Brindabella Valley

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Brindabella Valley

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Aerial view of Brindabella Valley from east
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Brindabella Valley
Location of the Brindabella Valley
in New South Wales
Location New South Wales, Australia
Long-axis direction North-South
Depth 600–800 m (2,000–2,600 ft)
Geology
Age Palaeozoic
Geography
Bounded by Brindabella Range (east); and Fiery Mountain Range
Coordinates 35°22′08″S148°39′06″E / 35.36889°S 148.65167°E / -35.36889; 148.65167 Coordinates: 35°22′08″S148°39′06″E / 35.36889°S 148.65167°E / -35.36889; 148.65167 [1]
Population centers Brindabella
Watercourses Goodradigbee River, Brindabella Creek

The Brindabella Valley is a valley situated below the western ridge-line of the Brindabella Range, located midway along the Goodradigbee River, in the south of New South Wales, Australia.

Valley Low area between hills, often with a river running through it.

A valley is a low area between hills or mountains typically with a river running through it. In geology, a valley or dale is a depression that is longer than it is wide. The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys. Most valleys belong to one of these two main types or a mixture of them, at least with respect to the cross section of the slopes or hillsides.

Brindabella Range mountain range located in Australia

The Brindabella Range, commonly called The Brindabellas, is a mountain range located in Australia, on a state and territory border of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The range rises to the west of Canberra, the capital city of Australia, and includes the Namadgi National Park in the ACT and the Bimberi Nature Reserve and Brindabella National Park in New South Wales. The Brindabellas are visible to the west of Canberra and form an important part of the city's landscape.

Goodradigbee River river in Australia

Goodradigbee River, a perennial stream that is part of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Snowy Mountains district of New South Wales, Australia.

Contents

Location and features

The valley is framed by the Brindabella Range and the Fiery Mountain Range, most notably by Mount Bramina and Bulls Head in the north and Black Bottle Mountain and Mount Franklin in the south. The valley is largely gentle, undulating farmland rising from 620 metres (2,030 ft) above sea level in the north to 700 metres (2,300 ft) above sea level in the south. Most of the native vegetation in the valley has been removed in favour of pasture, fruit trees and other exotic species, however the surrounding mountains are largely national parks, populated entirely with native flora. [2]

Mount Franklin (Australian Capital Territory) mountain

Mount Franklin is a mountain with an elevation of 1,646 metres (5,400 ft) AHD  in the Brindabella Ranges that is located on the border between the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, Australia. The summit of the mountain is located in the Australian Capital Territory.

The Australian Height Datum is a vertical datum in Australia. According to Geoscience Australia, "In 1971 the mean sea level for 1966-1968 was assigned the value of 0.000m on the Australian Height Datum at thirty tide gauges around the coast of the Australian continent. The resulting datum surface, with minor modifications in two metropolitan areas, has been termed the Australian Height Datum (AHD) and was adopted by the National Mapping Council as the datum to which all vertical control for mapping is to be referred."

National park park used for conservation purposes of animal life and plants

A national park is a park in use for conservation purposes. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently, there is a common idea: the conservation of 'wild nature' for posterity and as a symbol of national pride. An international organization, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and its World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), has defined "National Park" as its Category II type of protected areas.

The traditional custodians of the area now known as the Brindabella Valley are the Ngunawal, Walgalu and Djimantan indigenous peoples. The valley was first settled by Europeans as a stock outstation for the Yarralumla station in the 1830s, with the first land grant made in 1849. [3] Gold was found in 1860 and mined from the 1880s. In 1887 the Brindabella Gold Mining Company was formed and mining continued until 1910. [4] The valley is now an agricultural area and consists of a number of small cattle farms including the heritage-listed Brindabella Station, the childhood home of Miles Franklin, an early 20th-century Australian author. [3]

Indigenous Australians are the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of Australia, descended from groups that existed in Australia and surrounding islands before British colonisation. The time of arrival of the first Indigenous Australians is a matter of debate among researchers. The earliest conclusively human remains found in Australia are those of Mungo Man LM3 and Mungo Lady, which have been dated to around 50,000 years BP. Recent archaeological evidence from the analysis of charcoal and artefacts revealing human use suggests a date as early as 65,000 BP. Luminescence dating has suggested habitation in Arnhem Land as far back as 60,000 years BP. Genetic research has inferred a date of habitation as early as 80,000 years BP. Other estimates have ranged up to 100,000 years and 125,000 years BP.

