The Tasmanian

West Coast

Including the South West region. Part of the Western Police District. Steeped in history, surrounded by spectacular wilderness and breathtaking scenery, Tasmania's West Coast is a wonderful travelling experience. Vast tracts of ancient rainforest, jagged mountain ranges, beaches pounded by the Southern Ocean, the still, dark waters of the stunning Gordon River and the wild Franklin River. Aboriginals, convicts, piners and miners have all left their mark on Tasmania's West Coast, where stories of early struggles unfold within a unique natural heritage. And resting easily between the extremes of hardship and magnificent beauty, old fashioned hospitality. From the tiny historic village of Strahan, where fishing boats and cruisers moor, to the mining towns of Tullah, Rosebery, Zeehan and Queenstown, the character of the West lives on through local people. Meet them on the water as you cruise Macquarie Harbour, as you stroll through a Huon Pine sawmill or on a wilderness walk to spectacular waterfalls in the South West World Heritage Area. The Strahan Visitor Centre has a terrific interpretation centre which explains the history of the area from convict settlement to the Franklin Dam Blockade. Similar presentations in Queenstown and Zeehan provide an enthralling account of the hardship encountered by West Coast pioneers. An historical note: Macquarie Harbour's population during its 11 years as a penal settlement averaged about 300 convicts and guards, all crammed onto the 15 acres of windswept Sarah Island. Zeehan was Tasmania's third largest town in the late 1800s, with a population of about 10,000 people during its heyday as 'Silver City of the West'.

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