Ok, so it’s far from being the actual “outback”, and it’s about as far from the Red Centre as Manchester is from Warsaw (don’t quote me on that by the way, I ain’t GoogleMaps), but it’s the “outback” to me…or it may as well be.
Marvel Loch is a small mining town situated 33km south of Southern Cross, along the Great Eastern Highway between Perth and Kalgoorlie, and has a grand old population of less than 100. Yep, you did read right, that’s 100, not 100,000, just 100. With many of the inhabitants working on the local farms (think sheep and wheat), the remaining lucky souls who get to reside in such unadulterated, sheltered isolation are miners. Gold miners.
Taking the infamous “Prospector” from East Perth train station (the only way to get anywhere near Marvel Loch if you don’t have your own transport), I arrived in Southern Cross around midday on Tuesday 16th August 2016 and was greeted at the station by my new employers. We then drove the short distance to what would be my new home for the next eight weeks.
Now, I hadn’t expected much from Marvel Loch; I was aware there was a pub (the one I was going to work in), and I had a fair idea there was a Post Office-cum-General Store that would undoubtedly sell overpriced everything (I was right), but aside from that, I wasn’t holding out much hope for there being anything else in the way of 21st Century stimulation. And I was correct to make these assumptions, for in Marvel Loch, there really is literally nothing.
A canteen, a gym, the ruins of a derelict school, and a long dirt road would be my daytime companions for the duration of my stay. Yes, there were other people there, and yes, I would be working with a lovely, sweet girl from Denmark, a fantastically brash, crass and down to earth woman from North Wales, and the campest Scot this side of the Pacific, and I had a good bunch of miners to keep me entertained throughout my work in the evenings, but a spoilt brat like myself is used to free WiFi and Sky TV, supermarkets that aren’t IGA’s and high-end cafes selling exceptional coffee. No such luxuries here. I truly was facing a “First World Problem”.
In all seriousness though, my first day in Marvel Loch hadn’t been too bad, and although my mildly low expectations had been well and truly superseded, I wasn’t too concerned about facing the prospect of life away from the buzz of a city. I’d settled into my Donga (Google it, it’s like a static caravan but better), which was absolute luxury compared to some hostels I’ve stayed in over the years (think microwave, kettle, toaster, en-suite bathroom, heater, wardrobe, table, and the best of all – A DOUBLE BED), commenced work pretty much straight away, had met some of the locals, and had been introduced to what I could only describe as the best perk of being in the middle of bumfuck nowhere – the Mining Camp Canteen! Unlimited free food then?! Ahem, YES PLEASE!
Being so far removed from the “outside world” and being away from the humdrum and buzz of everyday city life would surely prove to be difficult – there would be no nipping to town for a coffee; there’d be no wild nights on the gin and espresso martinis; time spent online would be limited (Australia still hasn’t mastered the unlimited data package for a pre-paid SIM yet); and there’d be no TV or national radio (Triple J, I miss you already!) to keep me informed of the daily goings on, the idle celebrity gossip that bores me to tears anyway, the Olympic successes and failures in Rio, and the inevitable Political fallouts that seem to happen on a regular basis these days. There’d just be me, my mining friends, and miles and miles of dirt road.
In coming to Marvel Loch I’ve not only left myself open to eight weeks of over-thinking (it will happen, believe me); I’ve not only set myself up for what will probably be a period in which I make countless decisions about how I should embrace my Australian journey, come up with over 100 different options (none of which I’ll be able to choose from) on where to go next, and change my mind about where I want to “be in life” approximately 857 times; but I’ve set myself a challenge, a challenge that I hope will provide me with some forward thinking clarity. And if I can stay off the wine long enough to save a decent amount of cash, then I reckon I’ll be alright.
Chasing Amy-Lou 