Government House, Canberra official residence of the Governor-General of Australia in Yarralumla, Canberra

Government House, Canberra, is the official residence of the Governor-General of Australia. It is located in the suburb of Yarralumla, in the City of Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory. The house is set amid 54 hectares of parkland. The suburb of Yarralumla, which has grown up around Government House, is one of Canberra's most expensive residential areas and also the site of many foreign embassies.

Brindabella Station station located within the Brindabella Ranges in the state of New South Wales, Australia

Brindabella Station, sometimes referred to as the Brindabella Homestead, is located within the Brindabella Ranges in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It was the childhood home of the Australian author Miles Franklin. Brindabella was first settled by the Franklin family in 1846, but they were unable to settle permanently until 1861 due to Aboriginal settlement in the region. In the 20th century, the station was a favorite fishing spot of Malcolm Fraser.

Access to the Brindabella Valley is via dirt roads from Canberra or Tumut. A private road runs through Long Plain toward Rules Point and Kiandra, and access is rarely permitted. All roads are subject to frequent closures during heavy snow in winter.

Canberra capital city of Australia

Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of 410,301, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory, 280 km (170 mi) south-west of Sydney, and 660 km (410 mi) north-east of Melbourne. A resident of Canberra is known as a Canberran. Although Canberra is the capital and seat of government, many federal government ministries have secondary seats in state capital cities, as do the Governor-General and the Prime Minister.

Tumut Town in New South Wales, Australia

Tumut is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the banks of the Tumut River.

Kiandra, New South Wales Town in New South Wales, Australia

Kiandra is an abandoned gold mining town and the birthplace of Australian skiing. The town is situated in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy Monaro Regional Council inside the Kosciuszko National Park. Its name is a corruption of Aboriginal 'Gianderra' for 'sharp stones for knives'. It was earlier called Gibson's Plains, named after Dr. Gibson, a settler in the district in 1839. For a century, Kiandra was Australia's highest town.

The Goodbradigbee River is a popular trout fishing location for Canberra anglers and camp sites are provided on the east bank of the river within the valley. Much of the river is difficult to reach without crossing private property and anglers should be aware that certain landowners are unlikely to grant access. In 1968 the National Capital Development Commission considered daming the Brindabella Valley for the purpose of sending water from the Goodbradigbee River into the Cotter River via a tunnel. [5] The plan was abandoned.

Dam A barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface or underground streams

A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aquaculture, and navigability. Hydropower is often used in conjunction with dams to generate electricity. A dam can also be used to collect water or for storage of water which can be evenly distributed between locations. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. The earliest known dam is the Jawa Dam in Jordan, dating to 3,000 BC.

Cotter River river in the Australian Capital Territory

The Cotter River, a perennial river of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. The Cotter River, together with the Queanbeyan River, is one of two rivers that provides potable water to the Canberra and Queanbeyan region.

A notable feature of the valley are the transmission lines running from the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme to Canberra.

See also

Related Research Articles

Namadgi National Park Protected area in Australian Capital Territory

Namadgi National Park is a protected area in the south-west of the Australian Capital Territory, bordering Kosciuszko National Park in New South Wales. It lies approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) southwest of Canberra, and makes up approximately 46% of the ACT's land area.

