The Blue Tier is a mountain north-west of St Helens that was once the home of our early pioneers. They came to the mountain to mine for tin. Today the Blue Tier is a place to relax by clear bubbling streams on grassland mown by the local animals.

There are a variety of walking trails on the mountain, clearly marked, that will lead the walker through regenerated temperate rainforest, mountain bogs and grasslands. At every turn there are features that show human habitation and working.

To get the most out of a trip to the Blue Tier hire a guide at the History Room.

The Blue Tier has been the home of thousands of people who have lived, worked and died on the mountain. Tin was the reason the early pioneers came here. The tin lay in heaps behind rocks and in the creek and river beds. All the miners had to do was bag the ore up. In their search for the tin-bearing rock, these early pioneers burnt most of the temperate rainforest which existed above the 600 metre level. When the mines were finished, the farmers over-grazed the grass areas which followed the burning. eventually the mosses took over.

Since the last grazing, around 1970, this mountain and its native animals have been successful in aiding the regeneration of the temperate rainforest. What you see today in the 1990°s is the continuing struggle of the rainforest trying to return.

To appreciate the extent of the regeneration it is necessary to visit the various areas by following the well-defined walking tracks on the mountain. There are bogs, grassland, pure rainforest, regenerated rainforest, tea-tree swamps and areas dominated by celery top pine. Look about you - there are surprises everywhere.

Please think of other visitors - don°t damage the forest floor by digging anywhere or walking on the mosses.

Two well-known Blue Tier tin miners were Billy Bow and Harry Moses.

Billy Bow was the last Chinese miner to work on the Blue Tier. He mined for alluvial tin in various areas on the plateau around Poimena. However, the tin he bagged for sale was never sufficient to cover the cost of his supplies. A photograph of Billy Bow was taken by Colin Munday who worked with him in 1936-37 when he was 14 years old. Billy paid Colin five shillings for a six-hour day. They worked in Crowther Creek and their mining method was most primitive: they wheeled the tin dirt to a box to be washed. Billy Bow died from third degree burns when he fell into his cooking fire.

Tarry Moses worked as a shipwright when he first arrived at St Helens for the goldfields of Mathinna. He later worked as a sawmiller. One of his mills was situated near the Compere Mine west of Poimena. He cut mainly myrtle and celery-top pine logs. In his later life he took up tin mining on the Blue Tier. During 1970-80 he worked in several places in Sun Creek and in Full Moon Creek. His last mining operation was at the Compere Mine site. He died in the 1980°s.

BLUE TIER WALKS This information has also been provided by the St Helens History Room

Walks 1 to 4 start and finish at Poimena. They are colour coded and numbered.

1. GREEN markers: The Goblin Forest Walk is twenty minutes long and has been designed to accommodate those with wheelchairs. Interpretation signs provide information about some of the history of the Blue Tier.
2. BLUE markers: This moderate grade walk takes two hours and includes Mt Poimena, Moon Valley Rim and Blue Tier Battery, before returning via Sun Flat Road to Poimena. It takes you along a grass covered road formed by exploration drilling rigs in the 1980°s. There are panoramic views towards St Helens and Eddystone Lighthouse. Beside the track are regenerating rainforest species, about 1.5 metres high.
3. RED markers: This hard walk will take three hours. It includes Poimena Road, Camp Creek, Wellington Creek and Compere Mine, returning via the Compere Mine Road to regenerated rainforest to the Wellington tunnel. From here the route is via an old logging trail to the old Harry Moses sawmill site on the Wyniford River.
4. ORANGE markers: This is a moderate two hour walk. It includes the Summit Mine, Australia Hill and Compere Mine, and returns via the Compere Road to Poimena. There is a large area of ´trigger plants° in this area.
5. YELLOW markers: This is a moderate two hour walk. The trail follows the Three Notch Track to Mount Michael turn-off, then goes over the mountain to the Michael Mine and returns via the Michael Road and tramway easement.
6. YELLOW/RED markers: The Three Notch Track is a very hard six-hour walk to McGoughs Lookout and back. The walk follows an old pack horse trail. There is a 270 degree view of the north and east coastline from McGoughs Lookout.
7. UNMARKED: The walk to Weldborough and the Frome Dam is five hours, the track is well-worn and easy to follow. The Wyniford River Walk is an extremely difficult walk and is recommended for strong walkers only.

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