Abandoned: The Red Hill Quarry

These photos were taken in November 2015

The Red Hill Quarry, sometimes referred to as the Herne Hill Quarry (since it’s so close to the border) is a heck of a trek to get to if you’re in a sedan. While the Suburu Liberty I drove at the time was an all-wheel drive on paper, it was so low that it only took one rather larger pot-hole to rip off the entire front bumper. I wish I had a photo in hindsight. Instead of thinking to pull out my camera, I had a bit of a panic.

Luckily, someone in a more suitable 4WD happened to drive past and helped me zip-tie it back on. A big thanks to that guy if he happens to be reading. From there, we set off on foot in the harsh November sun. It was quite hot that day.

As far as I can tell, these photos have never been posted on the internet. It was extremely bright that day and my heavy (and prone to overheating Canon 7D) was having a bit of a shit time. These photos seem a bit overexposed, but I’ve decided to post them anyway since most of what they show is now gone.

Judging by aerial photography, digging started in the 1960s and wrapped up in the early 2000s as a neighbouring pit (further up Toodyay Road) started operations. That pit is still active to this day.

All the structures shown in these photos were demolished in late 2016 or early 2017. It also appears the site is active again from 2020 onwards, so be mindful of that if you wish to visit. I believe it is a popular Insta-photo location.

Not that I would know - I never saw the pit for myself. Long story short, we ran out of water and my phone overheated so I couldn’t GPS there like the awful adventurer I am. In hindsight I was probably only 50m away at best - but we left, never to return. The Subi was booked into the mechanics the very next day.

Here’s a bonus photo I took from a lookout on Toodyay Road in Red Hill in 2013