Mount Disappointment (Australia)

Mount Disappointment
Mount Disappointment Victoria, Australia
Highest point
Elevation	800 m (2,600 ft)
Coordinates	37°25′37″S 145°8′11″E / 37.42694°S 145.13639°E / -37.42694; 145.13639Coordinates: 37°25′37″S 145°8′11″E / 37.42694°S 145.13639°E / -37.42694; 145.13639
Geography
Location	Victoria, Australia
Parent range	Hume Range, Great Dividing Range
Climbing
First ascent	1824 by explorers Hume and Hovell

Mount Disappointment is an 800-metre (2,600 ft) mountain, located on the southern end of the Great Dividing Range, 9.5 kilometres (5.9 mi) north of Whittlesea, 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. It was named by explorers Hamilton Hume and William Hovell in 1824,^[1]^[2] and the mountain is now a popular hiking spot.

History

Aboriginal Australians are known to have lived in the Mount Disappointment area. Stone weapons have been found near the junction of Drag Hill and Sunday Creeks.

After making the arduous climb to the summit, British explorers Hume and Hovell hoped to view the distant Port Phillip Bay. Unfortunately, the mountain's many trees prevented this resulting in their immense disappointment. Consequently they recorded their feelings in the name they chose for the mountain.^[1]^[2]

In 1870, Australian settlers began mining for gold at Mount Disappointment. In 1880 The Australian Seasoned Timber Company commenced timber cutting and sawmilling operations there and with an influx of workers, townships were soon created at Clonbinane, Reedy Creek and Strath Creek. The company operated two mills, named 'Comet Mill' and 'Planet Mill', located in the heart of the forest. A network of tramways carried logs to the mills for cutting. These tramways included a notorious section ironically called "The Bump" - a steep incline that required a winch to haul the solid hardwood logs. By the 1890s, the Comet sawmill was processing 800 Mountain Ash logs a month.

In 1883–1885, the catchments to the east of Mount Disappointment were captured by Toorourrong Reservoir and associated aqueducts. They are protected as part of Kinglake National Park.^[3]

The Australian Seasoned Timber Company's finishing and seasoning works were located in the township of Wandong, north of Melbourne on the edge of the Mount Disappointment forest. This seasoning plant treated messmate timber, used principally for furniture making. The Wandong seasoning works were established by a different company in 1889 and were one of the earliest attempts to season hardwood in Australia.

At its peak, the timber industry in the area employed 420 men. Sawmilling ceased in 1939 but timber from the Mount Disappointment area is still being logged today, with improvements to forest management ensuring long-term sustainability of the industry.

On 5 August 1942, a Bristol Beaufighter IC crashed into the mountain, three hundred yards north of the peak, killing two men from 30 Squadron RAAF. ^[4]

Flora and fauna

Stately Mountain Ash dominates the mountain and thrive in granite soils where the rainfall is high. Mountain Grey Gums grow in drier pockets. Red Stringybarks, Narrow-leafed Peppermints, Long-leaved box and Candlebark can be found growing along some waterways.

There is an abundance of bird life and habitat for deer, wombats and wallabies.

Mount Disappointment State Forest

Mount Disappointment is one of Melbourne's most accessible forest areas, with many recreation activities available including the 40 km (25 mi) -long Mount Disappointment Forest Drive, various walking tracks, picnic area and camping sites. The forest is managed by the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment.^[1]

References

1 2 3 Wearne, Ted (March 2004). "Forest Notes – Mount Disappointment State Forest" (PDF). Department of Sustainability and Environment, The State of Victoria. ISSN 1440-2262. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
1 2 Bland, William; Hovell, William Hilton; Hume, Hamilton (1831), Journey of discovery to Port Phillip, New South Wales by Messrs. W.H. Hovell, and Hamilton Hume in 1824 and 1825, Sydney
↑ Wallaby Creek designated water supply catchment area, Kinglake National Park, Management Plan (PDF), Parks Victoria, August 1998, ISBN 0-7311-3191-6, retrieved 2011-02-21
↑ Dunn, Peter. "Crash of a Beaufighter at Mount Disappointment, North of Whittlsea, Victoria". Australians at War. Retrieved 2009-02-21.

