Poatina is a planned village beneath the Great Western Tiers, built to house workers for the underground power station. Its elevated streets look across the Northern Midlands.

Hydro scheme and village

The power station uses the steep fall from yingina / Great Lake. It remains operational infrastructure, so public access is limited to authorised areas and any current tours.

Hydro-electric equipment associated with the Great Lake system
Water from yingina / Great Lake drives the underground power station.Peripitus, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A living community

Housing, recreation facilities and landscaped streets reflect the planned settlement, but the village is not an abandoned industrial exhibit. Respect residences and check business access directly.

Highland lake and alpine vegetation above the tiers
The power scheme links highland storages with the plains below.JJ Harrison ( https://www.jjharrison.com.au/ ), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Plan the mountain roads

Approaches can be steep, frosty and used by local traffic. Connect Poatina with Cressy, the Central Plateau and the Northern Midlands.