Our day trip to Launceston

Ron, the Marina Manager at the Tamar Yacht Club deserves to be on a commission from local services and outlets. While getting the paperwork for our stay at the club sorted out he gave us details of bus timetables, Phil's Laundromat and a chandlers catalogue for Tamar Marine in Launceston. We were likely to be here for 3-4 days so why not make the most of it.

We hadn't really grasped just how far away Launceston is upstream, the notion that you could technically motorsail all the way there was deceiving us. It's actually about an hour by road! We arrived at the bus stop shelter (a construction a bit more substantial that the ones were were accustomed to in Perth in homage to the weather) in plenty of time and were heartened by the arrival of another potential passenger soon after. As it turned out he was probably just as encouraged by our presence as he was not a regular bus traveler either. We chatted while we waited but before the bus arrived, an acquaintance spotted our new friend and offered us all a lift nearly all the way to town. We had a lovely running commentary and discovered also that our driver was a former yatchie who'd been a live-aboard on Pittwater.  See; we are not freaks at all!

We caught a town bus from the drop-off point and made our first visit be the chandlers. As bedtime reading the night before I'd gone through the catalogue which was about the thickness of a small phone book and made a small list. If nothing else, I hoped that the Bloke would agree to extra paper charts. The ones we bought in Port Lincoln ran out at the Bass Strait/North East Corner of Tassie. While having the paper charts is no longer a requirement in this electronic age, they are still nice to have and we (dinosaurs) find them helpful in getting the 'big picture' of where we are going. The computer charts only give postage stamp snippets. Mind you, at $35 for each paper chart one does think twice and unbelievably there is no single chart for Tasmania! To cover the whole island you need about a dozen and I'm not making it up. Furthermore, a couple of the charts are more than 75% water and the locals gleefully try to make our already widening eyes bulge a bit further by reminding us that this is all because there are lots of things to hit around the Tasmanian coast. This makes us feel better, right? 

Tamar Marine is a fabulous chandlers and was doing a brisk trade when we arrived - on the scale of a Whitworths but with 'supersalesman staff'. We met another boatie couple also being led about by a staff member and we laughed about who had the longer list! We sensed that the jubilant workers were about to achieve sales bonuses this month!

A TV has been on the wishlist for a long time and we are not kidding anyone ... we do watch TV, albeit iView in addition to our recorded films and TV series. Surely watching stuff free-to-air would soon reduce our internet download needs? The TV should then be expenditure-neutral in the medium term plus our enjoyment of photos, films etc would be greater on a screen larger than the iPad. How's the sale pitch doing so far? Anyway, we left the place roughly weight neutral, the wallet lighter and arms heavier and that dear friends, is why getting a really good look at Launceston just got a bit more awkward!

The Bloke who by this stage needed mollifying with a coffee, a paper and some lunch, told me I was "dreamin'" if I thought for a nanosecond that going into the Museum or Art Gallery was a good idea. Even a tour of Boags Brewery failed to entice. Luckily, I spotted some signage for a Tigerbus, a free inner-city 'hop-on hop-off' (like the Perth Citycat) bus that would carry us and our purchases around, allowing a bit of sight-seeing before we could catch the very first afternoon bus around 3:15 pm back to Beauty Point.

The heritage listed Ritchies Mill, circa 1830.

The Penny Royal Hotel is a part of a small historic precinct.

At the edge of Cascade Gorge

Civic art near the Town Hall.

 

They are very keen on depictions of the now extinct, Tasmanian Tiger (Thylacine).

Even the Tiger Bus alludes to this creature.

The Albert Hall, Launceston.

Lovely cathedral spire with wind vein.

Quick snap of the Beaconsfield Mine on the way home.

It's the one where 2 miners were rescued two weeks after being trapped nearly a km below ground following a tunnel collapse in 2006.

Our Tamar Threestep

To think that we hadn't really planned to pull into the Tamar at all almost makes me blush with shame. Central to our thinking is a desire to reach Hobart by 26th November but also the thought that Launceston was a long way up the river and likely to be another city not vastly unlike others. In any event, the wind Gods dictated first our visit to Low Head and then further upstream.

Forecasts suggested that moving eastwards would not be prudent as a weather gap sufficient to get us out to Tomahawk Bay and through Banks Strait were nowhere in the scope of predictions and in fact,  there would be some stronger weather coming in a day or two. We elected to move to a more sheltered location upstream and the Bloke's study of our (rapidly becoming dogeared) copy of the Tasmanian Cruising guide, pointed to a spot with a charming name: Dark Hollow.

