Strahan, Tasmania
| Strahan Tasmania | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 A view of Strahan taken from a boat in Macquarie Harbour | |||||||
  Strahan | |||||||
| Coordinates | 42°09′S 145°19′E / 42.150°S 145.317°ECoordinates: 42°09′S 145°19′E / 42.150°S 145.317°E | ||||||
| Population | 637 (2006)[1] | ||||||
| Postcode(s) | 7468 | ||||||
| Elevation | 20 m (66 ft)[2] | ||||||
| Location |
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| LGA(s) | West Coast Council | ||||||
| State electorate(s) | Braddon | ||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Braddon | ||||||
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Strahan (pronounced "straw-n"), is a small town and former port on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia. It is now a significant locality for tourism in the region. Strahan Harbour and Risby Cove form part of the north-east end of Long Bay on the northern end of Macquarie Harbour. At the 2006 census, Strahan had a population of 637.[1]
Port
Originally developed as a port of access for the mining settlements in the area, Strahan was a vital location for the timber industry that existed around Macquarie Harbour. For a substantial part of the nineteenth century and early twentieth century it also was port for regular shipping of passengers and cargo. The Strahan Marine Board was an important authority dealing with the issues of the port and Macquarie Harbour up until the end of the twentieth century when it was absorbed into the Hobart Marine Board.
Macquarie Harbour Post Office opened on 16 May 1878, was renamed Strahan in 1881 and closed in 1891. East Strahan Post Office opened in 1891 and was renamed Strahan in 1893.[3]
Fishing and tourism
Historically Strahan has been a port to a small fishing fleet that braves the west coast conditions and Hell's Gates. It is the nearest inhabited locality to Cape Sorell and is literally the 'gateway' to the south-west wilderness - as boats, planes and helicopters utilise Strahan as their base when travelling into the region.
The Huon Pine industry that utilised stands around the harbour and up the tributary rivers - including King River, the Franklin River and the Gordon River.
The northern shore of Macquarie Harbour is across the bay from Regatta Point, the terminus of the recently-reconstructed, but currently non-operational, West Coast Wilderness Railway.
Strahan is the location of the only all weather commercial airport in Western Tasmania, Strahan Airport. Also located at the airport is the Automatic Weather Station, an important western Tasmania weather observation point.
Strahan is the base for boat trips to Sarah Island, the notorious penal settlement that garnered the reputation as the harshest penal settlement in the Australian colonies, and the lower Gordon River.
It is the home of the Round Earth Theatre Company, which conducts explanatory tours of Sarah Island and also has produced a daily enactment/play about Sarah Island, The Ship That Never Was, which has exceeded 5000 performances and is Australia's longest running play.
Cultural references
An extinct species of Banksia, fossils of which were found in sediment at nearby Regatta Point, was named Banksia strahanensis after the town.
Climate
Strahan has a mild oceanic climate with mild summers and cool, wet winters. Lying on Tasmania's West Coast, Strahan is frequently buffeted by low pressure systems from the Southern Ocean, causing heavy rain and gusty winds. Temperatures very little between summer and winter, with minimums below 3 °C (37 °F) having been recorded in every month. Extreme heat is extremely rare, however heatwaves have occurred, most notably in 1982 and 2013. Snow is rare, however falls frequently in the mountains just a few kilometers inland of Strahan. The highest recorded temperature is 38.6 °C (101.5 °F) on the 14 February 1982, with the lowest recorded being −3.0 °C (26.6 °F) on the 30 June 1983.
| Climate data for Strahan Aerodrome | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 35.6 (96.1) |
38.6 (101.5) |
34.3 (93.7) |
27.6 (81.7) |
22.5 (72.5) |
19.9 (67.8) |
18.3 (64.9) |
22.1 (71.8) |
27.0 (80.6) |
29.6 (85.3) |
32.7 (90.9) |
36.7 (98.1) |
38.6 (101.5) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 20.7 (69.3) |
21.1 (70) |
19.4 (66.9) |
16.5 (61.7) |
14.3 (57.7) |
12.5 (54.5) |
12.2 (54) |
13.1 (55.6) |
14.3 (57.7) |
16.0 (60.8) |
17.6 (63.7) |
19.8 (67.6) |
16.5 (61.7) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 10.7 (51.3) |
10.8 (51.4) |
9.6 (49.3) |
8.3 (46.9) |
7.4 (45.3) |
5.2 (41.4) |
5.1 (41.2) |
5.8 (42.4) |
6.1 (43) |
7.3 (45.1) |
8.1 (46.6) |
9.6 (49.3) |
7.8 (46) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 0.6 (33.1) |
2.6 (36.7) |
0.8 (33.4) |
−1.2 (29.8) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
−1.8 (28.8) |
−2.4 (27.7) |
−1.1 (30) |
0.9 (33.6) |
1.1 (34) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 89.5 (3.524) |
64.9 (2.555) |
101.0 (3.976) |
111.9 (4.406) |
136.5 (5.374) |
163.1 (6.421) |
168.4 (6.63) |
170.4 (6.709) |
152.5 (6.004) |
128.5 (5.059) |
91.0 (3.583) |
92.3 (3.634) |
1,457.4 (57.378) |
| Source: Bureau of Meteorology[4] | |||||||||||||
See also
-
Strahan travel guide from Wikivoyage - Convicts on the West Coast of Tasmania
- Macquarie Harbour
- Railways on the West Coast of Tasmania
- West Coast Piners
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Strahan (L) (Urban Centre/Locality)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
- ↑ Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved on 14 November 2007
- ↑ Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. Retrieved 16 June 2012.
- ↑ "Climate Data". BoM. Retrieved August 2, 2008.
Further reading
- Blainey, Geoffrey (2000). The Peaks of Lyell (6th ed. 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.
- 2003 edition - Queenstown: Municipality of Queenstown.
- 1949 edition - Hobart: Davies Brothers. OCLC 48825404
- 1924 edition - Queenstown: Mount Lyell Tourist Association. OCLC 35070001
External links
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