like Opalton. Once bustling with up to 600 miners, Opalton is now home to a few stout miners, mullock heaps and empty bottles; a dim echo of the late 1890s. The deposit often called the Femoy Field is one of the largest and most extensively worked fields in Queensland. Opal was first discovered in 1888 by a stockman from Warnambool Downs.
​By 1896 there was between 500 and 600 miners at Opalton. Supported by a good season, an abundance of horse-feed and available water, the town flourished. Water however became a major problem and had to be carted 24km, and this combined with a fall in the price of opals, led to the field being abandoned.
With the upgrade of roads to the area, miners returned to Opalton in 1961. It continues to produce gem quality opals in boulder, pipe and matrix formations. Many visitors camp at the old Opalton dig during winter and enjoy the isolation, peace and quiet, the wildlife and the frontier atmosphere of the community.

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