Somewhere on the West Coast
May. 2nd, 2014 05:01 pmAt Bastyon Dam on Lake Rosebery, as best I can tell. There's a photo with a location sign taken five minutes later.
T.M.E Site again
Mar. 9th, 2014 07:48 pmRevisiting the west coat. In fact, revisiting a site that I posted photos for back in January because that is what we did, and we discovered the more interesting parts.
So this is the lookout that I showed last time. The area was the site of a processing plant operated by the Tasmanian Metal Extraction Company (TME) in 1913/1914. This lookout is just off the Williamsford Road, and gives you a view over the site, but there's no access down to it.
However, if you leave turn off the main path just before the lookout and go around to the right and then around to the left, you eventually end up on the area below the lookout.
( Read more... )
So this is the lookout that I showed last time. The area was the site of a processing plant operated by the Tasmanian Metal Extraction Company (TME) in 1913/1914. This lookout is just off the Williamsford Road, and gives you a view over the site, but there's no access down to it.
However, if you leave turn off the main path just before the lookout and go around to the right and then around to the left, you eventually end up on the area below the lookout.
( Read more... )
This is Zeehan.
There is something that fascinates me about this town, ever since my first visit ten years ago. We'd come through Tullah, and stopped at Rosbery for some photos. Then we're driving along the main street of Zeehan, which is rather long, but not unlike the other towns with miners cottages and the occasional hotel or small shop, until we get to--
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There is something that fascinates me about this town, ever since my first visit ten years ago. We'd come through Tullah, and stopped at Rosbery for some photos. Then we're driving along the main street of Zeehan, which is rather long, but not unlike the other towns with miners cottages and the occasional hotel or small shop, until we get to--
( Read more... )
This is Rosebery. It's story is that of every other mining town. Ore is discovered nearby, in this case gold and zinc, and a town is established.
Quite a township is springing up at the Rosebery. A commodious hotel, butcher's and baker's shops and store are already built. The population is 200.
The Mercury, 1897
Unlike many mining towns, Rosebery didn't have the boom/bust cycle. The current population now is 1000 people. In the middle of last century the population got up over 2000 but I don't think it ever got much either.
South west along the main street. (That's Agnes St.)
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Quite a township is springing up at the Rosebery. A commodious hotel, butcher's and baker's shops and store are already built. The population is 200.
The Mercury, 1897
Unlike many mining towns, Rosebery didn't have the boom/bust cycle. The current population now is 1000 people. In the middle of last century the population got up over 2000 but I don't think it ever got much either.
South west along the main street. (That's Agnes St.)
( Read more... )
T.M.E Site
Jan. 27th, 2014 12:50 pmJust outside Rosebery this is a dirt road that runs off the south. There are number of signs at the turn off that point to "Williamsford 6 km", "Car Park 6 km", Montezuma Falls. About one kilometre in though is a small car park and tower.
"Track to T.M.E site".
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"Track to T.M.E site".
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Tullah, the other bit
Jan. 26th, 2014 12:24 pm
So this is the other bit of Tullah, established in the 1970s to provide accommodation for the Hydro-Electric Commission's workers during construction of their power scheme.
( Read more... )
Tullah, the nothern bit
Jan. 25th, 2014 09:29 pmThis is Tullah. One part old mining town, two parts former Hydro village. From the north, it's the first town you encounter after a long time of nothing (no towns, no houses, no mobile signal). From the south, it's the last town before a long stretch of nothing.
The potted history on the archived Online Access Centre web site says...
Tullah was established as a small mining settlement in 1900 following the discovery of silver lead ore in 1897 by Josiah Innes and party. Original access was by foot and packhorse until the Mt Farrell Tramway was completed in March 1909. In 1924 the Wee Georgie Wood steam railway linked the town to the Emu Bay railway and this continued until 1964 when the Murchison Highway was completed.
The Hydro Electric Commission commenced construction of the Pieman River Power Development in 1973. At the peak of construction the population of Tullah reached 2500. Construction was completed in 1985 but Tullah remained the construction base for the King River and Anthony Power Developments until their completion in 1994.
