Four million for Geoff's empty west coast, and locals ask where the mines went
The week-old explainer on why Perth stands nearly alone keeps gathering corrections about iron ore, Albany and who got there first.
Geography By GeoffStory of Why this story? The video is running at 2,126,005 views a day, 7.4 times its usual pace (286,271).
Why Almost NOBODY Lives On Australia's West Coast
"Why Almost NOBODY Lives On Australia's West Coast" had about 180,000 views at the end of its first day. Five days in, as we reported here, it had just passed a million. It is now past four million, and on its latest day alone it drew more than two million, enough to lift the whole channel to roughly five times its usual daily views.
The video asks a simple question. Western Australia, the description points out, covers about a third of the continent and is roughly the size of western Europe, yet outside Perth it is close to empty. Geoff works through it in three parts, from a chapter cheerfully titled "Oops, All Outback" to how the land was shaped and what that means for growth. Perth is more than 2,000 kilometers from Adelaide, its nearest neighbor of any size, so the loneliness is not just a figure of speech.
The comment section has turned into a long footnote. The most common point is about what the video leaves out: mining, and the iron ore that comes out of the Pilbara and leaves through Port Hedland. Many West Australians also want the founding story fixed. European settlement began at King George Sound, today's Albany, in 1826, three years before the colony that grew into Perth. A running joke follows the most liked comment: if people cannot fill this stretch of desert, how would they manage Mars?
There are softer notes too, from a cyclist who rode from Perth to Albany and on across the Nullarbor, and from people telling visitors to come in spring for the wildflowers.
Geoff asked the same question of Idaho the week before. Australia's west is the version his viewers keep adding to.
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What viewers say
Last year I bicycled from Perth to Albany on the Munda Biddi Trail. Then over to Esperance, up to Norseman, across the Nullarbor to Port Augusta and finally down to Adelaide. 3000 km. Nothing but respect for the people of Australia and the beautiful nature of your country. Plan on going back next year.
@dans.5095See it on YouTubeGreat to see a video on my home from an outside perspective.
My wife went to a conference in Texas once, we found it amusing that she was asked how many times Western Australia would fit inside Texas.@petercox1925See it on YouTubeThe best time to visit Western Australia is in the spring. WA has over 12000 species of wildflowers that bloom each year and are a spectacular sight.
@optimusmaximus9646See it on YouTube
Public comments from the video's page on YouTube
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- Channel
- Geography By Geoff
- Subscribers
- 1,110,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 5,245,536
- Channel views, pace per day
- 2,002,610 (on a normal day: 417,096)
- Video published
- September 29, 2026
- Video views so far
- 4,424,695 (7 days online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 2,126,005 (on a normal day: 286,271)
The numbers
The video has more than quadrupled in two days, and it is carrying nearly all of the channel's views right now.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which river runs through the middle of Perth?
Perth is built along the Swan River, which flows into the Indian Ocean at Fremantle; the Yarra, Torrens and Brisbane run through Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane.
