Farina - no longer a ghost town

We are staying in a camping ground at Copley which is about 40 km south of Farina, but more about this town later.

Today we decided to visit Farina, which we have done twice previously, in 2020 and 2021, during the pandemic when South Australian borders were mostly closed.    Consequently there were not many people around then.

Today was a bit of a shock, for sure, there were people and vehicles everywhere.   Where did they all come from, as there is no through road as such.    North of Farina is Marree, with a small camping ground, then the Oodnadatta track runs north, and the Birdsville track runs east.    These tracks need tough vehicles and caravans.       But people are on the move again, which is great for the local businesses. 

There is a camping ground in Farina, and I can imagine it is fairly packed at the moment.

Farina only comes alive for about six weeks of the year, late May to mid July.   During that time about 150 volunteers help restore buildings, run the underground bakery, and serve in the purpose built shop and cafe in the photo below.

The queue to purchase baked goods was very long, although apparently during the recent long weekend the queue stretched out of the door and down the road.     I bought the delicious looking solid fruit loaf, in the photograph below, plus bread that was full of bacon, cheese and herbs, 2 buns and coffee.    Everything is freshly baked, and only good quality ingredients are used. 

The day was warm, with the temperature in the low twenties, and clear blue skies.   However, what is not in the photos is the northerly wind blowing the sand everywhere.    It is especially dry here at the moment so plenty of sand and dirt.   Apparently when people lived here the sand would pile up against the doors during dust storms.

Farina started off as a government dug well in 1870 and was proclaimed a town in 1878.   A post office and telegraph station was built, followed by two hotels, an underground bakery, a bank, two breweries, a general store, churches, blacksmiths and a school.  The town became a railhead of the Great Northern Railway in 1882.   By this time the population reached 600.

Farina was an important focal point for remote stations, Afghan Cameleers and Aboriginal communities, plus Chinese and European settlers drawn by copper and silver discoveries.   Plus there was the idea that wheat could be grown here, due to one wet season.

But it all fizzled out.   Droughts, wars, and the railway line closing in 1980 resulted in Farina falling into ruins.

I noticed that although much of the land was government owned, there were privately bought allotments.  

Farina was certainly not a good place to invest in a block of land!