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They Will Always Try to Find You – Searches in the Tasmanian High Country – Part 2 – 2019

In July 2019 bad weather battered the same high country that had claimed Yates 110 years before.  It brought thick snow and freezing conditions.  Walkers were caught out.  Two experienced bushwalkers in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park set off their EPIRBs (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon).  Helicopter and ground rescue parties were hampered by … Read moreThey Will Always Try to Find You – Searches in the Tasmanian High Country – Part 2 – 2019

They Will Always Try to Find You – Searches in the Tasmanian High Country – Part 1 – 1909

Many people have become lost in the Tasmanian high country.  These days it is bushwalkers. In the past it was bush workers; prospectors, snarers, cattlemen and explorers. A few were ill-prepared.  Most were unlucky.  Even the most prepared and experienced people can be caught when the weather suddenly changes to bring wind, rain or snow.  … Read moreThey Will Always Try to Find You – Searches in the Tasmanian High Country – Part 1 – 1909

The Colebrook Fiasco – Part 3 – The fiasco

Introduction The last two blogs told the story of the rich copper mine at the top of Colebrook Hill.  The prospect was inspected and dissected by some of the best mining men in the country.  The hill seemed to be a huge deposit that would rival the Mount Lyell mine at Queenstown.  Some said that … Read moreThe Colebrook Fiasco – Part 3 – The fiasco

The Colebrook Fiasco – Part 2 – The dream of smelting in the forest

The Story So Far In 1897, three respected mining entrepreneurs announced that mine on Colebrook Hill would be greater than Mount Lyell.1  William Knox, William Orr and Herman Schlapp had helped create the massive Mount Lyell copper mine and had made their reputations in the early days of Broken Hill’s silver boom.2  They bought a … Read moreThe Colebrook Fiasco – Part 2 – The dream of smelting in the forest

The Colebrook Fiasco – part 1, the long and careful years

The wash in the creeks may carry gold, and lodes in the ridges be, But the pyritic ore of the copper belt it pleases most to see; Through the nameless scrub in the sun or rain we follow the luring quest. And cut our way with our tomahawks where the badger makes his nest. (Paul … Read moreThe Colebrook Fiasco – part 1, the long and careful years

The Long History of a Little West Coast Mine

There are a few things that I learnt during this hunt.  One is that a story chooses you and won’t let you go until you tell its history. It can wait a long time but it will get its story told.  Another is that once it gets hold it won’t let you go easily.  And … Read moreThe Long History of a Little West Coast Mine

Recollections of bush life: Reg Bramich

In the 1990s I was fortunate to spend a couple of days with Sheffield’s Reg Bramich at some of his old highland haunts. Reg, who grew up at Narrawa near Wilmot, lived a way of life that is long gone. He helped form and metal part of the Cradle Mountain Road, trapped rabbits and snared … Read moreRecollections of bush life: Reg Bramich

Bringing Gads Hill Old Station Back to Life

It seems like we’ve known about Gads Hill forever.  But it was just a place to drive past on the way to more interesting spots. It never captured our imaginations enough to be a destination. For Ian Gads Hill goes back more than 50 years to when he listened to his father and mates tell … Read moreBringing Gads Hill Old Station Back to Life

Old Station, Gads Hill no.3: The Bonneys and the Shaws

In the period 1915–22 a veteran Field stockrider William Bonney (1857–1935)1 was the resident stockman at Old Gads Hill Station.2 Molly Pedley, née Field, recalled a trip to his hut. With typical bush hospitality, Bonney boiled the billy—but shocked his visitors by stirring the tea with his false teeth.3 While that story suggests the habits … Read moreOld Station, Gads Hill no.3: The Bonneys and the Shaws

Old Station, no.2: Harry and Mary Stanley, a Gads Hill double act

The most famous Gads Hill stockman was Harry Stanley (1820–98), a tiny (162-cm tall), illiterate, former Sussex basket weaver transported for horse stealing as a 21-year-old in 1841—although his version of events was that he simply held a rope, which happened to have two horses at the end of it.1 He served two years in … Read moreOld Station, no.2: Harry and Mary Stanley, a Gads Hill double act