Wik Timber Resource

The Wik Timber Resource

The native eucalypt forests of the bauxite plateau of the western Cape York, between the Embley River and the township of Aurukun, are among the few remaining substantial hardwood timber resources available for harvesting in Australia.  In fact, these resources are increasingly scarce globally.

The right to harvest a large part of that resource has been secured by Wik Timber under a sales permit issued by the State of Queensland.    Our permit covers an area of over 100,000 hectares of hardwood forest and allows harvesting until the end of 2034.

Three species are common in the area – Darwin Stringybark, Cooktown Ironwood and Melville Island Bloodwood.  They are some of the hardest, densest and most durable timbers in the world.

Darwin Stringybark

Eucalyptus tetradonta

A straight hardwood tree that grows up to 25 to 30 metres and can yield logs more than 10 metres long. Dark brown to red in colour and, if left uncoated, does not fade to grey. Coated, it displays beautiful grain and character. Unlike other species of stringybark, Darwin Stringybark is highly regarded as a hard, heavy, stiff and stable timber suitable for flooring, decking and other uses requiring resistance to scratching and denting.

Highly durable both in and above ground, uses include engineering (bridge construction and mining timbers, sleepers, poles, piles and cross arms), construction (heavy structural, flooring, decking, shipbuilding), decorative (furniture, joinery, inlay work) and others (implements, handles).

Cooktown Ironwood

Erythrophleum chlorostachys

One of the heaviest, strongest and most durable timbers in the world, the tree is very slow-growing and relatively small, yielding logs up to a maximum length of about 5 metres and a diameter of about 40 centimetres. When freshly cut the timber may appear pink, but it darkens to a deep rich red colour with beautiful swirls in the grain on some pieces.

The red heartwood has extremely high durability, even when used externally and in contact with the ground. It is resistant to borers, termites, and fungal rots. (The pale yellow sapwood is not durable in external situations, but is used internally in furniture and artefacts to provide a stark contrast with the heartwood.)

Uses include engineering (bridge construction and as mining timbers, sleepers, poles, piles and cross arms), construction (heavy structural, heavy flooring, decking, shipbuilding), decorative (furniture, joinery, inlay work) and others (musical instruments, implements, handles).

Melville Island Bloodwood

Corymbia nesophila

The tree grows straight and tall, up to 25 to 30 metres in height, and can yield logs more than 10 metres in length. The wood is dark pink to red in colour and has an attractive interlocked grain.

Very tough and extremely durable, uses include flooring and decking, fencing, cladding and other weather exposed uses.