Landlocked Australian Towns and Cities Quiz

Answer:

The inland towns and cities are-

The national capital, Canberra, is the only state or territory capital that is not on a coast- it is about 150km from the nearest beachside town of Batemans Bay. Dubbo and Wagga Wagga are both regional cities in New South Wales. Kalgoorlie, in Western Australia, is best known as a gold mining town, and is about 400kms from the Indian Ocean, at Esperance.

Mt Isa (Queensland) and Coober Pedy (South Australia), are also renowned mining towns. Mt Isa is a large producer of silver, copper, lead and zinc, while the desert town of Coober Pedy is the source of most of the world's opals. Because of the arid, hot climate, most of the houses are built underground! Ballarat is yet another mining city and was largely responsible for the meteoric rise in population of Victoria in particular, when the Gold Rush of 1851 attracted people from many other countries.

Alice Springs, in the Northern Territory (NT), is closest to the geographical centre of the country, and hundreds of kilometres from an ocean. Katherine is also in NT, but much closer- 'only' 300 kms from the Timor Sea. Launceston is over 50kms from Bass Strait, and is in northern Tasmania and Mt Gambier in the far south of South Australia, is only about 30kms from deep water.

The coastal towns and cities are-

Geelong is the second-largest city in Victoria, behind the capital of Melbourne. It is near the start of the Great Ocean Road. Warrnambool is near the western end of that iconic drive. Hobart is the capital of Tasmania, in the southeast of the state and Fremantle is the major port in Western Australia (WA), not far south of the capital, Perth. Broome, known for its pearls, is in the north of WA.

Cairns is adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, in north Queensland. Newcastle and Wollongong are both larger cities in New South Wales, to the north and south respectively, from Sydney.