Great Lake (Tasmania)

Last updated

yingina / Great Lake
Great Lake, Tasmania.jpg
The northern end of the Great Lake
Relief Map of Tasmania.png
Red pog.svg
yingina / Great Lake
Great Lake (Tasmania)
Map showing the Great Lake in Tasmania
Location Central Northern Tasmania
Coordinates 41°52′S146°45′E / 41.867°S 146.750°E / -41.867; 146.750
Type Natural lake; reservoir
Primary inflows
  • Pine Rivulet
  • Breton Rivulet
Primary outflows Shannon River
Catchment area 399 square kilometres (154 sq mi) [1]
Basin  countriesAustralia
Built1967 (1967)
Max. length24.6 km (15.3 mi)
Max. width12 km (7.5 mi)
Surface area176 km2 (68 sq mi) [1]
Surface elevation1,030 m (3,380 ft) AHD
FrozenDuring some winters.
Islands Reynolds; Howells Neck; Pine; Helen; Kangaroo; and Maclanachans Point
Settlements Miena, Breona, Liaweenee
References [1]

The Great Lake, officially yingina / Great Lake, [2] is a natural lake and man-made reservoir that is located in the central northern region of Tasmania, Australia.

Contents

Location and features

Fed by the Pine Rivulet and Breton Rivulet, the original natural freshwater lake, much smaller in size than its current 176-square-kilometre (68 sq mi) surface area, was expanded as a result of the 1922 construction of Miena Dam #2 at its southern outflow into the Shannon River. This dam is considered to be of high heritage value by Engineers Australia. [3]

Miena Dam #2 created the once-famous Shannon Rise, [4] in the 500-metre section of the Shannon River between the dam and Shannon Lagoon. The hatching of thousands of caddis moths in early summer, attracted large numbers of trout and fishermen.

In 1967, a sloping-core rock-fill dam was built just downstream of Miena Dam #2 to increase the maximum-capacity level, destroying the Shannon Rise. It was raised a further six metres (twenty feet) in 1982, [5] causing Miena Dam #2 to be periodically submerged.

After Lake Pedder, the Great Lake is the state's third largest freshwater lake. [1] It is known for its fantastic fly fishing opportunities, particularly after a wet winter or spring when water levels are high, trout can be found ‘tailing’ in the shallow, flooded margins of the lake which provides excellent sight fly fishing. [6]

At 1,030 metres (3,380 ft) above sea level, the lake's uses include hydro-electric power, fishing, and tourism. Water from the lake flows into Poatina Power Station to generate hydro-electric power. [7]

The nearby towns of Liaweenee and Miena are popular holiday shack destinations for local tourists, despite the area's reputation as being one of the coldest places in the generally mild-weathered state. During the winter months, when the weather is hardly conducive to camping, the population of these two small towns drops to two or three hundred. Parts of the lake surface have frozen during July in some years.

The Lake Highway or Highland Lakes Road runs along the west side of the lake and is sometimes snowed under in winter.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dartmouth Dam</span> Dam in Victoria

Dartmouth Dam is a large rock-fill embankment dam with an uncontrolled chute spillway across the Mitta Mitta, Gibbo and Dart rivers, the Morass Creek and a number of small tributaries. The dam is located near Mount Bogong in the north-east of the Australian state of Victoria. The dam's purpose includes irrigation, the generation of hydro-electric power, water supply and conservation. The impounded reservoir is called Dartmouth Reservoir, sometimes called Lake Dartmouth. The Dartmouth Power Station, a hydro-electric power station that generates power to the national grid, is located near the dam wall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Pedder</span> Lake in South West Tasmania, Australia

Lake Pedder, once a glacial outwash lake, is a man-made impoundment and diversion lake located in the southwest of Tasmania, Australia. In addition to its natural catchment from the Frankland Range, the lake is formed by the 1972 damming of the Serpentine and Huon rivers by the Hydro Electric Commission of Tasmania for the purposes of hydroelectric power generation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake St Clair (Tasmania)</span> Lake in Tasmania, Australia

Lake St Clair or leeawulenna is a natural freshwater lake located in the Central Highlands area of Tasmania, Australia. The lake forms the southern end of the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park. It has an area of approximately 45 square kilometres (17 sq mi), and a maximum depth of 215 metres (705 ft), making it Australia's deepest lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mersey River (Tasmania)</span> River in Tasmania, Australia

The Mersey River is a river on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. The city of Devonport is situated at the river's mouth on Bass Strait.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meander River (Tasmania)</span> River in Tasmania, Australia

The Meander River is a major perennial river located in the central northern region of Tasmania, Australia. Until the founding of Westbury in the early 1820s the river was known as The Western River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waddamana Power Stations</span> Hydro-electric power plant in Tasmania

Waddamana Hydro-Electric power station was the first hydro-electric power plant ever operated by the Tasmanian Hydro-Electric Department, opened in 1916.

