"The Island" (seen on the right) is located at Thompson Bend, approximately 24 kilometres north-east of Melbourne. It was created by gold miners in 1859-60, during the Victorian gold rush. They dug a diversion channel to alter the course of the Yarra River, providing access to the alluvial gold in the exposed river bed. The canal was widened by subsequent flooding becoming the main river course, with the previous river bed becoming a willow-choked backwater.
We haven't had too hot a Summer this year and there has been some rain, ensuring that the vegetation is quite lush, with a reasonable flow of water in the Yarra over the hot months.
This post is part of the Friday Greens meme.
Pretty shot!
ReplyDeleteIt is always interesting to hear the history of these places.
ReplyDelete