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Lost Mines-Ancient Pines... Queenstown


Queenstown Tasmania, nestled among rugged mountains at the end of urbanisation, combines history and natural beauty. The town's mining heritage shapes a unique charm, evident in the architecture and streets. Despite a harsh early mining industrial past, Queenstown maintains an old-world allure, inviting exploration of a unique rich heritage. The juxtaposition of industrial remnants and pristine wilderness creates a dynamic atmosphere for all interests.

Looking eastward up Orr street Queenstown on a clear summers day
Orr street Queenstown

As you explore the area, you'll encounter remnants of a bygone era from rustic mining structures to weathered pathways that hint at past close community.

A photographer and assistant find Queenstown during the mid 20th Century
The devastated Queen River valley

One of the most striking contrasts in Queenstown lies in the surrounding landscapes. While the cold climate rainforests immediately south are a stunning example of pristine wilderness, the scarred hillsides tell a different story. The once lush rainforests were cut down during the 1890's for energy and building material leaving bared hillsides to be scorched by the fallout from the brimstone fire of the Pyritic smelters. This practice endured until 1969 resulting in a devastated but somehow hauntingly beautiful scorched outlook of pink and grey rock. Present day remnants of this environmental devastation still bear testament to the tumultuous history.

A group of adventure tour goers are guided through a 'Lost Mines-Ancient Pines' tour from Queenstown Tasmania.
Ancient Huon Pines

Delving deeper into Queenstown's story, you'll uncover a fascinating interplay between nature and brutal early mining practice. The battle for dominance between these two forces has shaped the town's identity, leaving behind a complex tapestry of human endeavour and environmental resilience.


Queenstown Tasmania: A feature-packed town at the end of urbanisation.


A slug of Gold in a sample vial is presented on a picnic table during a Lost Mines-Ancient Pines adventure tour.
Panned Gold
A family Lost Mines-Ancient Pines tour group exploring an abandoned Copper/Gold mine at Queenstown Tasmania.
Lost Mines

During the summer of 1881, Cornelius Lynch and Thomas Currie led foraging parties inland from Macquarie Harbour to explore beyond the first King River gorge and the tributing Queen River. The motivation was to find new exploitable stands of valuable Huon Pine and prospect for Gold.

An extensive area of ancient temperate rainforest was discovered, where astonishingly, the highest concentration of ancient Huon Pines and King Billy pines growing in close proximity were found.

They also panned traces of Gold in the Queen River. The government had recently made the incredible reward sum of 5000 pounds payable to the discoverer of a payable Goldfield in an effort to stop the population drain to the Victorian rush. This was a huge sum of money at the time, more than enough incentive to get hardy prospectors exploring the Western Wilderness.

Tom Currie, one of the hardiest pioneering track cutters, prospected up the deep eastern gorge of a Queen River tributary to a large spectacular waterfall. He continued onto the ridge between Mt Owen and Mt Lyell which even today would be a mighty effort. Now exhausted, he made camp before heading back down into the Queen river valley without realising he had stood a few hundred yards from what would later be known as The Iron Blow.


Consider engaging the local tour operator RoamWild Tasmania to discover Tasmania's untouched Western Wilderness and the contrasting tortured landscape around Queenstown.

Immerse yourself in the untouched beauty of Tasmania with a wilderness tour that will leave you in awe as you journey through enchanted forests where ancient Huon and King Billy pines, some over a thousand years old, still grow undisturbed.

As you wander through the wilderness, breathe in the invigorating scents of Sassafras and Leatherwood that are unique to Western Tasmania's cool rainforests, creating an unforgettable sensory experience.

Transport yourself back in time to the 1890s when the Copper mining boom was in full swing, ranging from alluvial mining to underground ore stoping. Explore pioneer mines, immerse yourself in the rich history of the region, and even try your hand at traditional activities like panning for gold, rock-chip ore sampling and enjoy an underground mine tour with a miners crib break.

You find....You keep! Mine your own souvenirs.


This unique tourism experience offers a rare opportunity to connect with Western Tasmania's pioneering past while exploring its pristine wilderness, making it a standout experience that will stay with you indefinitely.


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