Golden prospects for adventurer

By Tina Seirlis

In less than a month’s time, locals can enjoy watching Bacchus Marsh resident Kerry Toner feature on 7Mate’s first full season of Adventure Gold Diggers.

This immersive observational documentary, as described by series creator Fredbird Entertainment, showcases the real-life adventures of five prospecting and mining teams searching for gold in unique locations across Australia, including deep within mineshafts in Victoria, across remote North Queensland, and in sub-zero Tasmania.

Mr Toner informed The Moorabool News that the opportunity resulted from his participation in an earlier gold prospecting program called Parkers Trail Australia, which then led to an invitation to be involved in a pilot for Adventure Gold Diggers.

What followed was a commitment for two seasons across 12-episodes, of which Mr Toner’s team (including Robert from Ballarat, Adam from Shepparton, and Annika from Geelong) feature in more than half.

Mr Toner said their part is the adventure side.

“We abseil down into old gold mines to look for gold and to show people what is below their feet.”

A third-generation local born in Bacchus Marsh Hospital, Mr Toner has a lifelong connection to the town, an area well-known for being on the road to the original Ballarat goldfields, with the broader region also falling within the Central Victorian Goldfields World Heritage Bid project area.

In a further nod to local history, Mr Toner’s grandfather once owned the service station on Main Street in Bacchus Marsh, and his great-grandmother was the postmistress in Rowsley in the early 1900s.

Mr Toner has similarly kept his employment local working as a full-time mechanic in Maddingley.

He discovered his love of gold mine adventuring 15-years ago after purchasing a 4WD which provided greater access to exploring the outdoors.

“I started finding old gold mines and had to see what was inside them. My friend Darren had the same interest in seeing what the old timers worked so hard for, so we went out all the time,” he said.

He then joined a Facebook group focused on abseiling into mines.

“I went down the ropes to have a look. I was hooked onto it straight away and haven’t looked back since.”

While Mr Toner enjoys mine exploration as a hobby, his advice to others is to stay out of them.

“Exploring these mines is very dangerous and there are so many hazards to look out for including falling rocks, poisonous gases, no air, and false floors to name a few.”

Craig Graham, Executive Producer at Fredbird Entertainment, said viewers will be excited to discover “the extraordinary lengths ordinary Aussies will go to in order to strike it rich”.

Adventure Gold Diggers will be broadcast in Australia on 7mate, on TVNZ in New Zealand, and in multiple countries around the world including the UK, Germany and other Northern European countries.