November 2
Hobart to Strahan
The first shock of the morning was when I checked out. The cost of last night's phone call was over AU$ 13! Australia definitely is expensive.
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The sun started to appear as I sat in a small cafe on a back street eating good bacon and egg and drinking another excellent coffee. Australia is doing well on this front. Not quite as reliable as New Zealand but light years better than the UK. There was still a chill in the air. If it hadn't been the middle of spring I would have described it as autumnal.
The Information Centre organised a couple of hotels for me and the dodgy looking internet cafe gave me a good connection but no interesting messages.It being about 10 am, I walked up the hill to the Hertz office, where I collected a small car and instantly drove it about 50 m the wrong way down a one way street. Things looked up from there and I collected my bags from the hotel, did a few laps of the Domain having mislaid the main road, and finally made it onto the motorway out of town. (I may, in the process, have gone a short way along another one way street in the wrong direction. It's a difficult place!) |
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There wasn't really an opportunity to stop until I reached Granton, where the main road North crossed the Derwent River and my road West followed the river valley.
Left: Granton and the Derwent River |
I passed a few vineyards and reached New Norfolk. This wasn't an inspiring town but it provided some apples and aged local cheddar at a farm shop and a coffee at a café. It seemed busy enough but not a bustling centre.
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The road followed the river for a while, regularly crossing a disused railway line.It then rose onto some rolling farmland. Other traffic was very scarce and I was almost in my own little world. Hamilton is an historic town, with some beautiful old stone villas by the roadside.
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The road rose steadily into an area of forest and finally reached Tarraleah. This is similar to Twizel, in that it was built to provide a centre for workers on a major hydro electric scheme. Unlike Twizel, it didn't flourish as a town and fell into major decline until being bought by an entrepreneur in 2002 and converted into a tourist resort. The population is supposedly about 500 but I’m not sure where they all hide. I’ve since discovered that I should have stopped to photograph the Lodge, which is an art deco masterpiece, but I didn’t & now it’s too late.
Right: Into the forest |
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The cafe offered basic food so I had a burger - not bad - and a fizzy drink from the Cascade Brewery - non-alcoholic.
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On the way out again, I stopped at the viewing and information point. The sight of the pipes plunging down the steep slope was quite spectacular.
The road plunges down for quite a while, passing more hydro-electric activity at the bottom of the Nive River valley. The first power generators were installed in 1938
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There were trees everywhere and lots of small lakes. The similarity to the West Coast of New Zealand was striking. There were even clearings of what looked like tussock.
Left: Bronte Lagoon |
The top of the pass was about 1000m and marked with a big sign. The part which entertained me was the comment about the high rainfall to the West - 2.5 to 3 metres annually. They should try Hokitika!
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From there, the road ran downhill, through more trees and past some lakes before finally reaching the blasted heath surrounding Queenstown.
This is still a mining town and has been decimated by mining for a long period. The road resembles the Crown Range approach to the New Zealand Queenstown, steep and with lots of bends. The rock has been carved into strange shapes by the mining activity and it is a mix of unusual colours. The "lunar landscape" description used by the Lonely Planet is quite appropriate. |
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I bypassed the town centre and headed for journey's end as the day was progressing and I was tired. There was more ravaged landscape, which I didn't bother to photograph, before the vegetation won and I descended through the trees into Strahan.
Right: Back into the forest again |
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The Village Accommodation building is on the waterfront so I parked and wandered in. I then discovered that the organisation owned half of the village and people were being despatched all over the place. I was sent up the hill to a small group of motels behind a large central block. It seemed well equipped but I'm not sure I would want to stay there in mid winter.
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The main block was smart but I passed straight through the lounge, looked at the stunning view from the deck and braved the assortment of ramps and stairs which led back down to the waterfront. The descent was nothing like as intimidating as I had suspected although the return journey after dinner may prove otherwise.
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The lady at reception told me about the wi fi in the upper lounge so I bought a one hour ticket to be used after breakfast in the morning. I must make sure to do all my postcards this evening. Whilst it was dull and none too warm, a walk along the waterfront was pleasant enough so I looked at the view and the boats and the buildings. |
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Hamers is the bar, pub and hotel, so I started in the public bar with a Boags. It was only a small one 'cos that's what they give you over here if you don't ask for anything larger. While I was sat there, two plates of nibbles appeared on the bar and it would have been rude not to accept one.
With 6.30 approaching, I walked to the other end of the building and into the lounge and dining room. I found a table and ordered a bottle of Sharman's Riesling, which seemed appropriate. Unlike Dr Sharman, it was a bit young but I suspect that it will mature into a good wine. For a while, I continued to write my diary and then ordered some food; slow cooked calamari and local trout. This is something I can't eat in New Zealand.
The calamari was in tomato broth, which tasted good. I'm not sure about the slow cooked part. I didn't really like the texture - a bit flabby. A good attempt but I won't be trying it at home.
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The trout was excellent, on a bed of potato and spinach and with a tomato coulis. I might have cooked the trout a little less but I tend to like my food almost raw! Definitely a creditable effort.
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Back up the hill, I went to the bar, lap top in hand and decided to do my work after all. The relationship with the barman went well and I gained a port, a long black and a long chat about his arrival from the UK a year ago. I obtained nothing from the wi fi. Absolutely infuriating. Again!
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