Huon Time

We'd only been married a year, so being separated for 2 weeks was quite a big deal in 1978. The Bloke had a curiosity to visit the place to which I'd gone to row as much as I was keen to revisit Franklin on the Huon River. When Gary and Milena from Pierrette said that they had the way-points to go up the Huon as far as Franklin, we leaped at the chance to follow. Our nautical charts show the Huon beyond Port Huon, as 'uncharted' or 'off the reservation' although the Cruising Guide has a detailed description of how to navigate to Franklin. Better than any book, we would have a tour guide and company too.

Pierrette leads the way.

Port Huon

Port Huon Yacht Club.

They are mad keen sailors in Tassie!

First of the Channel markers.

This is the 2nd marker but labelled #3!

Where did #2 go?

My recollection of Franklin was of apple orchards and timber-lap cottages, a place that time had forgotten. The best apples I've ever eaten are from here. The memory of them still strong. YUM! Franklin is still very quaint but apple orchards have given way to small rural 'tree-changers' and cherries being grown under acres of netting. There is plenty of evidence of past times with tumbledown fruit packing sheds and decayed jetties along the river's shore alluding to an earlier prosperity but the district is reviving with aquaculture, new fruits, tourism and the 'tree-changers' escaping their lives from elsewhere to cherish a new bucolic existence.

 An old fruit packing shed.

To begin our Franklin tour we rafted up with Pierrette before anchoring up-stream beyond the wooden boat builders and moorings, as recommended by the Guide book.

Rafted up.

The Living Boat Trust

Wooden boat building is a big deal in Franklin now and plenty are brought up the River for restoration at the specialist boat yards here. Even the local primary school builds a small wooden boat each year as a project.

The historic 102 year old wooden steamship Cartela is up here for restoration and will be returned to The Derwent for tourist duty at some time in the future.

I was very animated when we first spotted the rowers. We observed so many crews that we thought that there might have been a regatta but each boat crew was wearing so many different club strips that we were unsurprised when we were informed that we were witnessing the Tasmanian State Trials. Definitely a very busy weekend on the water! Although we didn't spot them, we were told that there were a couple of crews from a school in WA on the river. My informant couldn't recall the college name except that they wore a red strip and the name began with 'A'. So our guess is that this would be Aquinas College - pulling all stops to once again be dominant at the prestigious Head of the River. One thing is for sure, they'd have better training conditions here than home in Perth where the easterlies carve up the water and make training problematic at this time of year.

The very busy rowing club and boat ramp.

Plenty of talent on the water.

There are reminders of days gone by pretty much anywhere you look. We were most surprised that the 'Portable Police Lock-Ups' such as the one in the photo, were in use by the local constabulary as recently as 1980 but we suppose they know a thing or two about lawbreakers and convicts in Tasmania!

The Bloke looks like he'll go quietly!

 

Having become quite partial to a local delicacy, a curried scallop pie, it was a pleasure to encounter one of Tassie's best exemplars at the Petty Sessions cafe. The Chef joked that one had to come all the way out to Franklin to find the best specimen of this Tasmanian speciality and created by a Swiss chef! Regardless, we all agreed it was a cracker, full to bursting with scallops, mildly and not overpoweringly curried and the pastry 'just right' and beautifully adorned.

The Chef pulled these our of the oven so I could photograph them! 

 

One of Gary's Derwent Sailing Squadron's sailing buddies had recently relocated to Franklin from Hobart, so 5ers were convened at their hilltop location and plans for the forthcoming East Coast Cruise discussed. Lyle and Madeleine were great hosts and co-incidentally, like us, sail a Jeanneau 42' SO DS, albeit a newer model.

Although a gloomy morning, the day opened up to deliver this awesome view.

After anchoring upstream for the night and parallel to the road, we decided that the rowing trials would make for a busy and bumpy time on the river so we set off early in the morning, a little worse for wear after enjoying too much hospitality the night before.