Mount Murchison is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

on the

West Coast Range The West Coast Range is a mountain range located in the West Coast, Tasmania, West Coast region of Tasmania, Australia. The range lies to the west and north of the main parts of the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park. The range has h ...

, located in the West Coast region of

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 ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. At

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, it is the highest mountain in the range and within the top thirty highest mountains in Tasmania.

Location and features

Lying close to the Williamsford and

Tullah Tullah is a town in the northern part of the West Coast Range, on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia, about 111 km south of Burnie. The town has a population of approximately 202 people. Town The town is roughly divided into two "subu ...

mining areas, the mountain is often found referred to in early photographs. It is located in the Mount Murchison Regional Reserve and lies east of

Zeehan Zeehan is a town on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia south-west of Burnie. It is part of the West Coast Council, along with the seaport Strahan and neighbouring mining towns of Rosebery and Queenstown. History The greater Zeehan a ...

, and

Mount Read Mount Read is a mountain located in the West Coast region of Tasmania, Australia, and is at the north west edge of the West Coast Range. With an elevation of above sea level, Mount Read has had as colourful a history, similar to that of Mou ...

, and north of

Mount Tyndall Mount Tyndall is a peak in the Mount Whitney region of the Sierra Nevada in the U.S. state of California. At , it is the tenth highest peak in the state. The mountain was named in honor of the Irish scientist and mountaineer, John Tyndall. ...

. The track to the summit takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete with infrequent rests. The total walk to time to the summit and return is approximately 5.5 to 6 hrs. From the trig point the nearby Towns of Tullah, Rosebery and

can be seen on a clear day. Mount Murchison is for moderately experienced climbers and contains sections that includes loose and sometimes slippery rock. The first part of the track winds through dense bush and involves stepping over a lot of tree roots. The track breaks from the bush straight into a view of the surrounding area. Navigation from this point onwards involves moving between rock cairns and bits of tape to ensure you are on the track. At one point on the track about a third from the top requires an ascent up a 2-metre rise. , the rope attached to assist at that point is still in serviceable condition. Water is available from about two thirds up the track from snow runoff which forms a little spring. The last third of the track across the top to get to the trig point is quite narrow and has a fall off to the right. There is also a 1.5 metre ledge to climb up on to as part of the last section of the track. The geology of the ground around the mountain relates to the range of mining activities nearby. On the south eastern side there a number of lakes, some unnamed. From the north, they are ''Shaded Lake'', ''Little Sister'', ''Lake Gaye'' and ''Lake Sandra'' lying to the east of the southernmost part of the main mountain, and below a very steep cliff. It was named by

Charles Gould Charles Gould may refer to: * Charles Gould, afterwards Sir Charles Morgan, 1st Baronet (1726–1806), English Judge Advocate-General * Charles Gould (geologist) (1834–1893), first Geological Surveyor of Tasmania, 1859–1869 * Charles G. Gould ...

in the early 1860s. A folk tradition of unknown origin is that a cooked sausage should be thrown off the top of the mountain in order to ward off animals on the descent.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Murchison, Mount Murchison, Mount Murchison, Mount

Location and features

See also

References

Bibliography