MT. TOORONGO
(MT. McDONALD)

	Lat / Long GDA	-37.835000, 146.103214 (Mt. Toorongo) -37.826207, 146.121886 (Mt. McDonald)
	Department	FCV...etc...DEECA
	Work Depot	Noojee
	Region	Gippsland
	Grading	Secondary
	Elevation (ASL)	1240m (Mt. Toorongo) 1220m (Mt. McDonald)
	Height	18m (Mt. Toorongo)
	Construction	Steel (Mt. Toorongo) Timber (Mt. McDonald)
	Cabin size	2.1m x 2.1m (Mt. Toorongo)
	Public access to site	Yes
	In use since	19?? - 1968 (Mt. McDonald) 1969 - (Mt. Toorongo)
	CFA Region	9 - Eastern

Photo supplied by Paul Jones
Information supplied by Bluey Smythe. Bluey also supplied information for: Gentle Annie, Spion Kopje and Crossover towers, all in the Noojee district.
The original Mt. McDonald tower was about 2.5km from present site. It was a 2 story hut, living quarters downstairs and observation cabin upstairs. It was discarded when a new steel tower was erected for the 1969 season. That's when the tower had a location and a name change. It was discovered that there was already a Mt. McDonald in Victoria and it was changed to Mt. Toorongo. Old maps will show Mt. McDonald.

The original tower (Mt. McDonald)	The original tower (Mt. McDonald)	The end of Mt. McDonald

Above 3 thumbnail photos supplied by Murray Ferguson

The following information was found in notes supplied by David Bannear.
The original lookout cabin on Mt. McDonald had been subject to vandalism for a few years and things were getting beyond repair so a request was made for a new tower. Planning started in 1966 and the notice of completion is dated 10th February 1969.
09-10-1981, a report on the safety of firetower ladders recommends a friction locking climbing system to be installed. This system was used by the MMBW (now known as Melbourne Water) towers. The friction lock carriage was mounted on a rail welded to the ladder. This carriage clipped onto a belt worn by the towerman, who then draws the carriage up or down the rail as he climbs. On slipping, the carriage locks and limits the climbers fall to the length of the strap connecting his belt and the carriage.
To our knowledge, this device was never installed. (see also Mt. Matlock)

Please click on thumbnails for enlargements

The tower in winter supplied by NRE Noojee	hut in 1998 supplied by Paul Jones	Tower in 2004 supplied by Andre Belterman

For a 2007 story called "A day in the life of a fire lookout" by Dom Bromilow, please click here

Mt. Toorongo had it's cabin replaced in 2012

For a 2025 front page story called "A day in the life of a fire spotter" by Colin Booth in the Noojee News, please click here

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