We left Kim in the middle of a rope bridge over the river Franklin. Happily she made it back to safety without mishap and we ended the day’s driving at Strahan in an overpriced and third rate camp. The longest running play in Australia takes place nightly at a tiny open-air theatre right by the dockside. ‘The Ship That Never Was’ has a cast of two, but what it lacks in numbers it simply makes up from the audience. Amongst others, Mike was co-opted for a minor role, simply to act vomiting into his hat at periodic intervals. As a result, Mike is definitely not considering a new career in acting!
Next day, after yet another night of rain, we joined the ‘Eagle’, a large catamaran, for a cruise on the Gordon River. We’d been told by various folk who we met along the way that it was an experience not to be missed. The weather was appalling as we left, throwing it down, and we wondered what sort of a day we were going to have with little visibility through the rain streaked windows. But as we left Strahan in the distance the weather improved. Sunny it was not, but the skies sort of cleared, visibility improved and for once it stopped raining. Until we reached Sarah Island when again the heavens opened. Five minutes later the rain suddenly stopped and we all trouped ashore (with a certain amount of trepidation). Our guide, who turned out to be one of the cast from last night’s play, took us on an entertaining and informative walk around the former penal colony, pointing out the ruins that were the only clues to the island’s previous role.
We were fascinated as much by the way that nature had reclaimed the island. New growth dominated; trees, shrubs, grasses, ferns and especially mosses were everywhere. It was an extraordinary landscape.
The entrance to the large natural Macquarie Harbour is through a narrow passage over a bar known as ‘Hells Gates’, a term that was given by the convicts who were sent there. Once through the passage into the harbour, life was ‘hell’. The route in was torturous and we were not surprised to learn that it had been the scene of numerous shipwrecks with many lives lost. By comparison, the Gordon River was calm and serene with the tree clad hills reflected in such a way that it seemed their image was perfectly inverted. Impenetrable rainforest encroached over the water and mosses draped every surface. True rainforest indeed.
Lunch on board was particularly good, with Tasmanian smoked salmon a key feature. We celebrated with a bottle of Tasmanian wine, only later trying to decide what it was we were celebrating. Was it the cruise or the fact that the rain had stopped? Somehow it didn’t seem to matter. Tasmanian Atlantic salmon (a bit of a misnomer) is farmed, it’s not wild. We passed dozens of these farms in the clear waters of Macquarie Harbour.
Returning ashore to Vin Rouge, we found a group of people discussing the various merits of our set up. Plenty of questions were asked and views exchanged. Then a young chap arrived who had waved to us on the road the previous day. He was also in a Land Rover Defender and came over for a chat.
The next day started, as usual, with yet more rain. Then it brightened and the view ahead was softened by steam arising from the warm bitumen as the sun made its appearance through the clouds.
We arrived at the village of Waratah. Deposits of tin and copper were found there in the late 1800s. The ample water supply was used to power the mining machinery and one of the first electrical generators was installed. It’s all gone now; there’s just an attractive waterfall to show where industry had sprung up from nowhere.
A short drive took us to the coast, to Cape Table, noted for its stunning views and the amount of tulips and poppies that are grown there. In Stanley “The Nut”, a volcanic plug, dominates the skyline. We took the lazy way up on the chairlift and walked the 2 km trail around the top. The views were indeed picturesque, white sandy beaches stretching into the distance, deep blue sea and rich pastures inland.
We wandered into a large shed where wooden boats were being built and restored. The boat builder, a certain Mr Sims (close!), obviously an enthusiast and a friend of Gryff Reece-Jones, chatted with us for ages, explaining his preference for huon pine as the timber of choice and how he approached the task of restoring old boats. It was all very interesting but we needed to drag ourselves away to make a quick visit to the Tarkine Forest.
The Tarkine is listed in the top ten of the world’s wildernesses. It is remote, but some of it is accessible by road.
We touched upon a few areas which were certainly unspoiled and seemed to be devoid of people.
However, as it was reaching the end of the day we decided that some link with civilisation would be the preferred option for overnighting and returned passing a splendid view of the Nut to Rocky Cape.
A most convivial evening was spent with a couple touring in their camper trailer. Can’t recall what we discussed but the wine was fine.
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