That Time I Spent a Week Living in a Cave in the Australian Outback

5 years ago I spent a week in the scorching, barren Australian outback, living in a cave.

Yep. You heard that right. A cave.

But not just any cave. This was a hotel, with multiple cave dwellings.

I know what you’re thinking. Where the heck is this and why the hell did you decide to spend a week in a cave?

Cause sure, you might understand one night for novelty’s sake, but a week?

Let me explain…

My Day Job Has Led to Some Very Cool Adventures

Have you ever heard of a show called House Hunters International? You know the one on HGTV that your aunt or mom watches all the time? Or maybe secretly you and your partner watch every night before bed, as you fantasize about moving abroad?

Well, on and off over the past few years, I have been privileged enough to work on this show as a producer and director.

And 5 years ago, I was overseeing a spin-off series of the franchise called House Hunters Off the Grid.

Our casting department had one mission, to find people who were moving to the most remote and extreme places on the planet, and then in true House Hunters fashion, document their house hunt. Because even if you’re living in the Arctic Circle or the rainforests of Central America, everyone needs to find a place they can call home, right?

So back to those caves.

We shot 5 episodes of House Hunters Off the Grid for our inaugural season. One of the shows took place in Coober Pedy, Australia. Haven’t heard of it? Well, it’s off the beaten path for sure, but if you’re the adventurous type, I highly recommend adding this desert town to your bucket list.

Coober Pedy, Australia

Coober Pedy is best described as a lunar landscape on earth. Its location is so remote, you can only catch a flight to the town a couple of times a week, on a propeller plane out of Adelaide. Alternatively, you can brave the 10-hour drive from Adelaide along the Stuart Highway. It’s no wonder the first Mad Max movie was shot here!

But Coober Pedy’s real claim to fame is that it’s known as the opal mining capital of the world.  An estimated 70% of the world’s opal comes from this tiny desert town. It also boasts average temperatures of 110 degrees Fahrenheit and above.

Because the heat is so intense and relentless, the miners came up with a pretty smart idea…why not burrow into the bedrock and create cave-like dwellings to keep temperatures cooler? And so, a colony of cave dwellings began.

Why I Love My Day Job in TV Production

When we spent the week in Coober Pedy, we documented the house hunt of a lovely couple who had just moved from Denmark. The husband was originally from Australia and his wife was from Denmark, and they had a toddler in tow. You can pretty much imagine the culture shock they felt moving from cosmopolitan Copenhagen to a small desert town with more flies than people. But the move was for work, and they were all making the best of it. As was our crew.

It was no easy feat filming 12+ hours a day in the intense heat. Even more relentless than the heat were the desert flies. I had nightmares about those flies for weeks after the fact.

Despite the hardships, we also enjoyed some pretty incredible experiences. Our fixer, (our local guide who helped us wrangle everything from permits to kangaroos) took us out to the opal mines on our last day of filming. He showed us how to fossick and we all found tiny shards of opal hidden in the sandstone.

Then there was the morning we filmed the sunrise over the desert in Kanku – the Aboriginal-owned Breakaways Conservation Park. Though we were there making a TV show, the morning took on a spiritual tone with the landscape awash in red, pink and orange hues.

With all of the travel I have done, I know now not to take these moments lightly, because it is these experiences that make me truly feel most alive. And I am grateful that my role as a producer and director in television has afforded me these once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.

Where Else Did We Film for Off the Grid?

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the other incredible destinations we filmed for this unique series. We did indeed make it to the Arctic Circle, to Svalbard, Norway, where our crew learned how to protect themselves from polar bears. The show also filmed in Bhutan, where one of the houses we featured fetches a monthly rent of $70. And our crews traveled to the Canadian barrier islands Haida Gwaii and lived in treehouses in the jungle in Costa Rica.

Each show came with its challenges but I’m pretty sure that if you asked any of the crew members who worked on these episodes if it was worth it, they would tell you that these were among the most memorable episodes they’ve worked on for the franchise.

Coober Pedy Travel Tips:

If you’re seriously interested in spending a few days in Coober Pedy, Australia, here are my travel tips:

Where to Stay:

We stayed at the Desert Cave Hotel. I highly recommend it if you want that ‘living in a cave’ experience!

Where to Eat:

We ate at Tom & Mary’s Greek taverna almost every night we were there but unfortunately, it’s now closed. I recommend checking out the Outback Bar and Grill. For sundowners, we went to one of the only pubs in town, located at the Opal Inn.

What to Do:

Head out to the Kanku Breakaways for sunrise or sunset. Explore the Serbian Orthodox Church – which is underground! Go fossicking in the opal fields. Learn more about the history of Coober Pedy and the opal mining industry at the Umoona Opal Mine and Museum. And you must check out Crocodile Harry’s Underground Nest and Dugout.

Why I love Creating Content

So spending that week living in a cave in the desert? Hell yeah, I was on board! Coober Pedy is up there as one of my most memorable trips. Experiences and opportunities like this are what make me so grateful for my career and the fact that I can combine two of my life’s biggest passions: travel and storytelling.

I love creating content, telling stories and sharing ideas with others, whether it’s for a national network like HGTV, or for my blog, Let’s Be Merry. The road hasn’t always been easy, but blisters, sunburns and all, it has been worth it.