The Australian outback remains the last refuge of men who refuse to become caught up in the restrictions of society. They have found a land where they can remain free men. Some of them realise their youthful dreams through prospecting for gold. Others accept life in the blazing heat of the bush so they can search for opals, the precious stone that fascinates them. To protect themselves from the intolerable heat, that in summer can reach 50° and 60°, they have dug deep into the hillsides. So they emerge from working in the mines to then burrow into another hole, where they have made their troglodyte homes.