Greenvale railway line was in northern Queensland, Australia. It carried nickel ore from a mine in Greenvale to the Queensland Nickel's refinery in Yabulu, approximately 20km (10miles) north of Townsville.[1]
Construction commenced in 1972 of a branch line from the North Coast railway line at Cobarra, north of Townsville.[2] It was 225km (140miles) long. It featured 5 tunnels through the Hervey Range. It was opened in 1974 and operated until 1992 when the mine ran out of ore. Ore was then shipped from New Caledonia to the port of Townsville and railed from there to Yabulu until the refinery closed in 2016.
Proposals were made to try to retain part of the line as a tourist route but nothing came of it. In mid-2000 the railway tracks were removed but other infrastructure such as tunnels and easements remain. The track has been for walking, mountain biking and four-wheel-driving and there have been proposals to formalise this use, but collapses of tunnels along the route have raised safety issues.[3]
The route from the mine to the refinery was:[4]
| Greenvale mine loop | ||
| -18.9739°N 144.9449°W | Greenvale railway station | |
| -18.9789°N 144.9975°W | Miners Lake railway station | |
| -19.0802°N 145.1866°W | Pilkara railway station | |
| -19.1896°N 145.4082°W | Malan railway station | |
| Greenvale / Basalt border | ||
| -19.2354°N 145.6572°W | Tulay railway station | |
| Basalt / Paluma border | ||
| -19.3196°N 145.9668°W | Girrinjah railway station | |
| Paluma / Dotswood border | ||
| -19.4427°N 146.3168°W | Keelbottom railway station | |
| Dotswood / Hervey Range border | ||
| -19.3639°N 146.4362°W | Kadara railway station | |
| Hervey Range / Lynam border | ||
| Lynam / Black River border | ||
| Black River / Yabulu border | ||
| Yabulu refinery loop |
There are two songs about the line. Stan Coster and Slim Dusty's 1974 song "Three Rivers Hotel" is about its construction.[5]
From Townsville to Greenvale we're building a lineKeith Jamieson's 2002 sequel parody "The Ghost of Three Rivers Hotel" is about the line's abandonment. Recorded by Jeff Brown, it won Traditional Bush Ballad of the Year at the Tamworth Songwriters Awards in 2003.[6]
Through the ranges and gorges to the great nickel mine.
They're holding a sale at the town of Greenvale
They're selling that great railway line.
My memory goes back as they pull up the track
From the coast to that old nickel mine.