Coober Pedy is the opal capital of the world, and one of the strangest towns in Australia. The name is said to derive from the Aboriginal kupa piti — "white fellow's hole in the ground" — and it is an accurate description. There are over 25,000 mine shafts dotting the barren landscape around town, and a large part of the population lives underground in dugout homes carved from the rock, escaping summer temperatures that regularly exceed 45°C.
The town looks post-apocalyptic, which is why Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome and several other films were shot here. The Breakaways Reserve, about 35 kilometres north, has spectacular mesa formations and painted desert landscapes — accessible by conventional vehicle on unsealed roads. The same road continues past the Dog Fence.
In town, the Umoona Opal Mine and Museum on Hutchison Street is the best introduction: it covers the history of opal mining, includes a walk-through mine, and has displays on dugout living and Aboriginal culture. You can try your own luck noodling through the waste dumps at designated areas. The Old Timers Mine offers another underground tour. The Serbian Orthodox Church and the Catacomb Anglican Church are both carved entirely underground and worth a visit.
The dugout homes themselves are a highlight — Crocodile Harry's is the strangest of those open to the public, and several underground motels let you sleep in one. For sweeping views over the rusty plain, climb to the Big Winch at sunset. Coober Pedy is a long drive from anywhere — about 850 kilometres north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway — but it is genuinely unlike anywhere else on earth.