The Big Hat
You’ll find the Big Hat at the Cradock Wildlife Reserve. Sitting atop a high stand to protect itself from wildlife, this giant hat is visible from the Cradock Hotel. While the exact reason behind its construction is unclear, there’s no doubt that it has everything to do with promoting local tourism.
The Big Hat in Cradock isn’t the only hat-shaped Big Thing in Australia. In Cairns, Queensland, there’s another big hat dubbed The Big Scout Hat.
The hat in Cairns sits atop an old military building along Grafton Street, Cairns City. The Cairns Scout Hut building was used as a control room during World War II.
South Australia, home of The Big Hat, is also home to several other iconic Big Things of Australia. For example, the Festival State is home to The Big Scotsman, arguably the oldest Big Thing in the country.
The Big Lobster in Kingston is yet another gigantic sculpture found in this part of Australia. It is believed that initially, the measurements were drawn in feet, but the designer reportedly misinterpreted them and used metres instead. The result was a massive replica of a lobster measuring 17 metres tall.
Then there’s also The Big Santa (Father Christmas) that visits the Adelaide Central Market every Christmas. It stands as tall as the Big Lobster Rosetown, measuring 16.4 metres.
In Tailem Bend, you’ll find the Big Olive, an oversized sculpture of two olives, one painted black and the other green. The sculpture stands 11 metres high outside The Big Olive processing plant and visitors centre.
Other Big Things of South Australia worth visiting or reading about include The Big Orange in Berri, Map the Miner in Kapunda, The Big Oyster in Ceduna, The Big Kangaroo, and The Big Pelican in Loxton (there’s also another gigantic and prominent pelican in Noosaville, Queensland).
