History of the Central Highlands of Tasmania

He arrived at the Great Lake at Tods Corner and then ventured around to a bay where he found black swans and called it Swan Bay, where the town of Miena is now located. John must have greatly enjoyed his discovery because when he passed away, he was buried in a lead coffin beside the lake and a memorial now stands there.

Travellers in this day and age, can find a shortcut to the North West Coast of Tasmania, where John Beamont set out from at Melton Mowbray, as it’s quicker to go through the Central Plateau than taking the main highway, especially if there are roadworks or it’s a busy day. Let’s thank John for that shortcut.

After 1820, more settlers were arriving and had taken most of the good land. Which led to Assistant Surveyor Thomas Scott visiting in 1821 with a party of intending settlers, naming Lake Crescent and Lake Sorell. Of course, they found the area already in use, with many Mountain Huts in the vicinity built by trappers, graziers, and bushrangers. Strayed stolen herds were also sighted and in 1863 a police station was established at the Steppes, with James Wilson appointed as Superintendent, due to his knowledge of stock and the lake country. James then moved into the small stone cottage that was built as the police residence and station. In 1874 James married Jessie Moyes and they had 11 children. From that first day in 1863, until 1975, there was always a Wilson living at the Steppes.

The Steppes was also an important rest paddock for shepherds on their journey up and down the mountains. Jessie worked as a postmistress for the postal service. James eradicated sheep scab in the flocks of neighbouring farmers. They hosted church services before a church was built in the area. Their daughter Mary established the first school in the Central Plateau. James and Mary volunteered for the Bureau of Meteorology taking weather readings. Jessie was a lover of birds and her daughters later promoted the area surrounding the Steppes as a wildlife sanctuary, which it became in 1930. Most importantly, James helped establish recreational fishing when he carried Trout fingerlings 38km to the Great Lake in Billy Cans. It was a point of pride that all fish survived the journey. The Wilson family left an incredible legacy for the Central Plateau of Tasmania.

Recreational Fishing

As previously mentioned, my father took my brother and I fishing up the lakes nearly every second week during fishing season. Lakes Crescent and Sorell, near the Steppes, were regular destinations. I can remember driving past The Steppes many times and feeling a special connection, without knowing why, but now I do. Because my great great great grandfather would have absolutely been friends with the Wilsons as he shepherded his sheep up into the Central Plateau. The Wilson’s were also key figures in establishing the world’s best Trout fishing destination. Thank you, Wilsons.

There are also many more people I need to thank for helping establish recreational fishing in the Central Plateau. Salmon and Trout were introduced to Tasmania because the early settlers were disappointed with the Australian native freshwater fish, as they didn’t have the fighting qualities of the English Salmon. They deeply desired to introduce the Salmon, which is the most exciting sporting fish to catch. This resulted in Salmon Commissioners being appointed in 1861, to oversee the acclimatisation of Salmon into Tasmania. The Salmon Ponds were then built, with hatchery boxes and breeding ponds in the Plenty River, which is a tributary of the Derwent River, to mature the eggs received from England into fingerlings. It is one of the oldest continually operating hatcheries in the world.

James Arndell Youl transported the Trout and Salmon eggs to Van Dieman’s Land in 1864, which was not easy and there were many failed attempts over 12 years.

The Trout were an afterthought, with the eggs being a gift from Francis Buckland of Middlesex, a noted naturalist and angler author of the time. Thank you so much, Francis.

James packed the eggs in moss, then kept them moist by melting ice. They were the first Salmon and Trout in the South Hemisphere, which were then developed into fingerlings at the Salmon Ponds. In 1870 they were released into lakes and rivers all around Tasmania. Salmon are anadromous, which means they hatch in freshwater, then migrate to the ocean, before returning to the freshwater to reproduce. It was thought that Salmon would do really well in the Derwent River, however, the fish released into the Derwent only lasted a few years. The Trout however did really well and quickly built up to a breeding stock. They are now found in rivers and lakes all over Tasmania thanks to Francis.

Fly Fishing

Whilst Tasmania has some of the best Trout fishing in the world, fly fishing is the pinnacle. In 1910 TB Simpson, who regularly fished the Great Lake, introduced dry fly fishing. Although the flies they bought from England weren’t very successful. Tasmanian Dick Wigram then came to the rescue, designing flies that were more suited to Tasmania and he published a book called Trout and Fly in Tasmania (1938) which is still widely used today.

Noel Jetson is another person to thank for all he did for Trout fishing in Tasmania. He was born on Flinders Island in 1933 and his family then moved to Tarraleah, where his love of fishing was born. He then started fly fishing with his work colleagues, when he was working as an engraver at The Examiner Newspaper. They would regularly explore the Western Lakes on foot, in Kombis, and on their modified BSA Bantams.

Dick Wigram then came into The Examiner Newspaper one day with a bunch of Red Tag flies, which quickly became Noel’s favourite fly, as he caught many fish with them. Noel and Dick then became very good friends and Dick taught him to tie flies. Noel then spent a couple of years living in New Zealand with his wife Lois, before Tasmania lured them back, and they started the Jet-Fly fishing shop in Cressy in 1974. Through this business he became the first full-time Trout guide in Tasmania, he also mentored many fly fisherman, taught fly tying at Launceston TAFE and was the first man inducted into the Tasmanian Anglers Hall of Fame in his own lifetime.