Tinaroo
Postcode: 4872
Tinaroo is a town in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is located on Lake Tinaroo, man-made reservoir of the same name. The original town called Tinaroo is now located under the waters of Lake Tinaroo.
Tinaroo, Tinaroo Falls, Tinaroo Falls Dam and Lake Tinaroo are all names applied to the small settlement which has sprung up on the shores of the huge artificial lake which lies to the west of Yungaburra. The town takes its name from a creek where John Atherton found tin and gold in 1878. Atherton is credited with naming the creek Tinaroo.
Tinaroo Dam was started in 1953 and completed in 1958. It is now one of the three largest water storages in Queensland. It dams the Barron River to supply water for local tobacco farming and to supplement the water moving through the Barron Gorge Hydro-Electricity Station.
The town of Tinaroo Falls has grown over the years so that now it offers a pleasant escape from the heat of the coast. Its setting on the shores of the artificial lake is really beautiful and locals, aware that there is a passing tourist trade, have attempted to cater for differing needs. There’s a very peaceful caravan park nestled in the trees, an orchard nursery – the Lake Tinaroo Orchard Gardens and Nursery, and there are facilities for boating and windsurfing on the lake. Since 1986 the blessed fish of the north, the barramundi, have been breeding in the lake. They have reached a size where it is legal to fish for them.