Burning Mountain, the common name for Mount Wingen, is a hill near
Wingen, New South Wales, Australia, approximately north of
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
just off the
New England Highway
New England Highway is an long highway in Australia running from Yarraman, Queensland, Yarraman, north of Toowoomba, Queensland, at its northern end to Hexham, New South Wales, Hexham at Newcastle, New South Wales, Newcastle, New South Wales, ...
.
It takes its name from a
smouldering coal seam running underground through the sandstone. Burning Mountain is contained within the Burning Mountain
Nature Reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...
, which is administered by the NSW
National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
A trail with information panels runs from the parking lots to the site where
smoke
Smoke is an aerosol (a suspension of airborne particulates and gases) emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwante ...
emanates from the ground.
The
Leyland brothers reported on Mount Wingen in the first episode of their travel programme, ''Ask The Leyland Brothers'':
Coal seam fire
The underground fire is estimated to be at a depth of around .
It is estimated that the fire has burned for approximately 6,000 years and is the oldest known coal fire.
European explorers and settlers to the area believed the smoke, coming from the ground, was volcanic in origin.
It was not until 1829 that geologist Reverend C. P. N. Wilton identified it as a coal seam fire.
The fire is generally moving in a southerly direction at a rate of about per year. The combustion has caused soil discolouration and an uneven ground surface in the area.
See also
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Brennender Berg
*
Centralia mine fire
*
Darvaza gas crater
*
Eternal flame
*
*
*
*
Smoking Hills
*
Yanar Dag
References
{{Hunter Region places and items of interest
Upper Hunter Shire
Mountains of New South Wales
Geology of New South Wales
Persistent natural fires
Hypothetical volcanoes