Mount Zeehan is a mountain in Western Tasmania, west of the West Coast Range. It has an elevation of 701 metres (2,300 ft) above sea level.[2] The closest town is Zeehan, about 4.93 kilometres (3 mi) away.[3]
| Mount Zeehan | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The Spray Tunnel at Mount Zeehan in 2016 | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 701 m (2,300 ft)[1] |
| Prominence | 441 m (1,447 ft)[1] |
| Isolation | 8.5 km (5.3 mi)[1] |
| Coordinates | 41°55′36.12″S 145°19′22.44″E / 41.9267000°S 145.3229000°E |
| Naming | |
| Native name | Weiawenena Peerapper (Northwestern Tasmanian) |
| Geography | |
  Mount Zeehan Location in Tasmania | |
| Location | West Coast of Tasmania, Australia |
| Parent range | Heemskirk Range |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Jurassic |
| Mountain type | Dolerite |
History
The indigenous Peerapper name for the mountain is recorded as Weiawenena.[4]
European naming
On 24 November 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European explorer to sight and document the Heemskirk and West Coast Ranges. Tasman sailed his ships close to the coastal area which today encompasses the Southwest Conservation Area, south of Macquarie Harbour, but was unable to send a landing party ashore due to poor weather and did not make contact with any South West Tasmanian groups. In their circumnavigation of Tasmania between 1798 and 1799, George Bass and Matthew Flinders named the Heemskirk Ranges mountains Mount Heemskirk and Mount Zeehan after Tasman's ships, the warship Heemskerck (itself named after Jacob van Heemskerck, whose surname means "from Heemskerk") and the 200-tonne (200-long-ton; 220-short-ton) fluyt Zeehaen (Old Dutch for "Sea Rooster") in honour of Tasman's voyage of exploration.[5][6] Although Dutch in origin, Bass and Flinder's Anglicised naming of Mount Heemskirk and Mount Zeehan created some of the oldest British place names in Tasmania.[note 1]
Mining
Silver-lead deposits were discovered at Mount Zeehan by Frank Long in 1882.[8] The Zeehan mineral field contains more than 100 legacy mine sites, many of which are affected by acid mine drainage, costing an estimated A$100,000 per hectare to purify.[9]
Township of Zeehan
Mount Zeehan Post Office opened on 1 August 1888. The township was named Zeehan in 1890.[10]
Tourism
Constructed as part of silver-mining operations in 1904, a 100 metre long railway tunnel leading to the former Spray Silver Mine has become a popular walking destination with tourists. The Spray Tunnel was closed in January 2022 after cracks were discovered in the ceiling.[11]
A three-hour return walk to the summit of Mount Zeehan is accessible via a four-wheel drive track.[12]
