Gold Heritage Walk (Warrandyte)
The 3.3km loop walk takes you around historic landmarks and remnants of yesteryear when those down on their luck sought riches from the gold-laden hills of Warrandyte. Fourth Hill was stripped totally of its trees and the wood used to fuel stamping batteries used for crushing the quartz.
Many of the old sites still remain today and your walk will take you into an area that was once rich in gold, and is now rich in history. The points of interest are outlined below.
Map of Walk
Points of Interest
1. Victory Mine
Previously known as Young Colonial, and Warrandyte Claim, the Victory mine produced one of the richest claims since records have been kept. It was worked from about 1896 and produced 1,870 oz in three years. The main shaft was sunk to 220ft. In this area you will also find a number of on-ground information boards.
2. Fourth Hill Summit
Once the site of Warrandyte's chief water supply. There was once a large Water Trust dam and a fire tower at the summit. This hill top was cleared for mining and burnt by numerous bushfires. With time and some help from the rangers and the Friends of Warrandyte State Park, the bush is tentatively returning.
3. Open Mines
Originally dug by Europeans, these open mines were often reworked by the Chinese who flocked to the area in search of their fortune. The Chinese were clever at recovering gold missed by the Europeans and they would move in and rework the ground, usually with a great deal of success. For this reason, resentment sometimes formed between the races.
4. Johnson's Mine
A lot of hard work and expense went into the Johnson's mine adit. Johnson tunnelled straight into the hill for approximately 60m following a small reef, but unfortunately found no sign of gold. The adit then turns to the left for another 20m before being abandoned. An adit is a horizontal or gently inclined tunnel driven from the surface (typically into a hillside or outcrop) for the purpose of intersecting or mining an ore body.
5. Upper Monument Mine
Another European-built mine. Did you know that the Chinese made circular mines so that 'demons' could not hide in the corners?
6. Miners Hut
Probably built in the 1950s. Note how one corner of the hut is a tree trunk. This not only gave the structure some stability, but also saved precious man-hours so that time could be spent on important matters - the quest for gold.
7. Monument Mine
This type of shaft was usually operated by a partnership of two or three men. The two mines you see were in operation until 1960's and were the last working Gold mines in Fourth Hill.
The Monument Gold Mine was the last gold mine to operate on Fourth Hill. The lessees dug 2 shafts and built a galvanised hut...apparently they got a lot of exercise but not much else out of the experience.
On 17th November 1965 this lease was declared void, ending 116 years of Continuous gold exploration and mining on Fourth Hill.
8. Memorial Cairn
Erected in memory of Louis Michel and his team who were (arguably) the first in Victoria to find GOLD!
Louis Miehel's own account of how he and W. Habherlin discovered Victoria's first 'publicly acknowledged' gold in 1851 was documented as:
''Do you see anything Bill? Said I. After once or twice saying no- he suddenly exclaimed Your worship, here's the clickerty! 'Eagerly examining the residue we found it to contain 10 small grains of gold... Permit me to add that it was the immediate publication of my discovery that stemmed the tide of emigration to New South Wales.
9. Geraghty's Mine
Patrick Geraghty constructed a tunnel to a distance of one hundred and thirty metres between June 1859 and February the following year. It is an extensive mine which branches off in various directions and was even equipped with a light tramway for the speedy transportation of quartz. Quartz mines were mined in sections, leaving large slots (stopes) in the ground where the reef had been.
Public access into Geraghty's mine was closed in 2002. The gate, preventing access, is located about 20 metres within the tunnel.
An extract from 'Digging into History - Goldmining in Warrandyte' by Dianne Baird is:
"Perhaps the most common or well known mines in Warrandyte is Geraghty's Mine located on Fourth Hill dug by the Magnet Gold Mining Company in 1859. Patrick Geraghty arrived from Ireland in 1842. He worked a number of different jobs until 1854 when he became owner of the Royal Hotel in Richmond. The lure of goldfields took Geraghty to Warrandyte where he first ran Geraghty's Inn, then in 1856 opened the Union Hotel (later named the Warrandyte Hotel). In 1859, Geraghty and William Moore registered a claim for a large area (approximately 600 x 200 yards) on Fourth Hill. They began an ambitious project called the Fourth Hill Tunnel Project. The plan was to tunnel into the hill to intersect the rich gold veins believed to be in the quartz. Geraghty and Moore began with an open cut and built a tramway to carry away the rock. They then began to dig a tunnel into the hillside and got to a distance of 400 feet then stopped. Such a big project developed great expectations for success, but surprisingly, Geraghty and Moore abandoned the project. There are no records to explain this decision and Geraghty later took up the more predictable work of running a hotel again.
Geraghty did not strike the reef he was seeking but two other miners (Chatty and Smith) continuing his work in the 1880s were more successful."
Prospecting
Prospecting is permitted in the bed of Andersons Creek which is located off Gold Memorial Rd. Only non-mechanical hand tools are permitted, excavations must be backfilled and vegetation must not be disturbed.
Safety
The walking track is steep in parts and may be slippery especially after rain so watch your footing.
Access for Dogs:
Dogs are prohibited.
Location
Whipstick Gully Road, Warrandyte 3113 Map
Web Links
→ Gold Heritage Walk Map (PDF)
→ Warrandyte State Park
