Friday, 24th – Monday 27th November, 2017, Forth, Lake Barrington & Narawntapu National Park

We headed off late morning for Ulverstone to catch up with Fred’s brother, Patrick & his wife, Stella.  With them bringing their caravan we left to drive to their son, Dale & his wife Jodie’s block 12 km from Forth.  It is a stunning spot on the banks of the Forth River.

We woke the next morning to rain.  After a leisurely breakfast, and saying good bye to the others, we decided we would head off to drive towards Wilmot, with no real plans.  Wilmot is in a valley, known, as ‘Valley of Views’.  It is really spectacular countryside, certainly living up to its name.  We also enjoyed checking out the really quirky letterboxes.  There are over 80 of these constructed to look like cows, bikes, cars, planes, The Tardis,  plus many more, covering a distance of  25 km.

Not wanting to drive far, we decided we would check out a couple of different place to camp for the night.  After eliminating a couple of places we settled on Kentish Park, on the eastern shore of Lake Barrington. Since its construction as water storage for the generation of electricity in 1969, Lake Barrington has developed as a focus for water and nature-based recreation in northwest Tasmania and has a world-standard rowing course.  The 1990 World Rowing Championships was held here.

We arrived about 4pm, and found a great site, with good views, looking over the lake.  Fortunately, by this time the rain had stopped, so we were able to go for a walk along the lake foreshore.

Once again we woke to rain & after our usual leisurely breakfast, we packed up and drove to Sheffield for morning tea.  As it was still raining, we decided to check out the Don Market at Devonport.  This is a small undercover market selling mainly locally made crafts, vegetables, plants &  home made cakes & biscuits.

After purchasing a really yummy banana cake for afternoon tea, we set off for our next overnight stop at Narawntapu National Park.  We arrived in time for a late lunch and settled for a site in the Bakers Point Camping Area.

Dubbed the “Serengeti of Tasmania”, Narawntapu is one of the best places in Tasmania to view wildlife.  The rain cleared up and after lunch we were able to go for a walk.   We then spent the rest of the afternoon being entertained by all the birds & wallabies that were around our campsite.  One of these that particularly caught our attention, the next morning was  a wallaby with her joey.  The joey was almost to large for her pouch and kept us amused watching its antics.

Dale & Jodie’s block on the banks of the Forth River

Letter boxes near Wilmot

Kentish Park, Lake Barrington

Wallabies at Narawntapu National Park

Friday, 20th October – Saturday 21st October, 2017 Forth

We only had 1 night away in Wanna, but we were still able to do heaps, & still have time to relax.  We left home late morning & headed off to Latrobe, stopping at Westbury for lunch.  Our reason for going to Latrobe was to have a look at  Reliquaire. This is a shop renowned for its eclectic wonderland of dolls, teddies & much, much more. Unfortunately the original store was burnt down on Christmas Eve, 2015.  They have now re-built on the same site.  We had visited the old shop many times before, so were keen to see the new one.  It is great to see it re-built, and even though they still have the same amazing stock, the feel is not quite the same.  The quirkiness of the old building added so much to the feel of the place.

After leaving Latrobe, we headed off for our overnight stop at the beautiful little town of Forth, 11 kilometres west of Devonport.  We free camped at the recreation centre, on the banks of the Forth River.

After a leisurely start to the day on Saturday, we headed off to Sheffield, at the foot of Mount Roland.   Sheffield is renowned for its amazing murals.  We enjoyed some time strolling round Mural Park, checking out all the new murals, which change each year, thanks to the Mural Festival. We also had a browse through Slaters Country Store an iconic historical department store in the heart of Sheffield. It is like taking a step back in time.

From Sheffield, we followed the road round the foot of Mount Roland, through the stunning countryside to Paradise and onto Mole Creek for lunch, in the car park at the enterance to Alum Cliffs State Reserve.   After lunch we walked to Alum Cliffs Lookout (or its Aboriginal Name of Tulampanga)  high above the Mersey River where it flows along the valley through Alum Cliffs Gorge.   What a spectacular view of the Gorge & the Western Tiers.

