The Border

The island state of lutruwita/Tasmania is about 240 kilometres to the south of mainland Australia, separated by Bass Strait. Tasmania, I’ll have you know, is the 26th largest island in the world.

Despite being surrounded by water, lutruwita/Tasmania has a land border with the mainland state of Victoria.

But how?

Captain John Black, a British ship’s officer is to blame. Black, who despite only living to the ripe old age of 23 had seen his fair share of adventure.

He survived being put in a small boat and cast out to sea as part of a mutiny near Rio de Janeiro, he was a privateer (a government sanctioned pirate), a whaler, a coloniser, and also commanded the second ever ship to cross Bass Strait.

He also wasn’t very accurate.

In 1801, when commanding the second ever ship to sail through Bass Strait, he surveyed the Victorian coastline and also the numerous islands and islets between Victoria and Tasmania.

As part of his survey he determined that Boundary Islet, also known as north East Islet was further north than it actually is. When determining where the border between Victoria and Tasmania would be, it was decided to set the border along latitude of 39°12′ S which was thought to be well south of Boundary Islet. The intention was to place Boundary Islet in Victoria. The latitude was also chosen because it was thought that this would be the best latitude to avoid any land in Bass Strait.

Wrong.

When the actual latitude of Boundary Islet was determined it was found to be both in Victoria and Tasmania and by then it was too late to change the border. The islet is also an uninhabited rock jutting out of the ocean so no one complained about the stuff up.

If you want to see the land border between Tasmania and Victoria (also Australia’s shortest border) you’d have to sail to a 2 hectare islet in Bass Strait. Send pics!