Weipa, town in northeastern Australia, in the northern part of the state of Queensland, on the western coast of Cape York Peninsula. Weipa is located at the mouths of the Hey, Embley, and Mission rivers on Albatross Bay in the Gulf of Carpentaria. The surrounding area is an important mining center with some of the richest deposits of bauxite, red clay, and kaolin in the world. Weipa is mostly a residential community for workers in the mining companies. Several Aboriginal reserves are nearby. Weipa is served by one highway, which connects to the Peninsula Development Road, the main highway of the peninsula. It is also served by an airport. Every August Weipa hosts a famous endurance race, the Croc Run, which has the reputation of being the hardest cycle race in Australia. Although the area around Weipa was one of the first in Australia to be explored by Europeans, the town was founded only in 1956, when the size of the local mineral deposits was realized. Population (1991) 2,512.Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2001 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Weipa Information info
|
