Mount Sorell is a mountain located in the West Coast region of

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, Australia. With an elevation of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, the mountain is the most south westerly of all the peaks within the

West Coast Range The West Coast Range is a mountain range located in the West Coast, Tasmania, West Coast region of Tasmania, Australia. The range lies to the west and north of the main parts of the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park. The range has h ...

History

The mountain was named in honour of William Sorell (1775 – 4 June 1848), a soldier who served as the third Lieutenant-Governor of

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...

. Alluvial gold was found in adjacent creeks in the 1880s.

Geology

Its eastern face dominates the Clark River valley, which separates it from Mount Darwin. Because of its position, its appearance and dominance over the

Macquarie Harbour Macquarie Harbour is a shallow fjord in the West Coast region of Tasmania, Australia. It is approximately , and has an average depth of , with deeper places up to . It is navigable by shallow-draft vessels. The main channel is kept clear by th ...

just north east of Sarah Island, it was an early named mountain, and no doubt one which gave a sense of barrier to convicts with dreams of escape. Some folklore passed from convict times claim leg irons or other items were found by troops looking for escaped convicts on its slopes. It has no points of access like the nearby mountains, and in general remains relatively untouched compared to the West Coast Range mountains with old mine workings, walking track, and other signs of human activity. The Cape at the outer part of Hells Gates at the entrance to Macquarie Harbour is known as Cape Sorell, and there is a locality in south eastern Tasmania called Sorell.

History

Geology

See also

References

Further reading