Sandboxes

Are there really sand pits in Australia like in the movie Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome?

I just rented Mad Max beyond thonderdome a couple days ago & was wondering if there are really quicksand like pits in the deserts of Australia like they portrayed in the movie? No rush on this just mildly curious. Best answer with a link gets my vote & I think its 5 points. Thanks. I wanted to give this to AndrewG but there were no links. MikeM had links. Both get props & my thanks. Will pose another question to give points to the "other" best answer. Thanx All.

Public Comments

1. no mate there are no quicksand pits here i think in egypt and the amazon though, we do have water spouts and whirlpools but you wont see them
2. yes, the movie was filmed in Australia! We call it bull dust here rather than quicksand though. It's superfine dust and feels like talcum powder, unless you know how to drive in it it does act just like quicksand
3. The section of "Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome" that you mention was filmed in a sand quarry at Kurnell; south of Sydney. They dug a pit in the sand and aerated it by blowing air through the sand; but this would not happen naturally. The producer told me that he got the idea from the film "Lawrence of Arabia", in which someone was swallowed up in dry quicksand. They also buried a mock-up of the tail section of a jumbo jet in a dune for another scene.
4. Not like the movie, but on the west coast of Tasmania there are numerous places where there is quicksand. In the southwest of the state the quicksand has claimed numerous 4x4 vehicles. The last link I have given you is a state government website so it has some cred.