Australian Alps montane grasslands

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Australian Alps Region in Australia

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Budawang Range

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Mount Gulaga mountain in New South Wales, Australia

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Bimberi Peak mountain

Bimberi Peak or Mount Bimberi with an elevation of 1,913 metres (6,276 ft) located within the Brindabella Ranges is the highest mountain in the Australian Capital Territory. It is located on the border between New South Wales and the ACT, the NSW portion in Kosciuszko National Park and the ACT portion in Namadgi National Park. It is accessible by bush walking trails and requires no specialised climbing skills, although there is no marked trail to the very summit.

Mount Ginini mountain in Australia

Mount Ginini is a mountain with an elevation of 1,762 metres (5,781 ft) AHD  in the Brindabella Ranges that is located on the border between the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales in Australia.

Mount Coree mountain in New South Wales, Australia

Mount Coree is a mountain with an elevation of 1,421 metres (4,662 ft) AHD  that is located within the Brindabella Range on the border between the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, Australia. The summit of the mountain is located in the Australian Capital Territory.

Mount Gingera mountain in Australia

Mount Gingera is a mountain with an elevation of 1,857 metres (6,093 ft) AHD  located within the Brindabella Ranges on the border between the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales in Australia. The summit of the mountain is located within the ACT, and is the second highest peak in the territory.

Mount Tate (New South Wales) mountain in New South Wales, Australia

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Mount Kelly

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Skiing in Australia overview of skiing practiced in Australia

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Brindabella Road road in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory

Brindabella Road, also known as Tumut Road, links Canberra and Tumut, New South Wales via the Brindabella Ranges. It provides access to the Brindabella National Park, Namadgi National Park and Kosciuszko National Park as well as the Bondo State Forest. Beginning at Cotter Road near the base of the Cotter Dam, the road climbs toward Uriarra Village, forming the primary access between the village and Canberra. Beyond Uriarra, the road continues south-west towards the ACT/NSW border, passing through the localities of Picadilly Circus, Brindabella and Bondo along the route to Tumut. It crosses the Brindabella Range and Fiery Range, with a highest point of 1,300 metres.

Brindabella, New South Wales New South Wales, Australia

Brindabella is a locality in south-east New South Wales, Australia, mainly in the area of Snowy Valleys Council and partly in Yass Valley Council. It is reached by the Brindabella Road from the Australian Capital Territory over the Brindabella Ranges. It is significant as the early home of Miles Franklin, who wrote a well known book called Childhood at Brindabella. It had a population of 22 at the 2016 census, who live in the Brindabella Valley. The locality also includes a large unpopulated area consisting of parts of the Brindabella National Park, the Kosciuszko National Park and the Bimberi Nature Reserve and of state forests.

Skiing in the Australian Capital Territory overview of skiing practiced in the Australian Capital Territory

Skiing in the Australian Capital Territory refers to snow skiing in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The highest mountain in the ACT is Bimberi Peak. Recreational skiing commenced with the formation of the Canberra Alpine Club in 1934. Since the 1930s, the ACT has had intermittent and limited alpine skiing facilities. Downhill ski facilities returned to the ACT at Corin Forest in 2016, after a two decade hiatus.

References

  1. ↑ "Brindabella". Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW. Geographical Names Board of New South Wales . Retrieved 5 April 2014.
  2. ↑ Sahukar, Roshan; Gallery, Catherine; Smart, Julianne; Mitchell, Peter (2003). "10. The Australian Alps Bioregion" (PDF). In Dunn, Irina. The Bioregions of New South Wales – their biodiversity, conservation and history. Department of the Environment. p. 222. ISBN   0 7313 6709 X.
  3. 1 2 "Brindabella". The Sydney Morning Herald . 8 February 2004. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  4. ↑ Grigg, Ian (November 1999). "Brindabella Blues". Gold Net Australia Online. Kent Town, South Australia . Retrieved 5 April 2014.
  5. ↑ Augmentation of Canberra Water Supply - proposals to utilise the Murrumbidgee and Goodgradigbee Rivers. SMEC Holdings. August 1968.
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