Kanku-Breakaways Conservation Park


The Breakaways Reserve is a stark but colourful area of arid hills, mesas and scarps 32km north from Coober Pedy along a rough road − turn off the highway 22km west of town. Entry permits ($10 per vehicle per 24 hours) are available at the Coober Pedy Visitor Information Centre; note that Indigenous land owners may change this process at some stage in the future. Get some solid directions from the visitor centre too.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Crocodile Harry's

9.01 MILES

As seen in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, this wildly eccentric underground abode was once home to Arvid Blumenthal, a Latvian-born runaway (quite possibly a…

2. Catacomb Anglican Church

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A simple, compact bunker with rows of chairs and remote sermons beamed onto a big screen. Pull up a pew and contemplate your misdoings.

3. Old Timers Mine

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This interesting warren of tunnels was mined in 1916, and then hidden by the miners. The mine was rediscovered in 1968 when excavations for a dugout home…

4. Umoona Opal Mine & Museum

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For a terrific introduction to Coober Pedy – including history, fossils, desert habitats, Aboriginal culture, ecology and mining – take a wander through…

5. Big Winch

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You can't miss the Big Winch with its big dangling bucket, from which there are sweeping views over the Coober Pedy rooftops. A planned 'world-class…

6. Spaceship

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Check out this amazing leftover prop from the film Pitch Black, which has crash-landed on Hutchison St (a minor Millennium Falcon?). Intricate, creative,…

7. Faye's Underground Home

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Faye’s was hand dug by three women in the 1960s – an exercise in persistence, to say the least. It's now a time-warp museum and a window into life in…