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Panning for Gold at Sovereign Hills in Ballarat, Australia
Thar’s Gold in Them Thar Hills!
By DrDevience, published Dec 11, 2006
Published Content: 391 Total Views: 307,675 Favorited By: 113 CPs
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Rating: 3.7 of 5
Sovereign Hill in Ballarat is the site of Australia’s gold rush in the 1850s. They have done a wonderful recreation of the times complete with being able to pan for gold in the stream coming out of the mountain. Yes, there is real gold to find there, which can then be sold to the bank within the town.
After paying your $33.50au ($16au for kids) you step through the door into a room full of giant posters, a scale model of the town, and a movie, all centering on the gold rush. Step outside from there and you find yourself totally immersed in a 19th century Australian gold mining town.
Folks wander about Sovereign Hill dressed in the garb of the day and doing their daily chores. There are horses turning big ol’ wheels and wonderful shops hawking their wares. The work is done on-premises and it is very fun to watch them ply their trades. You can make your own candles in the wax shop, or gawk at the metal smith as he fashions you a wonderful souvenir of your Sovereign Hill visit.
Wander up the hill to the Bowling Tavern for a break from the heat with a nice chilled bottle of ginger beer while you try your hand at old time bowling. They have about 4 lanes set up with pins. Be warned that if you manage to knock those pins down with the small wooden ball, you must set them up again for the next person. Very fun, that.
Sovereign Hill also offers tours of two gold mines. The steps leading down deep into the mines are treacherous though, so be warned if you are handicapped or have heart problems you might want to skip those tours. If you can handle the exertion, it is worth it. I have Lupus and managed it without too much trouble. They have a copy of the huge gold nugget down there, the largest nugget ever taken in one piece in Australia. It is quite a sight.
If you get hungry while oohing, ahhhing, and panning for your own gold, there are numerous places to fill your belly. The choices range from fancy restaurants to cheap tourist fare so there is pretty much food to satisfy everyone in every price range at Sovereign Hill.
For a little bit extra you can take a stagecoach ride around the town. This ride is only about 15 minutes, but it is fun if for nothing else than the picture opportunity. Also, keep your eye peeled as those folks in period costume do various impromptu skits for the public from time to time.
If you missed buying anything from the various old time stores within the town, the Sovereign Hill gift shop on your way out is fairly big, and the souvenirs within it run the whole gamut from pricey gold jewelry to schlocky pencils. They also have some nice shirts and jackets with the Sovereign Hill logo on them for reasonable prices.
If you want to partake in the nightly fireworks and other festivities, Sovereign Hill has a nice hotel within the mining town so you can spend the night afterwards.
While I didn’t really see more than about 4 hours worth of Touristy goodness at Sovereign Hill, those 4 hours were worth the price of admittance. Personally, I’m just more into the medieval time period than the gold rush time period. You might get 2 days worth of fun here though if you do like the whole gold rush theme. At any rate, it is well worth stopping in if you are in the Ballarat area, especially if you have children with you. The kids we saw that day were having a blast.
For more information: http://www.sovereignhill.com.au/
[Wonderful photos with this one..]
