Moina - Bell Mountain - Dolcoath

[bigbenny]

Links are fine, they are not malicious redirects... most likely the shortened URLs have triggered a warning in some anti-virus software. no biggie.

Phil, thanks for the info! I'd like to take you up on your offer on Friday as I fortunately have the day off also, would be great to catch up. Happy to meet you in Moina or elsewhere prior.

Also, seeing as you're in Queenie mate - if you get a chance call into the Evans IGA and say g'day to my folks, you probably already know them... haha! The supermarket is the longest running continual family retail business in Tasmania!

[Philski]

HI Benny,

I shop there all the time, its a top business and an asset to Queenstown. The lady, Geraldine? is wonderful.

Friday is great for me too. I wont be able to spend all day up there because i have a back fence to put up at home, weather depending (the timber arrived today) and a couple of cars to service. but will defiantly be able to get several hours in the morning if thats okay. Perhaps meet at Moina shop at 8am or 9am? or what ever suits you? Its forecast to rain, snow and windy, so perhaps even see what the weather looks like closer to the day.. we may need to go up another day. Regardless, i will send you the cords so you can go at your own leisure. If it looks like the weather is clearing in the afternoon im happy to go up then too.

The rainbow area is an exposed quartz blow like down at Melba Flats and from all the topaz on quartz images i just looked at. Gemmy Topaz seems to like to grow on smokey quartz! Its a few hundred meters away in a straight line from the topaz in the quarry and interestingly,, when it was blasted, it exposed a fault on the right hand side of the quarry with a green tinge to it.. the same as the now blown to bits topaz area. This area is on the same side of the green stone fault so we may be able to get some pretty outstanding specimens.

all the other indicators for gem topaz, pegmatites, Tourmaline, Cassiterite, Flourite, Muscovite, smokey quartz. etc etc are all present in the immediate area.

Topaz-Quartz-139954.jpg

image source: Creative commons images http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: ... 139954.jpg

Topaz-Quartz-Schorl-240582.jpg

image source: Creative commons images http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: ... 40582.jpg

[bigbenny]

No probs Phil, meet you 8am Friday at Moina shop weather permitting. I'll keep an eye on the weather forecast but a bit of rain and snow is part and parcel of prospecting in the Tassie winter, not too fussed unless it is too windy. Those images of topaz on smoky have got me keen to have a dig!

[mfdes]

I'd love to meet you guys up there, but I'll be busy.
If you're keen for another trip later in the year I'm in!

[Philski]

I found a reference to the pig and whistle's other name/ names,,

"It was also briefly known as the Lady Barron mine in c.1913-1919 when it was operated by Messrs. Lawson and Riley".
Internet Source: http://www.mrt.tas.gov.au/mrtdoc/dominf ... 000_03.pdf P.9

The lawson and Riley mine? so the pig and whistle had 3 names.. it closed down in 1960.

Lawson was involved in so many shows in the district it isnt funny. i never even heard of his name before and he was all over the field.
Riley's, the quartz blow, Kemps rainbow, P & W, Poverty Creek and perhaps the other claim above Betts in Bell creek GW Kemp had.. amazing stuff.

[bigbenny]

Sent you a PM mate.

[Kezndaz]

Intresting info on the Lawson Riley, Phil.
I think Pig and Whistle probably has a better story
In our time thrashing through the scrub here we saw evidence of trenching and pot holing all over
Old photos of a burnt out landscape show how it was done
And evidence of crystal in trenches above Higgs
We couldn't find Princess at all and we were repelled by fearsome scrub in Dolcoath gully
Since heard others failed to find the old Dolcoath mine
The area feels like it has the prospect for artisanal mining
Notice that the top of the quarry is now about to undermine the track we all use to get around the hill on the east
Kez n Daz

[xtldigger]

All the good crystals were dug from Moina back in the 60’s & 70’s, what’s left at the all nations dumps now are only broken scraps left behind, the last operator of the mine used to sell the Quartz crystals they came across mining wolfram to pay for their explosives. Before the open stope was back filled you could access veins in the old workings and collect from narrow veins. Highly unlikely you will find any Topaz/Quartz combos like in the photos, I have been going to moina for 20 years and have never seen any like that.

[Philski]

The death of it was in 2001 when a local tourism enterprise brought eager "eco geo tourists in a 4x4", and gave it the once in a life time, 30 min free for all. Every Day. eco tourism gone wrong. Greedy yes. but for 65 bucks you want to take something home would you not?

Alfie Rowe was the last person to mine at the All nations and later moved south to Five mile. I met him while he was in care at Tandara. unfortunate he pass away a few years ago. Great person he was and i can imagine him selling the guange material to pay for the drive. he was very entrepreneurial. And even in his later years was still as sharp and driven. great man.

Alfie's family are still in the district and many of his original maps are still well preserved. Stuff you wont find, anyplace else. He found Five mile Rise again in about 1964-66? n a light plane of all things. Today, those sort of outrageous shenanigans, would be shot down with the last remaining ultra left government issued thermoplastic spud gun.

[xtldigger]

Sounds like a great old prospector. The last people to lease and mine the all nations are still alive and well, the mine was still worked up to 1986 when the lease was revoked. Hard to see how one could loose the 5 mile field, Back in the 60’s you would have been still able to drive up the rise from Lorinna, plane may have made spotting the dumps easier.