From Alum Cliffs we then headed home via Westbury, after another enjoyable time, exploring more of this beautiful island, we are so fortunate to be able to call home.

Reliquaire, Latrobe

Campsite, Forth

Mount Rolad

Judges Choice, 2017 Mural Feast

Alum Cliffs & Gorge

Friday, 29th September, 2017

We were extremely glad of our gas heater, as we had the coldest night of the trip.  We did wake to a fine morning, but it was very windy.  We headed off about 10am, towards Miena & the Great Lake.  It is easy to see why it is called the Great Lake, it is huge & seems to go for miles.  We stopped at Pine Lake, which is the highest point of the Central Plateau at 1210 metres for morning tea.  There is a board walk you can do around the lake, but we decided against doing it because it was so cold.  This turned out to be the right decision, as it started to snow & sleet. The wind was so strong that the sleet was vertical.  We then drove down past the Liffey turnoff towards Deloraine, turning off at Quamby Corner & went through Westbury, arriving home in time for lunch.

Great Lake

Great Lake

Pine Lake

Thursday, 28th September, 2017

Once again we woke to a cold & wet morning.  After breakfast we went for a leisurely walk around the beautiful little town of Hamilton.  We then headed off for our next camp at Arthurs Lake.  We had a leisurely drive through Bothwell, arriving about 3.30pm at the Pumphouse Camp Ground at Arthurs Lake.  Once again we were restricted to where we could camp, but we were very happy with our site looking over Arthurs Lake.  We spent a quiet afternoon, just going for a walk along the lake.

Camp site at Arthur Lake

Rainbow over Arthurs Lake

Wednesday, 27th September, 2017

This morning was the first day of the trip that we haven’t woke up to rain.  It has however been very cold & it started to rain again about 3.30pm.  After another leisurely breakfast, we packed up and drove out to Lake St Clair. Lake St Clair, the deepest lake in Australia, with a depth of 167 metres, is at the southern part of the Cradle Mountain/Lake St Clair National Park. Because the tracks were so wet, we opted to just do the shorter walk of 45 minutes to Riversmeet.  What a spectacular setting, looking over the lake to see Mt Olympus covered in snow.

After leaving Lake St Clair, we drove around the 1930’s heritage town of Tarraleah. It is a highland village with an industrial past, that’s been transformed into a unique resort, with original cottages that were hand built in the 1930s. We stopped, just south of Tarraleah for lunch.  Our next camp site, was to have been at Ellendale Bethune Camp Ground near Ouse, but it was closed because of the wet.  We opted to continue onto Hamilton (at a cost of $5 per night), as we have stayed here before & knew it would be ok.  We have, however camped on the bitumen, rather than down beside the river.

Riversmeet, Lake St Clair

Lake St Clair

Camp Site at Hamilton

 

Tuesday 26th September, 2017

We awoke again to another wet day.  Fortunately, we are the sort of people, who don’t let the weather stop us from doing things.   After a leisurely start to the day we headed off to check out Nelson Falls.  These falls apparently are normally quite small, but because of all the rain, they are very spectacular at the moment.  We then stopped at Frenchman’s Cap Road Stop for lunch.  After lunch we visited the Franklin River swinging bridge.  This is a very narrow bridge that crosses the river & is only suitable for one person at a time.  The view from the bridge looking up the river is amazing.

Then it was onto our next camping spot at Derwent Bridge, travelling, over Mt Arrowsmith, where once again there was snow on the sides of the road. Our camp site for the night is a free site at the Derwent Bridge Hotel.  Fred decided to stop at the dump point to empty our toilet.  On emptying it, he forgot to take the lid off the cassette toilet & it fell into the dump point.  He was left with no choice, but to reach in & rescue it.  This is something he will hopefully not do again.