The two parts of the township are, as you'll see, quite separate in both atmosphere and location, so I'll give each one its own post. That way I can use more photos and gets posts for one lot of work.
( Read more... )
The potted history on the archived Online Access Centre web site says...
Tullah was established as a small mining settlement in 1900 following the discovery of silver lead ore in 1897 by Josiah Innes and party. Original access was by foot and packhorse until the Mt Farrell Tramway was completed in March 1909. In 1924 the Wee Georgie Wood steam railway linked the town to the Emu Bay railway and this continued until 1964 when the Murchison Highway was completed.
The Hydro Electric Commission commenced construction of the Pieman River Power Development in 1973. At the peak of construction the population of Tullah reached 2500. Construction was completed in 1985 but Tullah remained the construction base for the King River and Anthony Power Developments until their completion in 1994.
The two parts of the township are, as you'll see, quite separate in both atmosphere and location, so I'll give each one its own post. That way I can use more photos and gets posts for one lot of work.
( Read more... )
Gormanston
Dec. 24th, 2012 08:35 pm
Gormanston, population 170. About one tenth what it was about a century ago when the town was home to employees of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company, along with all the services a town needs: shops, hotels, local government, school, post office.
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Linda & Royal Hotel
Oct. 29th, 2012 09:57 pm
This is Linda, population not very many.
The internets are being unhelpful at giving up useful information, and I obviously have boxes of books to unpack somewhere. So I'll have to rely on what I know, which is, um, not much. Still former mining town, you can probably tell the story yourself :)
I did find some old postcards in the State Library's collection, so you can see that early in the 20th century it was town of some substance, with multiple hotels (I think four at one point) and boarding houses, a hall and shops. It was, at one point, the main town for workers at the nearby North Mt Lyell mine, and the end point of the railway. A busy little place, with a population in the hundreds.
Then it faded over the years, and the buildings went away, until it is as you see it today.
( Read more... )
Day 1, Part 1
Day 1, Part 2
Now to finish this off, so I can get onto interesting things. Not there are isn't anything interesting in here, but there's not much space for them.
Sunday morning, and there is a lot to do today, including everything we didn't get done yesterday. Fortunately, Queenstown runs on country time*, so we won't have to hurry. (*This is a phenomena noticeable in smaller towns were time seems to run slower so you get more done in a given time period. Handy if you have a lot to do. Annoying when you are waiting for something to open/close/arrive.)
( Lots of things )
Day 1, Part 2
Now to finish this off, so I can get onto interesting things. Not there are isn't anything interesting in here, but there's not much space for them.
Sunday morning, and there is a lot to do today, including everything we didn't get done yesterday. Fortunately, Queenstown runs on country time*, so we won't have to hurry. (*This is a phenomena noticeable in smaller towns were time seems to run slower so you get more done in a given time period. Handy if you have a lot to do. Annoying when you are waiting for something to open/close/arrive.)
( Lots of things )
This is a trip report in three parts, with some extra posts on the side.
So we went down to Queenstown Friday night, leaving from Ulverstone. It's a bit of drive: 250km/150 miles 3.5 hour from Launceston via Cradle Mountain or 260km + 6 minutes from Launceston via the NW coast.
(Or Google tells me, 260km 3h 23mins if you go through Cressy and past the Great Lakes, but no one every goes that way and I wouldn't have considered it as a possible route.)
Whichever way you go, there are narrow, winding mountains roads, and long stretches with no towns, no houses, no mobile phone signal (either Optus or Telstra). We arrived just before 11 pm, so the drive was also in the dark and of course it was raining. And it winds on and on and on forever, with an occasional road sign to assure you that you actually making progress.
Then all these lights appear. No occasional flicker or isolated light as you get closer, just come around a corner and lights right across the view, and then along one side and this tall, shining tower thing on the hill.
The Empire Hotel, where we stayed.
