Regatta Point, Tasmania

Regatta Point from the north - West Coast Wilderness Railway train in steam

Regatta Point is the location of a port and rail terminus on Macquarie Harbour (West Coast, Tasmania).

Port

Regatta Point is often assumed into the name of the locality across the bay in Macquarie Harbour, Strahan, Tasmania. The other ports in Macquarie Harbour were Strahan, and Pillinger at the southern end of the harbour.

Most shipping through the notorious Hells Gates is now the fishing fleet.

The last sea-based delivery of explosives for the Mount Lyell company occurred as late as 1976.

Railway Terminus

It was the port and terminus of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company railway line from Queenstown.^[1]

When fully operational prior to closure in the 1960s, it was the location of the transfer of Mount Lyell materials to ships.^[2]

Regatta Point was the location of the connection between the Mount Lyell private railway and the government railway line which passed through Strahan on the way to Zeehan, when that line was operational. It was possible to utilise passenger services from Queenstown to Burnie, using the Mount Lyell Line, the government line to Zeehan, and the Emu Bay Railway line to Burnie.

Railway building

An earlier building at the station location was burnt down in 1900 ^[3]

It currently the terminus for the rebuilt West Coast Wilderness Railway. The remaining station building at Regatta Point has been restored for the new service, having lain at risk from the 1960s to the 1990s.^[4]

Nearest ports

Outside of Macquarie Harbour - on the north coast of Tasmania - Burnie or the south east Hobart - smaller anchorages exist in between - but are either facility free Port Davey or dangerous Trial Harbour.

See also

• Railways on the West Coast of Tasmania
• West Coast Tasmania Mines

Notes

1. Photograph - Regatta Point, Strahan - Railway yards, LINC Tasmania, 1900, retrieved 25 January 2016 : photograph shows railway station, railway sheds, railway yard, and wharf prior to 1910
2. The site and remains of loading ramps and structures at the west end of the former wharf can still be seen
3. "Disastrous Fire.". Zeehan and Dundas Herald (Tas. : 1890 - 1922) (Tas.: National Library of Australia). 22 December 1900. p. 2. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
4. Andrew C. Ward & Associates (1992), Regatta Point Railway Station conservation plan, Andrew C Ward, retrieved 26 February 2014

References

• Blainey, Geoffrey (2000). The Peaks of Lyell (6th ed.). Hobart: St. David's Park Publishing. ISBN 0-7246-2265-9.
• Rae, Lou (2001). The Abt Railway and Railways of the Lyell region. Sandy Bay: Lou Rae. ISBN 0-9592098-7-5.
• Whitham, Charles (2003). Western Tasmania - A land of riches and beauty (Reprint 2003 ed.). Queenstown: Municipality of Queenstown.

Coordinates: 42°09′38″S 145°19′35″E / 42.1605°S 145.3264°E