Maria Island - April 1, 2022

Our last day on Maria Island. We walked to the Fossil Cliffs  - another 4km walk up a very steep hill then down again! The fossils here are amazing. Boulders jam packed with fossilised shells. These were dug out by Bernacchi to use for cement making but there was too much other material among the shells to allow the cement to be made properly.

Cape Baron Geese

Darlington Penitentiary buildings

Darlington Penitentiary buildings

Cape Baron Geese

 

Maria Island - March 31

 A shorter walk today stopping at French's farm for morning tea/coffee then the painted cliffs and finally arriving at Darlington, the main town on Maria Island by lunch time. here we stayed in a guest house that once belonged to Diego Bernacchi, an entrepreneur who twice tried, unsuccessfully, to set up cement manufacturing on the island. 

In the afternoon there was an optional climb up a mountain, Bishop and Clark which we opted to miss. We'd climbed enough steep hills by then and just needed to sit in front of the fire and relax!

Maria Island - March 30

 A 14 km walk to White Gums camp. The day started off fine but then a rain front came in so the afternoon walk was mostly in the rain with our packs and our shoes and socks becoming saturated by the time we got there. The camp was hidden in a White Gum forest - quite beautiful.

  

On the way we saw our first wombat of the walk. The wombats on Maria island are a different species to those on the Tasmanian mainland are golden in colour and have very soft looking fur. 

Maria Island - March 29

 Our 50th wedding anniversary and an early start to join a 4-day walk across Maria Island. a cloudy start but sunny finish

  

  

 

We walked about 2km from the beach where the boat dropped us on Shaol Bay, across the narrow isthmus to Riedle Bay then up the beach to the campsite. After lunch we walked another 3 or 4 km to Haunted Bay then back again.

After a long walk up and down the hills to and from Hauted Bay we decided to cool off in the beautiful clear water of Riedle Bay. Cold water but very refreshing once we got in. 

Hobart - March 27

 A walk from Sandy Bay to Slalamnca via Battery Point following the Scuplture trail, a series of numbers representing significant moments in the areas' history.

Then into the city to visit "At the Hanging Garden", a restaurant with a ceiling of hanging plants.

Hobart, March 26

 Saturday in Hobart means the Salamanca Market is running. So of course we had to be there. We met up with an old friend who now lives south of Hobart and wandered our way around the stalls looking for something that interested us (by which I mean Di).  Nothing really sprang out at us apart from some Persian dates with walnuts in a sweet sauce, made by an Iranian asylum seeker. Yum!

The Market is alongside Constitution Dock. Here's a brig-schooner sitting in Constitution Dock where we decided to have lunch at one of the many fish restaurants.

After lunch we drove up Mt Wellington to the lookout for a panoramic view of Hobart and its surrounds. This is a breathtaking panorama especially on a clear day like today.

Strahan to Hobart via Queenstown March 25

 A long and winding road! (One local said it’s called the 99 curve road!) so not a lot of pictures.

We visited Queenstown 30 years ago, around the time copper refining was being closed down and the landscape was like the moon’s surface. Now the trees have regrown and it looks much like any of the towns in the south west - apart from some areas on the edge of the town which still show the soil degradation caused by over harvesting of trees for the smelter and pollution from the gold and copper refining process.

We stopped where the road crosses the Franklin River to have a quick look at this famous waterway (famous for those who were around in the 70s). At this point it’s a gentle stream flowing dow to enter the Gordon River just below the Dam.

In Hobart we walked down to Constitution dock for an ice cream, then since it was such a beautiful day, we decided to wait around to eat in one of the many eateries around the wharf.

Gordon River March 24

A river cruise along the Gordon River. First, though, we went across Macquarie Harbour to the narrow opening to the sea, known as Hell's Gate, not because of the rough entry but because of the terrible conditions of the convict settlement here on Sarah Island.

The Gordon River is renowned for its still waters in the morning. Passing through rain forest the scene is one of green health and calm waters - helped by our boat having electric engines.

Huon Pines are the second longest living trees in the world. This one is estimated to be 800 years old. They produce fine grained timber that is easy to work and long lasting. The oils in the timber mean that they don’t rot and they also have great nail holding properties which make them excellent for ship-building. Unfortunately they were so valuable that the forests were almost wiped out before the Tasmanian government banned logging of them. The only Huon Pine available now is from logs that have been found along the river, left over from when they were floated down the river to be collected for the lumber yards.

In on the edge of Macquarie Harbour is Sarah Island which was chosen for a convict settlement to house convicts who had been convicted of further offences while in custody. This was a violent place with little care taken of prisoners by a harsh commandant and his soldiers. The island was set up in the early 1800s and was used until Port Arthur was opened in the middle of the century.

The bakers ovens were placed next to the leather tannery for some reason. The tannery was used to tan kangaroo hides, often traded to the soldiers by convicts who had killed them for their meat.

The bluestone penitentiary was built but never used as a prison. Instead hundreds of convicts used it as sleeping quarters.

Conditions at the settlement improved when a shipwright arrived with the offer of training convicts in how to build ships using the local Huon Pine timbers. 

 

 

Strahan March 23

A walk around the bay to Regatta Point and back, eating blackberries on the way. The a visit to the ocean beach with a wild surf.

 

Strahan March 22 2022

 Strahan is not the end of the world but it is the end of Tasmania - to the west at least. It's a beautiful harbour village that must be lovely when sun shines - which it isn't this week. We're sitting on the verandah of our motel looking through misting rain at the river and its opening to the sea,  relaxing in the late afternoon. The photo above is of a Huon pine being sawn in one of the oldest sawmills in this part of the world. Huon pine is now a protected species so the only logs they can use are ones that are recovered, usually from the river where they've been caught in a log jam or by river edge plants.