FYI We have 2 guides: Tasmanian Anchorage Guide (5th Edition) produced by the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania  and Cruising Southern Tasmania: A guide to the waterways and anchorages of South Eastern Tasmania from Wineglass Bay to South East Cape (4th Edition).

We had to wait for high tide to leave Low Head and by then the wind had picked up a bit. We made a none too elegant departure off the pontoon with the wind dictating an interesting spin before we pointed at, the by now, flooded gap. Off we went to tackle the Tamar. The marked shipping channel is mostly quite wide and very deep but with a couple of twists and turns and lots of eddies. We could clearly see the advantage of the big ships being brought in by a Pilot even though there are leads everywhere!

  The bloke watching the sandbar emerging as the tide fell away.

The public pontoon at Dark Hollow

A good looking neighbour. A sea eagle on the look out for dinner.

The next day was a sunny one and enabled us to motor across the Beauty Point and pick up a paper and an ice cream. There appeared to be a very attractive homestead overlooking West Arm further upstream.

The Northern end of Beauty Point as seen from Dark Hollow

The Bloke, thinking ahead as always, had been in touch with Ron, the Marina Manager at the Tamar Yacht Club checking on the possibility of a pen in which to tie up. Predictwind had most of Tasmania swathed with red and dark brown colouring in coming days denoting predictions of very strong winds of 40-50knots. Plan A was to move across from our pleasant anchorage on Monday morning but the tide was still high and the wind gentle making a shift to Plan B a better option. That is, go to the yacht club on Sunday evening: right now, do not pass go, do not collect $200! And it's as well that we did because the wind came early and would have resulted in a poor night of sleep and a difficult berthing. We're getting quite good at 'taking it while it's going'.

By dinner time we were secured in a 15m pen with the club's additional permanent lines, suggesting that they knew a thing or two about big blows here. The adjacent Australian Maritime Training College vessels added an additional breakwater and plenty of entertainment in the following days.

Chainsaw Sculptures

Imagine our surprise when we we rounded the bend to visit East Beach on our way back to Low Head Pilot Station to be greeted by the vista below. We had gone for a walk and thought we might find a kiosk or little shop near the beach. There in front of us was this strange grouping of tree stumps, only so much more attractive!

We had previously found a chainsaw sculpture on King Island. Prior to this we may have been vaguely aware of such an art form and perhaps in Tasmania with it's abundance of trees, it's more mainstream. Anyway, Eddie Freeman is a superb practitioner and demonstrates his skills annually at the Royal Hobart Show. It is an art form he developed over a period of 30 years and the most favoured timber he uses is Macrocarpa and Radiata Pine. There are a number of examples of his commissioned works at Legerwood, Cambpell Town and George Town and in subsequent drives around the Tamar district, we've spotted a few more here and there.

Eddie freeman's work at Legerwood is particularly poignant where a small community commemorated their 7 fallen WW I soldiers by planting some trees; one for each man. When in 2001 it was discovered that the trees needed to be cut down, Eddie Freeman was commissioned to create a new memorial to the men using the tree stumps of the memorial trees. If you follow the link, you can read all about it.

This grouping of sculptures or is that a 'stand' of sculptures, is inspired by the ocean and included mariners, a beacon/lighthouse, a surfer with sea life (dolphins, whales, penguins etc..) and a couple of sea eagles feeding their chicks in high up nests. With the exception of the ship and mariner, all the sculpting was done in situ.

This was a marvelous find and despite looking, we could find no evidence of any signage directing people to this site. Furthermore there didn't appear to be any interpretive storyboard ... this lovely piece of work 'JUST IS' and is almost more enjoyable for the surprise it delivers!

Leg 34 - Devonport to Low Head Pilot Sation (Tamar River)

28 Nautical Miles

A day with an unexpected ending.The Bloke had checked the forecast in the night and the 4am predictions were for an easterly of around 15knots. We were heading north east with an intended destination of Tam O'Shanter Bay where we would anchor for the night. We let loose our lines at the change of tide from the Mersey Yacht Club courtesy jetty at 10:00 and headed down the river and out to sea. Once beyond the scope of the leads we unfurled the sails and looked forward to the day. We'd need to tack but one long one should just just about do it.

As we got further off shore it was apparent that the wind was not an easterly but a northeasterly; exactly where we were headed. Blasted noserlies! Worse still was that the wind gauge after an hour began ramping up with frequent gusts to 22knots. Hello, what's going on? We pulled in the mainsail thinking that we might even be reducing the genoa. I went below to check on the forecasts. The 10:00 forecast update completely changed the predictions to strengthening north easterlies, which we were already experiencing with a strong wind warning for good measure. Met-eye showed Cape Grim was already registering 31knots and it was headed our way. The good news was that conditions should be lighter inshore. We headed inshore accordingly and spent the day tacking, thus earning our rum ration.

