Strahan

Strahan is a small town and former port on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia. It is now a significant locality for tourism in the region. Strahan Harbour and Risby Cove form part of the north-east end of Long Bay on the northern end of Macquarie Harbour. At the 2006 census, Strahan had a population of 637.

Originally developed as a port of access for the mining settlements in the area, Strahan was a vital location for the timber industry that existed around Macquarie Harbour.

Macquarie Harbour Post Office opened on 16 May 1878, was renamed Strahan in 1881 and closed in 1891. East Strahan Post Office opened in 1891 and was renamed Strahan in 1893.

Historically Strahan has been a port to a small fishing fleet that braves the west coast conditions and Hell's Gates. It is the nearest inhabited locality to Cape Sorell and is literally the 'gateway' to the south-west wilderness - as boats, planes and helicopters utilise Strahan as their base when travelling into the region.

The northern shore of Macquarie Harbour is across the bay from Regatta Point, the terminus of the recently-reconstructed, but currently non-operational, West Coast Wilderness Railway.

Strahan is the base for boat trips to Sarah Island, the notorious penal settlement that garnered the reputation as the harshest penal settlement in the Australian colonies, and the lower Gordon River.

It is the home of the Round Earth Theatre Company, which conducts explanatory tours of Sarah Island and also has produced a daily enactment/play about Sarah Island, The Ship That Never Was, which has exceeded 5000 performances and is Australia's longest running play

Strahan has a mild oceanic climate with mild summers and cool winters with uniform rainfall spread throughout the year. However, its wet-winter and drier summer pattern shows some characteristics of a Mediterranean climate. The highest recorded temperature in Strahan was 37.2°C on 14 February 1982, with the lowest being -3°C on 30 June 1983