LEIGH CREEK WAS ONCE A BOOMING purpose-built mining town. It had a modern shopping centre, a series of neat modern roads and small, attractive plots of land with standard modern houses. Miners and their families enjoyed a social life enhanced by the considerable pay the workers earned at the coal mine. Until 2015 when Port Augusta switched from coal and the mine closed.
Once Upon a Time—Leigh Creek, South Australia
Life still goes on, Leigh Creek Pub
Today Leigh Creek today is For Sale—a victim of Climate Change. Moving away from coal may be good for the environment but a tragedy for the 90 residents who remain, waiting to see if the government can find a buyer.
Our Cottage, Leigh Creek Outback Resort
We stayed for a few nights in a cottage at the Leigh Creek Outback Resort, under the eucalyptus trees next to the cricket field. We stopped in the Pub/Restaurant for the wifi and a beer, bought groceries in the IGA/Foodland and had our tire replaced in nearby Copley (pop. 83.).
Black Swan
Pink-eared Ducks
Red-backed Kingfisher
Red-capped Plover
We have been birding at the nearby Retainment Dam, a decent size lake with a variety of birds. And while Connie isn’t adding many new species to her Life List, John is happily snapping photos of colorfully named birds—Black Swans, Red-capped Plovers, Pink-eared Ducks and Red-backed Kingfishers to name a few. Plus the odd kangaroo.
Red Kangaroo
Sad to say, the birds and beasts appear to have a brighter future than the humans in Leigh Creek.