It was very evident that Tam O'Shanter Bay would be too ambitious a target for a comfortable day sail and that somewhere up the Tamar River would be a suitable bail out option. Consulting the Tasmanian Cruising guide indicated an all weather harbour at Low Head Pilot Station and there were still other options further up-stream if we didn't like the look of it. Luckily the tide was within 2 hours of high tide allowing us to get in. We could be safely tied up before dark and then revise our plans. Getting through Banks Strait and on to the east coast of Tasmania within 3 days was definitely a plan written in the sand at low tide and the notion was now well and truly washed away.

It's not all bad news though. It happens that Low Head Pilot Station is a historical precinct that also includes a lovely lighthouse, maritime museum and a coffee shop for the Bloke. Golden!

All good at Low Head Pilot Station. 

It's a small but sheltered basin similar in size to Christmas Cove at Kangaroo Island.

The scene is a bit different at high tide.... but 3m will do that!

Mersey Bluff

The wonderful building we'd observed from 'out to sea' on our approach to Devonport turned out not to be the Bass Strait Maritime Centre but a local 'surf club,/coffee kiosk/bistro/ restaurant' complex. We just had to have a closer look and we now had the (bicycle) 'wheels' to get us there! "Think of the coffee".... The Bloke was easily persuaded.

He was very accommodating, even though he was riding ahead, he stopped along the way at nearly everything that he knew I'd find irresistible.

 Pop Up Library  - Literally along the bike path under a tree.

 It appears there's a lot more to worry about than just the Spirit of the Sea and his trident.

This cantilevered structure gave us a better view of the Spirit of the Sea but had a quite unnerving platform made of a grating so that one appeared to float above the water.

A terrace of Norfolk Island pines and memorial pillars remembering the very, very young local men (many of whom were conscripts)who were killed in Viet Nam.

Lest We Forget

 The beautiful and safe Bluff Point Beach in front of the stunning Surf Clubhouse complex.

 Architect designed picnic and play areas.

An absolute pleasure to gaze at.

The Mersey Bluff lighthouse.

Love those stripes!

Cycling to the Big Apple

On our way to the Bass Strait Maritime Centre we spotted a Garage Sale notice on the street verge. The Bloke had a 'light globe' moment inspired by the distance we'd already walked and thought he'd check if there were any old bikes for sale. As it happened the street had banded together and nearly every house had items for sale. Standing on one verge was a magenta girls bike with a helmet. The Bloke sent me over to check it out. Amazingly all in working order, I paid $50 and was immediately 'mobile'. Tick. Not to be defeated, the Bloke asked around if anyone had another bike for sale. The Dad from the same household seized the moment and retrieved a considerably less glamorous item from under the house. Glad to be rid of it and the Bloke an enthusiastic recipient, it was a case of the proverbial 'win-win'! In his option there was nothing that his tool box, lubricants and some air in the tyres couldn't improve. The Bloke was animated.

My bike was a simpler matter. A bit of air in the tyres and was all perfecto. The Bloke discovered he'd need a new rear inner tube but $5 and a visit to Kmart, plus a bit more walking to get it, really was all that was required. The brakes were a little dodgy and he didn't have a helmet but the Bloke decided he'd live dangerously for a couple of days. What a laugh we had. $55 spent was a whole lot less than a hire car and at the end of our stay we'd donate the bikes to the Yacht Club for the next cruisers or whomever. We've been fortunate enough to have been loaned cars on several occasions along the way and by the time you've repaid the favour with dinner, a bottle of wine or whatever it's pretty much the going rate! My request to at least keep my bike, was emphatically declined. I didn't fight the edict.

It was so much fun being able to go out on my own for groceries without the Bloke. Men's and women's shopping patterns are notably different and while possibly not as extreme as shown below (please note Roger!), being tagged by the Bloke in the supermarket is excruciating.

The signs on the bike path indicated that the township of Spreyton was just 6km away. A local wondered why we would possibly want to go there (a town with some light industries and a school) but it was an attainable destination via a bike path and the promise of a cafe and a bakery were irresistible the Bloke.

Frozen veggie plant en route.

We were never going to make it all the way to Cradle Mountain

.... but we know the way now - for 'next time'!

Cradle Mountain is an ominous backdrop and visible out to sea.

When sailing away from Devonport we thought it would never go away!

