Strathgordon
was established in 1969 as a company town by the Hydro Electric
Commission as a base for its construction workers needed
when they dammed Lake Pedder and Lake Gordon as part of
their massive hydro electric dam projects.
Lake
Gordon was created from the Gordon River by constructing
a 140 m high dam across the river above its intersection
with the Serpentine River.
Water from
the lakes is used in the underground Hydroelectric Gordon
Power Station, located near the Gordon Dam.
Presently,
the village of Strathgordon is a tiny settlement, now only
a reminder of the flourishing town that was occupied in
the 1970s by construction workers.
Today, the
region of Lake Pedder and Lake Gordon has been redeveloped
by Hydro Tasmania as a suitable place for trout fishing
(a current fishing licence is essential), picnics, barbecues,
camping and bush walking.
To get to this
untouched area of the Derwent Valley, take the sealed road
150 km west from Mt Field National Park to reach the hydro
storages of Lakes Gordon and Pedder, the Southwest wilderness
region that you will travel through is ringed with rugged
mountain ranges and untouched forests. Both lakes are excellent
wild trout fisheries and have good boat launching facilities.
Weather forecasts
are important in this area as the lake conditions change
fast. Strathgordon provides refreshments, accommodation,
local information and petrol for visitors and the Tourist
Centre is situated at the mighty Gordon Dam, the site of
Australia’s longest vertical abseil.
To the south
of the town lies the vast South West National Park, one
of the few areas of genuine untouched wilderness left in
Australia. It is a comment on the wildness of this area
that the Lithuanian born photographer, Olegas Truchanas
(whose photographs of the area have become famous - they
were used extensively in the 1983 election campaign), was
the first European to navigate the Serpentine and Gordon
Rivers.
He made the trip
as recently as 1958.
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