Huon Pine (Lagarostrobos franklinii) often called yellow gold is not actually a pine at all but a conifer. Highly prized for its golden yellow colour with fine grain and natural oils that resists rotting and parasites.

The typical age of the timber is 1000 to 2500 years old with the oldest identified tree being 3,462 year old and one of the oldest plants on Earth. One grove of male trees in the Mount Reed area are identified as belonging genetically to the one original tree estimated at 10,500 years old but none of the original tree remain with the grove sprouting from its original plant, only the North American bristle pine is older.

First discovered south of Hobart by Chaplain Robert Knopwood in the Huon river and this is where the name Huon pine came from noting its resistance to rot and vermin being strong and light, easy to work with making it an excellent furniture and boat building timber.

Captain James Kelly left on a circumnavigation trip in a whale boat with 4 oarsmen around Tasmania in 1815 discovering Huon pine in all the fresh water rivers from the Huon river in the south east coast round the south cost and as high up the west cost as the Pieman River all containing huge forests of the pine. The greatest amount found was around the shores of Macquarie harbour and up the Gordon river and all its tributaries.

In December 1821 the convict penal settlement was established at Sarah Island in Macquarie Harbour not far from the entrance to the Gordon river. The convicts were made to harvest the valuable Huon pine using very basic tools manhandling the logs to the river with rope blocks and floating them into rafts lots, Huon pine will float even green. The log rafts were floated to Sarah island and cut up in saw pits.