The pioneering spirit that built Tasmania is coming to life in a new tourism experience.

Hydro Tasmania’s Highlands Power Trail was officially launched today by the Premier of Tasmania, The Hon Will Hodgman MP.

The self-guided driving tour takes visitors to four key sites along Waddamana Road (C178) in the rugged Central Highlands. It starts overlooking the location of the Red Gate Tramway north of Bothwell, incorporates Waddamana Village and Penstock Lagoon, and finishes at Waddamana Canal.

Interpretive signage at each site tells the stories of human struggle, resilience and ingenuity that made Tasmania an icon of hydropower pioneering.

The Chief Operating Officer of Hydro Tasmania, Evangelista Albertini, said the tour celebrates the workers and Central Highlands Community who built the Great Lake Power Scheme and brought Tasmania into the full industrial era.

“Hydro Tasmania was effectively born at Waddamana in 1916 and went on to become a world leader in renewable energy,” Mr Albertini said.

“Our story is very much Tasmania’s early story – one of communities coming together and finding a way to survive, innovate and thrive.

“In the early 20th Century, the Central Highlands was frontier country. Building and operating such a massive industrial project in such remote and rugged territory was a challenge for everyone involved.

“The Highlands Power Trail is a fitting tribute to those men and women who helped secure Tasmania’s social and economic future. It’s also a very welcome tourism boost for the Central Highlands region,” he said.

The Highlands Power Trail has been developed with the support of Hydro Tasmania, the Central Highlands Council, and the Australian Government.

For more information on the Highlands Power Trail, including a map and visitor brochure, visit www.highlandspowertrail.com.au.

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