Dry's Bluff is a mountain in the

Great Western Tiers The Great Western Tiers (Palawa kani: ''Kooparoona Niara'') are a collection of mountain bluffs that form the northern edge of the Central Highlands plateau in Tasmania, Australia. The bluffs are contained within the Tasmanian Wilderness World ...

Range in

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

. The walk to its summit is listed in The Abels as one of the hardest day walks in Tasmania with an elevation gain of over 1000m from the base of the plateau. Access to the start of the walk is through Bob Brown's residence Oura Oura which has the sign ''Trespassers Welcome'' on the gate.

History

It is probably named after

Richard Dry Sir Richard Dry, KCMG (20 September 1815 – 1 August 1869) was an Australian politician, the son of United Irish convict, who was Premier of Tasmania from 24 November 1866 until 1 August 1869 when he died in office. Dry was the first Tasmani ...

, the first Tasmanian-born Premier of Tasmania, and son of Richard Dry Snr. an Irish political convict. Richard Dry Snr. was granted large amounts of land at Quamby Plains 30km north of the mountain.

Geography and geology

Dry's Bluff lies just south of Liffey at the edge of the central plateau and its summit is above sea level. It is made of

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...

dolerite Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grain ...

columns which are characteristic of the Great Western Tiers.

Access

The walk up Dry's Bluff starts at Oura Oura reserve, owned by

Bush Heritage Australia Bush Heritage Australia is a non-profit organisation with headquarters in Melbourne, Australia, that operates throughout Australia. It was previously known as the Australian Bush Heritage Fund. Its vision is: Healthy Country, Protected Forever. ...

. It then ascends over 1000m in 2.5 km through dry forests, past

scree slope Scree is a collection of broken rock fragments at the base of a cliff or other steep rocky mass that has accumulated through periodic rockfall. Landforms associated with these materials are often called talus deposits. The term ''scree'' is appl ...

s, through the cliff line and into alpine scrub.

Gallery

References

{{Reflist Central Highlands (Tasmania) Mountains of Tasmania