The BEST episodes of Outback Opal Hunters

#1 - The Good, the Bad and the Overcooked

Season 12 - Episode 11 - Aired 6/2/2024

Slim Pickings’ ground-breaking mining technique risks dissipating into dust due to a devastating drought, so Lee and Roger spend their last dig of the season attempting to find enough opal to purchase a water saving trommel. The Cheals go into overdrive as they hit a massive pocket of plate sized opal in their open cut mine... The Mooka Boys have one final chance to rescue their worst season ever but brutal Outback temperatures cripple Cozza with severe heat stroke...

#2 - One Plus One Equals Three

Season 12 - Episode 12 - Aired 6/2/2024

As Grawin burns and camps are destroyed in cataclysmic fires, the Bushmen, Rod, Sam and Ben must use their last dig of the season to secure enough opal for Les’ long-awaited retirement. The Blacklighters limp into their final week still without team leader Mark... The Misfits defy Opal Joe’s orders and divide forces until Cody almost meets his demise down a 10-metre mine shaft...

#3 - School of Hard Rocks

Season 12 - Episode 9 - Aired 6/2/2024

With Rod away on urgent Mines Department business, leaving Les in charge, Sam and Ben battle a dangerously steep ramp underground. It’s the last dig of the season and Dan and Renee are fighting ultra hard rock in a hail Mary search for opal at Benito’s... After a season-long battle against an unyielding rock cap, The Mooka Boys are finally ready to start tunnelling toward black opal glory, until their last working machine suffers a catastrophic breakdown.

#4 - Episode 6

Season 5 - Episode 6 - Aired 11/12/2020

The Bushmen's new claim turns dangerous, forcing Rod and Les to choose between riches and safety. Plus, the Young Guns demolish their old mine.

#5 - Last Chance

Season 2 - Episode 13 - Aired 4/25/2019

It's the end of the mining season and the last chance for the teams. The Rookies gamble their hopes on one last haul of opal, and the Opal Queen makes a final desperate dig.

#6 - Episode 12

Season 4 - Episode 12 - Aired 4/23/2020

The Young Guns risk it all to find rare pineapple opal. Meanwhile, the Boulder Boys take on deadly ground and the Bushmen face a race to the hospital.

#7 - Episode 10

Season 4 - Episode 10 - Aired 4/9/2020

The Bushmen combat opal thieves on land and in the skies. Plus, Lightning Ridge's Gavan McFarlane puts his son to work and the Boulder Boys dig their way out of trouble.

#8 - Episode 8

Season 5 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/26/2020

Hard ground at the Bushmen's claim causes damage to their digger. And, Pete and Sam hunt for better opal dirt as their "mega wash-plant" shows promise.

#9 - Right on the Mark

Season 12 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/2/2024

Closing in on their one-million-dollar season target, the Cheals finally get two agitators up and running doubling opal production but face off against veteran opal dealer Sonja Trifunovic in an attempted one hundred-thousand-dollar sale. The Blacklighters’ team leader Mark I’Anson is severely injured and hospitalised in a mining accident... On their last load of fuel, the Mooka Boys’ season from hell continues as their only working digger overheats and dumps diesel...

#10 - Episode 1

Season 6 - Episode 1 - Aired 2/4/2021

#11 - Episode 12

Season 6 - Episode 12 - Aired 4/22/2021

It’s the last week of the season and difficult conditions force The Bushmen to enlist a rookie miner. The Cheals suffer setbacks above and below ground.

#12 - Episode 5

Season 4 - Episode 5 - Aired 3/5/2020

The Bushmen gamble on a dangerous mining method deep below ground. An injury causes The Bros a serious setback, and The Poms struggle to find their first piece of opal.

#13 - Episode 1

Season 5 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/8/2020

In outback NSW, the worst storm in 20 years devastates the Bushmen's and Chris Cheal's mine, while in Coober Pedy, a new team the Blacklighters need opal to re-establish.

#14 - Scrap Noodler

Season 7 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/18/2021

Joe and Tash fossick on the surface with hand tools after the Tarantos fails to bring up any color; the Opal Whisperers try constructing a noodler from scrap material while the Misfits narrowly avoid a collapse.

#15 - The Final Countdown

Season 14 - Episode 12 - Aired 10/2/2025

The Misfits are left to fend for themselves as mentor and financier ‘Opal’ Joe Kalmar's health takes a turn for the worse. The Bushmen are desperate to beat the 45-degree heat and salvage what's left of their season.

#16 - Between a Rod and a Hard Place

Season 11 - Episode 2 - Aired 3/25/2024

#17 - A Chance of Explosives

Season 11 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/5/2024

#18 - Episode 2

Season 6 - Episode 2 - Aired 2/11/2021

The Cheals plan to extract opal hits a wall. The blacklighters continue their search for surface opal to pay for their $15,000 Opalzilla.

#19 - Hit the Road

Season 13 - Episode 2 - Aired 3/20/2025

The Mooka Boys face the new season without Chief mechanic Leif Tanzer. Opal thieves have ransacked The Bushmen’s claim.

#20 - No Risk No Reward

Season 14 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/11/2025

The Opal Lovers excavate old drives in search of red crystal opal. Mechanical problems are once again giving the Mooka Boys a headache. Slim Pickings strike a deal with a local mining family to process the waste dirt on their claim.

#21 - Boggered

Season 11 - Episode 6 - Aired 4/12/2024

#22 - Over the Concrete Rainbow

Season 11 - Episode 8 - Aired 4/26/2024

#23 - Episode 9

Season 4 - Episode 9 - Aired 4/2/2020

After an injury to one of their members, the Young Guns face a tough decision on how to continue mining. Meanwhile, the Cheals break through to a long-lost underground mine.

#24 - The Bushmen

Season 3 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/17/2019

New team The Bushmen clash with opal thieves raiding one of their mines. The Cookes hack an old digging machine, while the Fire Crew hunt for a new deposit of rare black opal.

#25 - Episode 4

Season 5 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/29/2020

The Boulder Boys drain floodwater in pursuit of a suspected opal level. Rod Manning is under pressure after using his wife's favourite opal ring as collateral.