Poverty Point Walk

About this walk

Experience the area's rich gold mining history and immerse yourself in the rugged beauty of the Thomson River and surrounding mountainous valleys with this walk. The area’s dense forest is abundant with wildlife, and in early spring it becomes golden with flowering wattles.

This walk will take you along what used to be a horse-drawn tramway that took timber from the forest to supply the gold-mining town of Walhalla in the late 1800s. At the end of this 6.6km return walk is the heritage listed Poverty Point Bridge, completed in June 1900 as part of this tramway.

The bridge is significant as it was constructed from prefabricated steel supplied by Dorman Long and Co. of Middlesbrough, England. This company is better known for designing and building Sydney Harbour Bridge which was opened decades later in 1932.

From the bridge, return the way you came to complete the walk or continue along the trail which joins up with the Australian Alps Walking Track, a challenging long-distance walk through the High Country and beyond.

Other attractions

Camp overnight at the nearby Thomson Bridge Campground, Coopers Creek or Bruntons Bridge Campground where you will see another of the area's heritage-listed bridges from 1886.

These sites are all great bases for exploring more activities, including the Thomson River Canoe Trail and  Horseshoe Bend Tunnel Walk. The beautiful historic town of Walhalla is just down the road where you will find the Long Tunnel Extended Gold Mine Tour and Walhalla Goldfields Railway.

Page last updated: 22/01/24