( Read more... )
So we went down to Queenstown Friday night, leaving from Ulverstone. It's a bit of drive: 250km/150 miles 3.5 hour from Launceston via Cradle Mountain or 260km + 6 minutes from Launceston via the NW coast.
(Or Google tells me, 260km 3h 23mins if you go through Cressy and past the Great Lakes, but no one every goes that way and I wouldn't have considered it as a possible route.)
Whichever way you go, there are narrow, winding mountains roads, and long stretches with no towns, no houses, no mobile phone signal (either Optus or Telstra). We arrived just before 11 pm, so the drive was also in the dark and of course it was raining. And it winds on and on and on forever, with an occasional road sign to assure you that you actually making progress.
Then all these lights appear. No occasional flicker or isolated light as you get closer, just come around a corner and lights right across the view, and then along one side and this tall, shining tower thing on the hill.
The Empire Hotel, where we stayed.
( Read more... )
In between bits
Aug. 8th, 2008 08:14 pmSome bits of the West Coat between the towns. Possibly I should have posted these before the photos of the towns.
A house at Tullah.
( A handful more. )
A house at Tullah.
( A handful more. )
Queenstown
Jul. 27th, 2008 07:08 pm(I'm trying out larger photo sizes. They're a bit big for my monitor but they might look better on newer ones.)
( Queenstown )
( Queenstown )
Zeehan, the silver city. This is somewhere I'd like to go back to one day to get some better photos.
In the 1880s, silver and lead deposits were discovered and the town grew, quickly. One book I have tells me the population in 1908 was 10,000. Other sources give similar figures. Do I sound surprised? Those other sources tell me that in 1900, Launceston's population was 18,000 and Hobart's was 25,000. That was one big town out on the far west coast, a city indeed.
( Read more... )
In the 1880s, silver and lead deposits were discovered and the town grew, quickly. One book I have tells me the population in 1908 was 10,000. Other sources give similar figures. Do I sound surprised? Those other sources tell me that in 1900, Launceston's population was 18,000 and Hobart's was 25,000. That was one big town out on the far west coast, a city indeed.
( Read more... )
I'm going to continue the mining theme with some more mining towns, this time down the West Coast. If you're not interested in mining towns, look away NOW.
Right. I've included some of these in my West Coast trip report back in 2005, but that was years ago and there are some additional photos. Unfortunately, we only made a quick visits to these towns so I only have a small number of photos of sometimes dubious quality.
The west coast is wild and remote, much more than you'd think from the map. It's all mountains and rain forest, winding roads and wild rivers, and some of the richest mineral deposits in the world.
I was going to do some background & start with Zeehan, but I have photos of Rosebery already uploaded and it is the first town of substance you come to from the north. So I'll start there, and add in background details as the come up.
Main street (Agnes St). The pub on the corner seems to have been done over.
( Read more... )
Right. I've included some of these in my West Coast trip report back in 2005, but that was years ago and there are some additional photos. Unfortunately, we only made a quick visits to these towns so I only have a small number of photos of sometimes dubious quality.
The west coast is wild and remote, much more than you'd think from the map. It's all mountains and rain forest, winding roads and wild rivers, and some of the richest mineral deposits in the world.
I was going to do some background & start with Zeehan, but I have photos of Rosebery already uploaded and it is the first town of substance you come to from the north. So I'll start there, and add in background details as the come up.
Main street (Agnes St). The pub on the corner seems to have been done over.
( Read more... )
Of politics and fallen trees
Feb. 6th, 2005 05:01 pm(Odd, I went to write this in Word but every time I tried I found myself thinking of other things to do instead.)
When we were last here, we about head down the Gordon River. But first, we need to stop for a some more of the back history stuff, albeit a bit more recent -- just over 20 years.
( The next bit is about politics, you can skip to the first photo if you really want but it is relevant )
When we were last here, we about head down the Gordon River. But first, we need to stop for a some more of the back history stuff, albeit a bit more recent -- just over 20 years.
( The next bit is about politics, you can skip to the first photo if you really want but it is relevant )