Miena is a small town at the southern end of the Great Lake in the Central Highlands of Tasmania, Australia. At the 2016 census, Miena and the surrounding area had a population of 87.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Highlands (Tasmania)</span> Region in Tasmania, Australia

The Central Highlands is a region in Tasmania, Australia where geographical and administrative boundaries closely coincide. It is also known as The Lake Country of Tasmania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trevallyn Dam</span> Dam in Tasmania

The Trevallyn Dam is a dam on the South Esk River in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia and is used to provide water for hydroelectricity. The dam was completed in 1955 as part of the Trevallyn Hydro Electric Scheme and now holds the waters of Lake Trevallyn.

The Poatina Power Station is a conventional hydroelectric power station located in the Central Highlands region of Tasmania, Australia. The power station is situated on the Great Lake and South Esk and is owned and operated by Hydro Tasmania.

The Rowallan Power Station is a conventional hydroelectric power station located in north-western Tasmania, Australia. The station is located 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of Liena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon Power Station</span> Power station in Tasmania, Australia

The Gordon Power Station is the largest conventional hydroelectric power station in Tasmania, Australia; located in the South West region of the state. The power station is situated on Gordon River. Water from Lake Gordon descends 183 metres (600 ft) underground past the Gordon Dam and into the power station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trevallyn Power Station</span> Dam in Northern Midlands Tasmania

The Trevallyn Power Station is a run-of-the-river hydroelectric power station located in the northern Midlands region of Tasmania, Australia. The power station is situated on the Great Lake and South Esk catchment and is owned and operated by Hydro Tasmania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon Dam</span> Dam in South West Tasmania, Australia

The Gordon Dam, also known as the Gordon River Dam, is a major gated double curvature concrete arch dam with a controlled spillway across the Gordon River, located in Southwest National Park, Tasmania, Australia. The impounded reservoir is called Lake Gordon.

The Scotts Peak Dam is a rockfill embankment dam without a spillway across the Huon River, located in the South West region of Tasmania, Australia.

The Edgar Dam is an earthfill embankment saddle dam without a spillway, located offstream in the South West region of Tasmania, Australia.

The Arthurs Lake is a man-made reservoir located in the Central Highlands region of Tasmania, Australia. The lake was created in the 1920s by the Hydro-Electric Commission of Tasmania damming the Upper Lake River, Blue Lake and Sand Lake as well as the Morass Marsh. The principal purpose of the lake is to support the generation of hydroelectricity.

The Meander Dam is a concrete gravity dam across the Upper Meander River, located in northern Tasmania, Australia. The impounded reservoir is called Lake Huntsman.

The Tods Corner Power Station is a pumped-storage hydroelectric power station located in the Central Highlands region of Tasmania, Australia. The power station is situated on the Great Lake and South Esk catchment and is owned and operated by Hydro Tasmania.

Lake King William is a reservoir on the upper Derwent River in Tasmania, Australia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Register of Large Dams in Australia". Dams information. Australian National Committee on Large Dams. 2010. Archived from the original (Excel (requires download)) on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  2. "Survey Co-ordination" (PDF). Tasmanian Government Gazette: 157. 27 January 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  3. "Miena Dam No. 2" (PDF). Heritage Markers. Engineers Australia. January 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  4. "Fly Fishing in Tasmania". Australian Fly Fishing Museum. 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  5. "Great Lake: Anglers Access" (PDF). Inland Fisheries Service (4 ed.). Government of Tasmania. n.d. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  6. "Trout Fishing Near Central Highlands Tasmania". Trout Tales Tasmania.
  7. "Poatina Power Station Fact Sheet" (PDF). Our power stations: Great Lake - South Esk. Hydro Tasmania. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 23 June 2015.

Further reading