 The bike path was fantastic, had stunning vista's and must have cost a bomb... ou(G$T)ch!

 Our destination.

A fruit and veggie shop/bakery/coffee shop.

A worthy destination and if I recall correctly.... the Bloke bought himself a sausage roll!

A day with all the best inputs.

Tall Poppies

Our bike ride out to the Bass Strait Maritime Museum took us along the dual use path along the west bank of the Mersey River and out to the point. This is a beautifully landscaped area with a lot of public art. One piece connected our trip back to Port Fairy.

GlaxoSmithKline(GSK) who have a factory in Port Fairy for the extraction of alkeloids, source their poppies from Tasmania. In fact their enterprise alone supplies 25% of the worlds medicinal opiate needs. They have co-funded the creation of this outstanding bronze installation. It appears that the poppies are exported to the mainland through Devonport and the artwork was commissioned in recognition of this important fact.

 

Tall poppies reach for the sky

The storyboard beneath the tall poppies noted the significance of the work of a Hungarian scientist, Janos Kabay, who developed an industrial method of morphine extraction from dry poppy straw.

How funny that the text has started to get wonky just thinking about the morphia.

Recent developments have seen an upset in the opium poppy growing and processing industry in Tasmania. There are 3 processors; GSK, Tasmanian Alkeloids and TPI Enterprises. Previously confined to Tasmania, approvals have recently been granted for growing opium poppies for the medicinal industry in mainland states and both GSK and Tasmanian Alkeloids (owned by another pharmaceutical giant - Johnson and Johnson) are already trailing crops. Just this week the Tasmanian based company, TPI Enterprises (a comparatively new and junior player in this lucrative industry) has announced that it will be moving it’s processing plant from Cressy in Tasmania to Victoria as they claim to be unable to obtain sufficient raw poppy material to meet demand. Are GSK and J and J hogging the available crop? The Tasmanian Government has until now been resolute in not allowing the importation of poppy straw from elsewhere on the grounds of risk to biosecurity. As this story has evolved, the Tasmanian government is now softening and prepared to give consideration to potential solutions. Is this all a bit too late? Has the horse already bolted?

If not for our visit to Port Fairy and now Devonport, the significance and intrigue of all this interstate, 'multi-national conglomerate' plus environmental politics may have slid below our radar.

Going to the Bass Strait Maritime Centre

On our approach to Devonport we'd spotted a substantial public building near The Bluff that we thought might be the Maritime Museum. We decided to walk there from the yacht club in East Devonport. The prospect of a cup of coffee and a sit with a newspaper was all the encouragement the Bloke required, so we set off on a very attractive dual use path along the riverbank. 

The ebb tide betrayed by the trails behind the moored boats.
Notice the 'Spirit of Tasmania' and 'Searoad Mersey' in the background. 

Along the Mersey River there are some stupendous homes from a bygone time.

A hint to past prosperity.

I loved the blossoms.

A bank in central Devonport.

We passed the War Memorial on the riverside path.

 The signal flags indicated that the Bass Strait Maritime Centre was open.

The clue that the Australian mainland and Van Diemen's Land were not connected was the observation of very strong tides by George Bass in 1798/9. The chief significance of it's discovery was the shortening of the sea route from India back to Europe by some 700nm.We have noticed these tides ourselves and the shores of both Victoria and Northern Tasmania that are exposed to Bass Strait experience 3m (6') tides. We have seen tidal overflows at the northern ends of both King Island and Three Hummock Island. Our friend Gus from 13Beaufort sent us screen shots of his navigation panel showing the track of a high powered vessel attempting to traverse the Banks Strait (on the NE corner of Tasmania)from east to west during an ebb tide. The attempt was unsuccessful and the boat had to stand off and wait for the flood tide. There was no getting through until then! We'll be headed through that Strait and the Bloke is taking the tides very much into consideration.

Dramatic laser cut compass rose in the entry floor.

There are many displays and screenings to be viewed in the Maritime Centre but one of the show pieces is a simulator. You can stand in a replica of a ships bridge with 180 degree animated visuals and for $2:00 can attempt to bring the ship in through the Mersey River heads and upstream. You are warned that the attempt may well cause seasickness. Just looking over the setup and the images of a stylized heaving sea had me feeling quite wonky!

Construction drawings of the lighthouse on Mersey Bluff.

The emergency exit schematic revealed the clever design of the building echoing an anchor or a boat.

One of the external corners of the Bass Strait Maritime Museum.

The 'Julia Burgess' was built as a cray fishing boat.

Now lovingly restored by volunteers.

Her story is documented at the museum.