Woods Point - Brewery Creek Walking Track
There are a number of walks in the Brewery Creek area.
River Walk (yellow line on map below)
500m | 10 minutes one way
Gentle gradient
Brewery Gully Walk (green line on map below)
1.3km | 45 minutes one way
Gentle gradient with some short steep sections
Water Race Walk (purple+ line on map below)
1.2km | 35 minutes one way
Gentle gradient with some short steep sections
Lookout Walk (brown line on map below)
250m | 10 minutes one way
Gentle gradient with some short steep sections
Map of Walk
Walks Legend
1 - Mining Relics
a) Original Steam Winch from the Morning Star mine, later used for an Incline Tramway to lower timber into town.
b) Incline Tramway Ore Cart from the Royal Standard mine.
c) Braking Wheel from the Incline Tramway
d) Kibble - A large iron bucket used to hoist ore out of mine shafts to the surface.
2 - Mini Golf Course
9-hole Mini Golf Course created by John (Jack) Henry Scott Publican of the Commercial Hotel in the 1950s, he also established the museum in Bridge Street which is now the Post Office / General Store.
3 - Chinese Gardens
The Chinese people worked these gardens in the early 1860s providing vegetables for the miners, before moving onto Jericho. Water was supplied by the Water Race above, A report from the Argus Newspaper dated 30th December, 1864,
"From the hospital site an excellent view of the Chinamen's gardens is obtained To people who are paying 2 shillings per lb for onions and 8 pence per lb for potatoes, the way vegetables flourish here must be a most gratifying sight Judging by The substantial buildings, and the joss-house which, / am informed, "John" is erecting, I should imagine that the Chinamen are doing well"
4 - Arthur Collins Hut
One of the points of interest on this walking track is Arthur Collins house site.
His father William married eighteen year old Mary Jane Downing, who was born and lived nearby with her family at the 'Never Mind Spur'. Later, when their family started to grow they needed different sources of income. They moved down the Yarra Track, some 19 miles from Woods Point to become the licensees of the 7-roomed Mountain Home Hotel, previously known as the Yarra Track Hotel, then owned by A. Neilson.
The next episode of their lives is best described by the Gippsland Miner's Standard, from 24th February, 1903; "One of The most painfully sudden deaths occurred on Monday night, 16th, when Mrs William Collins, passed unexpectedly out of this world When she retired on Monday night she merely complained of headache, from which she had been suffering rather severely of late, in the middle of the night, however, she woke her husband up, and being conscious of her approaching end, remarked That she was dying. In a few minutes all was over The cause of death is given as haemorrhage of the brain, The respect in which the deceased lady was held was given public expression by postponing the opening day of the Church Fair from The Thursday to Friday and the very large attendance at The funeral at the Woods Point Cemetery on Thursday"
Mary was only 33 years of age at the time of her death. William Collins was left with seven young children, two of whom were one year old twins, and one of these twins was Arthur Collins who lived here and worked as a miner.
5 - Cottage Gardens
The cottage gardens display a large variety of flowers and plants sourced from other properties locally and are maintained by the Woods Point Progress Association.
6 - Powers Paddock
This was the site of a large house with a few animals owned by the Power family The exact date is unsure, however it is believed to be around 1867, belonging to either Thomas and Martha Power or Ann and Pierce Power.
7 - Site of a Tennis Court which was used until the 1939 bush fires, it is now used as a Helicopter Landing Pad during emergency events.
8 - Timber and Ore Chute
The chute located at this site was used to convey ore, waste rock, equipment & firewood between different levels of the mine site by force of gravity. It ran between different levels of the mine site to transfer material to haulage areas to be processed by a crusher or smelter, or to disposal areas for waste rock. The chute could also be used to transport firewood down to a boiler or engine for use in the mining process or to a town/hut site for fuel, Sometimes chutes are crude structures made out of corrugated iron and makeshift materials or can be more advanced and expensive long term structures made from timbers or steel.
9 - Edwards Mine and Hut Site
Discovered by Charles Henry Edwards in March 1864, the claim owners Throckmorton and Co had a trial are crushing of seven tonnes, producing 8.6 ounces of gold. By June 1864 they had a shaft down 120 feet In September a second trial crushing of 10 tonnes produced 2 ounces of gold to the tonne.
In October 1864 a company was floated by Samuel Walter of Woods Point as the Edwards GM Co. A fine 'Enoch Chambers' mill and steam engine were carried in by George Wright's wagons on the Yarra Track and down Waverley Spur, and erected a few hundred yards up Brewery Creek. The plant comprised of 20 stamps of 900 pounds driven by a 20 horsepower engine. In February 1865 the plant was christened 'The Alpine' with a bottle of champagne by Mrs Foos of the Reefers Hotel before a gathering of 300 people.
Early in 1866 the legal manager was Samuel Hughes and the mine manager Alfred Spriggs, who had been there for about a year, He drove a tunnel 350 feet down, but failed to find payable stone, Some indication of gold was found, but opinion was expressed that 'There is very little doubt this mine was started in the first instance for purely speculative purposes'.
Charles Edwards left for South America leaving behind an administrative mess in companies in which he had been involved.
10 - Water Race Dam Site
This was used until the 1970s, when a dam was built lower down. Great effort was required to keep the water race clean and clear of debris. Look out for the native fish that swim here,
11 - Love Seat
The Love Seat marks the turnaround point of the walk - one of those mysteries created by nature. A Prospectors Hut Site also features at this point
12 - Old Town Water Supply
This is the site where water was supplied to the town and some residences via the water race.
13 - Dusty's Lookout
This site has excellent views of the Woods Point Township and the Goulburn River It is named after local historian Desmond 'Dusty' Miller who has maintained the town walks for many years.
Location
5 Bridge Street, Woods Point 3723 Map
