Day 20 - Mines, dams, power stations, mountains and lakes around Rosebery and Tullah

It was fine today, 5.5 degrees at the outset but climbing to 15 degrees during the day.  The sun was out from time to time too.

Rosebery is the home of MMG's Rosbery Mine.  It is a polymetalliferous, underground mine which produces annually, as concentrate, 80-85,000t of zinc, 22-24,000t of lead, 2300t of cathode copper and gold dore.  The latter is refined into gold bullion on the mainland.  The concentrates are railed to Burnie for export.  The ore is crushed, ground and then submitted to a flotation process.  The mine has been operating since 1936 and is right in the centre of Rosebery.

160315 Plaque commemorating 75 years of operations of the Rosebery
concentrator and the discovery of zinc at Rosebery in 1873

160315 MMG's surface operations at Rosebery

160315 MMG's surface operations at Rosebery 

160315 Mine tailings at Rosebery

Rosebery, in the valley of the mountains, has a population of just over 1000 people and is surrounded by mountains.  We have a key observation to make.  Rosebery's water is very soft and today we saw the source of that water.

160315 Mine tailings at Rosebery

We retraced our steps a bit today and visited the various dams, power stations, mountains and lakes around Rosebery and the township of Tullah. 

As usual, Mount Murchison seemed to be everywhere, so we were not surprised to come across a Murchison Dam on the Murchison River.  The water in this dam is redirected to Mackintosh Dam where there is a power station.  There was also a smaller dam supporting the Mackintosh called the Tullabardine Dam.

160315 Mount Black (520m) near Tullah township

160315 The spillway at Murchison Dam

160315 The Murchison River below the dam wall

160315 Lake Murchison

160315 Mount Farrell (712m) behind Tullah

160315 Power Station below Mackintosh Dam

160315 Lake Mackintosh 

160315  Mackintoish Dam's 870 metre long dam wall

160315 Lake Rosebery

Next dam we visited was the Bastyan Dam with its power station.

160315 The Bastyan Dam wall

160315 The power station at Bastyan Dam

160315 Water exiting the turbines at Bastyan Dam Power Station

160315 Downstream from the Power Station at Bastyan Dam

160315 Downstream from the Power Station at Bastyan Dam

However the highlight of the day was the trip around to the eastern side of Mount Murchison and on to Lake Plimsoll.  The foliage on this side of the mountain range was different, less rainforest, more heath and button grass. There were more visible mountains and valleys too.  Lake Plimsoll was spectacular as it nestled in between the mountains. 

160315 Looking towards Lake Plimsoll 

160315 Part of the eastern side of Mount Murchison, heath covered

160315 from the road to Lake Plimsoll.  Note less forest

160315 Lake Plimsoll - picture hardly does it justice

160315 Lake Plimsoll

160315 Lake Plimsoll (a right hand extension of the photograph above)

160315 Mt Murchison (1275 m) from its eastern side

The mountains may be big in Tasmania but some of their wildflowers are very small.

160315 A not so wild, wild flower - about one cm across