Cape Raoul is a rural locality and a natural feature in the local government area of

Tasman Tasman most often refers to Abel Tasman (1603–1659), Dutch explorer. Tasman may also refer to: Animals and plants * Tasman booby * Tasman flax-lily * Tasman parakeet (disambiguation) * Tasman starling * Tasman whale People * Tasman (name), ...

in the South-east region of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. It is located about south of the town of Nubeena. The 2016 census determined a population of nil for the state suburb of Cape Raoul. Cape Raoul is a confirmed suburb/locality.

Boundaries and location

The shore of the

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea ( Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer ...

is the locality's western, southern, and eastern boundaries. The cape is contained within the locality, which is contained within the western section of

Tasman National Park The Tasman National Park is a national park in eastern Tasmania, Australia, approximately east of Hobart. The park is situated on part of both the Forestier and Tasman peninsulas and encompasses all of Tasman Island. History Whaling acti ...

Cape Raoul (the natural feature) is situated at the southernmost part of the

Tasman Peninsula The Tasman Peninsula, officially Turrakana / Tasman Peninsula, is a peninsula located in south-east Tasmania, Australia, approximately by the Arthur Highway, south-east of Hobart. The Tasman Peninsula lies south and west of Forestier Penin ...

, in south eastern Tasmania.Cape Raoul
/ref> It forms the coastline of Raoul Bay, and is part of the

dolerite Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grained ...

landscape of the Tasman National Park.https://parks.tas.gov.au/explore-our-parks/tasman-national-park Tasman National Park

Geography

The cape features rock platforms, towering cliffs, columns and off-shore islands. There is a cliff with scenic views of the coastline. A 7-kilomenter walking track there then descends steadily onto the Cape Raoul plateau, with the spectacular cape of dolerite columns at the end of the plateau. The cape is accessed via Port Arthur at the end of Stormlea Road.

Columns

The columns at the cape appear to be a colonnade formed from

columnar jointing Columnar jointing is a geological structure where sets of intersecting closely spaced fractures, referred to as Joint (geology), joints, result in the formation of a regular array of polygonal Prism (geometry), prisms, or columns. Columnar joint ...

. This happens when a pool of magma cools at just the right rate so that as its surface contracts, it cracks into polygonal plates. The cracks accelerate the cooling, extending the cracks vertically, thereby forming columns.

History

A note from 1911 made a description of the cape: ('' TASMANIAN NOMENCLATURE. The Place-Names of the State. A Record Of Origins and Dates''. Compiled by "Nomen." – section on Cape Raoul)

So named from D'Entrecasteaux's pilot. Flinders called it Basaltic Cape, but only prior to the publication of the maps of the French expedition. "In 1814 Flinders very honestly (writes Comte deFleurieu) replaces on his map the name of Raoull, stating that he gave up the name of Basaltic. This notwithstanding, Scott, Cross, and Arrowsmith chart it as Raoull or Basaltic.

Gallery

Cape Raoul from Lookout.jpg,

Dolerite Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grained ...

columns of Cape Raoul Pillars of Cape Raoul 2.jpg, Columns at the tip of the cape Tasman Island and Tasman Peninsula from Cape Raoul.JPG, Tasman Island and

from Cape Raoul

References

{{South East Tasmania Tasman National Park Raoul Tasman Peninsula Localities of Tasman Council Towns in Tasmania