Fred’s Disaster

Mt Arrowsmith

Franklin River Swinging Bridge

Nelson Falls

View from Frenchman’s Cap Roadstop

Monday, 25th September, 2017

We had an early start this morning, as we had to be aboard the Harbour Master at Strahan by 8.45 for the Macquarie Harbour Cruise.  On board we were allocated our seats where we were required to sit when we first leave port & for lunch.  On leaving Strahan, we headed off to Hells Gate, the entrance to Macquarie Harbour.  Fortunately, it was very calm, so we were able to go out through the entrance.  What a spectacular view it was of Ocean Beach & looking back into the harbour.  We then check out some of Petuna Seafood’s Salmon Farms.  There are over 300 of these enclosed Salmon Farms in Macquarie Harbour, owned by Petuna Seafoods, Tassal & Huon Aquaculture.

We then stopped at Sarah Island, where we were shown around by a guide from The Round Earth Company.  Sarah Island was a Convict Penal Settlement between 1822 and 1833.  All up there were approximately 1200 prisoners sent to the island.  There are very few ruins left, as most were timber structures that have rotted, or have been vandalised. This was a really interesting place, made very enjoyable by, a passionate & interesting guide.

On leaving Sarah Island we then headed up the Gordon River, while we partook of a sumptuous cold buffet lunch.  We got off at a place called Heritage Landing, where we were able to enjoy a boardwalk circuit, through beautiful rainforest, where we were able to see huon pine growing.

The very enjoyable cruise finished at Strahan at 3pm.

We then set off for our next camp at Lake Burbury.   Lake Burbury is a 20 minute drive, from Queenstown, heading towards Hobart. This is another council run campground, costing $6 per night. Once again we were restricted in available sites, because of the wet, which meant, we were unable to have a site, overlooking the lake.

Cruise boat the Harbour Master

Hells Gate

Salmon Farms

Sarah Island

Gordon River

Lake Burbury

 

 

Sunday, 24th September, 2017

Today we went back into Strahan, to have a good look around this stunning place.  Fred in particular was keen to check out the Morrison’s Saw Mill.  After having a look around Strahan we went out to Ocean Beach.  What a spectacular beach this is.  It was however very cold, wet & windy, so we didn’t stay for long.  We then headed back for another night camped at Macquarie Heads.

Ocean Beach

Huon Pine Rocking Horses

The Esplanade, Strahan

Macquarie Heads Camp Ground

Macquarie Heads Camp Ground

 

West Coast, Saturday 23rd September, 2017

We woke this morning to more rain.   We had been looking forward to doing the 3 hour walk into Montezuma Falls, but unfortunately, were advised against it because it was too muddy, as it had been raining nonstop for 12 hours.  We had a look around Roseberry, where Fred was born & then headed off to Zeehan. Apparently nothing is open in Zeehan on the weekend.  Fred described the main street of Zeehan, as being like a deserted movie set, with all the beautiful old buildings.

We then headed off to Strahan & stopped on the foreshore there for lunch.  After lunch, we went for a walk along the Esplanade at Strahan & then headed out to our next camping spot at the Macquarie Heads Camp Ground.  What a stunning area this is. It is a council run campground, costing $7 per night. Unfortunately, however once again the best camp sites were unusable because they were too wet, but we were more than happy with our site, near the boat ramp.

Roseberry

Lunch at Strahan

Zeehan

West Coast, Friday, 22nd September, 2017

We set off late morning, stopping just before Westbury for lunch.  We opted to go over the Cradle Mountain Road to the West Coast, as we have never been this way before.  It was a beautiful drive, with quite a bit of snow to see.  The only thing to spoil the drive was that the gas detector kept going off for some reason, when we got near to the turnoff to the West Coast near Cradle Mountain.  This kept happening on & off for about half an hour.  We were unable to work out why it was happening, as the gas was turned off. Maybe something to do with the altitude.

We arrived at our campsite at Lake Roseberry about 5pm. This is a free campground & when we first saw the camp ground it didn’t look much, but once we checked it out it we discovered it was a beautiful spot.  However, we did have to camp near the road, on a cement slab as the better camp sites, where to wet.

Lake Roseberry, Tullah

Lake Roseberry, Tullah