Mountains in Victoria, Australia

Grampians

William (1,167 m or 3,829 ft)
Difficult
Wilson
Zero

Victorian Alps

Bogong High Plains	Nelse West (1,893 m or 6,211 ft) Nelse North (1,885 m or 6,184 ft) Fainter South (1,883 m or 6,178 ft) Hotham (1,862 m or 6,109 ft) McKay (1,849 m or 6,066 ft) Cope (1,837 m or 6,027 ft) Spion Kopje (1,837 m or 6,027 ft) Jim (1,818 m or 5,965 ft)

Cathedral Range	Lake (1,482 m or 4,862 ft) The Green Hill (1,241 m or 4,072 ft) Sugarloaf (904 m or 2,966 ft) The Cathedral (801 m or 2,628 ft) South Jawbone Peak (761 m or 2,497 ft)

Cobberas Range	Cobberas No. 1 (1,810 m or 5,938 ft) Cobberas No. 2 Moscow Peak Middle Peak Cleft Peak

Cobbler Plateau	Speculation (1,648 m or 5,407 ft) Cobbler (1,628 m or 5,341 ft) Koonika (1,545 m or 5,069 ft) Despair (1,460 m or 4,790 ft)

Other	Bogong (1,986 m or 6,516 ft) Feathertop (1,922 m or 6,306 ft) Loch (1,865 m or 6,119 ft) Buller (1,805 m or 5,922 ft) Wills (1,755 m or 5,758 ft) Gibbo (1,750 m or 5,741 ft) Stirling (1,749 m or 5,738 ft) Howitt (1,742 m or 5,715 ft) The Horn (1,723 m or 5,653 ft) Buffalo (1,723 m or 5,653 ft) Wellington (1,634 m or 5,361 ft) Buggery (Alpine) (1,598 m or 5,243 ft) Baw Baw (1,567 m or 5,141 ft) Torbreck (1,516 m or 4,974 ft) St Gwinear (circa 1,500 m or 4,921 ft) Mueller (1,460 m or 4,790 ft) Selma (1,456 m or 4,777 ft) Useful (1,435 m or 4,708 ft) Tambo (1,430 m or 4,692 ft) Selwyn (1,411 m or 4,629 ft) Terrible (1,325 m or 4,347 ft) Donna Buang (1,250 m or 4,101 ft) Buggery (Wangaratta) (1,153 m or 3,783 ft) Bulla Bulla (906 m or 2,972 ft) Dom Dom (740 m or 2,428 ft) Brumby Point Pine

Other
mountain ranges

Central Highlands	Macedon (1,001 m or 3,284 ft)

Dandenong Ranges	Dandenong (633 m or 2,077 ft)

Pyrenees Ranges	Avoca (747 m or 2,451 ft) Warrenmang (537 m or 1,762 ft)

Strzelecki Ranges	Tassie (740 m or 2,428 ft)

Other	Matlock (1,377 m or 4,518 ft) Ritchie (1,259 m or 4,131 ft) Toorongo (1,247 m or 4,091 ft) Horsfall (1,130 m or 3,707 ft) Kaye (998 m or 3,274 ft) Elizabeth (941 m or 3,087 ft) Ghiran (924 m or 3,031 ft) Disappointment (794 m or 2,605 ft) Riddell (781 m or 2,562 ft) Beenak (745 m or 2,444 ft) Alexander (744 m or 2,441 ft) Buninyong (719 m or 2,359 ft) Hanging Rock / Diogenes (718 m or 2,356 ft) Warrenheip (714 m or 2,343 ft) Franklin (648 m or 2,126 ft) Beckworth (634 m or 2,080 ft) Corhanwarrabul (628 m or 2,060 ft) Tarrengower (556 m or 1,824 ft) Warrenmang (526 m or 1,726 ft) Teneriffe (444 m or 1,457 ft) Napier (440 m or 1,444 ft) Briggs Bluff (420 m or 1,378 ft) Arapiles (369 m or 1,211 ft) You Yangs (352 m or 1,155 ft) Leura (313 m or 1,027 ft) Noorat (310 m or 1,017 ft) Elephant (240 m or 787 ft) Warrnambool (216 m or 709 ft) Eccles (178 m or 584 ft) Wycheproof (148 m or 486 ft) Cooper (137 m or 449 ft) Fraser Hopeless Typo

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Mount Disappointment (Australia)

History

Flora and fauna

Mount Disappointment State Forest

See also

References