We were up early (Brian had the alarm set for 5.30 most mornings) and so we were on the road heading for Queenstown by just after 6am. As we drove into Queenstown we were struck by how untidy and unwelcoming the approaches to the town were. Entering the main area Mum decided she needed a pit stop so spotting a little park we went there but no sign of the required facilities – what we did find was one of the best memorials we have seen anywhere – not only was there a shed with a mining machine but there was a larger than life size monument of a miners family and all the miners work gear but also a layout of 11 boulders in a water feature and each boulder had a brass moulding on two sides depicting the history of Queenstown from the aboriginal days up until completion of the memorial in 1983.
After Mum accosted a couple of council workers and a visit to the not so grand toilet block we did a tour of the town including a visit to the lookout which involved a reasonably steep path but the climb was worth the effort. Once again the flowers up the hill were quite spectacular and the view of the scalded hills all around was excellent. Unfortunately the locals are concerned that the scalded hills, which were the main tourist attraction to Queenstown, are starting to revegetate. There are some beautiful old buildings in the town lovingly restored.
Another of the town attractions is the gravel Football field.
Back on the road again we headed for Lake St. Clair which is situated in the National Park south of Cradle Mountain but a considerable distance south. Lake St Clair is the deepest fresh water lake in Australia – 167 metres deep. There is a large National Park centre here but we made a quick visit to the centre – walked down to the lake edge – it was quite cold and windy – then hit the road for Hobart.
Mum mentioned that there was a large carving along the road that she wanted to see but we had no idea as to what it was called. Dad noticed a sign that said “The Wall”, he asked Mum if they should go in but decided not to. A bad mistake as this was the carving. It is evidently a work in progress but is about half to two thirds complete – it is some 5 metres tall and will be 100 metres long when complete – all carved in Huon Pine. There are other carvings of animals etc. It is being hailed as The Eight Wonder of Tasmania and depicts the history of Tasmania. It is near Derwent Bridge so don’t miss it like Mum and Dad. I think it is called “The Wall in the Wilderness” or simply “The Wall”.
We pulled up for a picnic lunch where of course Dad had to feed the birds so we soon had birds fighting over the bread etc. Mum didn’t manage to capture the birds in the picture.
Moving on we arrived at New Norfolk where once again we were in need of Tourist facilities. We found a nice little park where the amenities block was adorned with a series of Murals depicting the Production of Hops in the district. We didn’t have time to visit Gen and Jon Denton again as we had told Dads cousin Allan Bull and his wife Rhondda that we would visit them that afternoon and they lived some 20 kilometres south of Hobart.
We negotiated Hobart without difficulty but the driver had some difficulty in following orders as we exited the City – as a result we took considerably longer that it should have to reach our destination. It wasn’t that we were lost – we just didn’t know where we were.
Allan and Rhonda seemed pleased to get their first visitors since their arrival as they had only been in Tasmania 2 weeks. They have purchased a lovely two storey brick home on ten acres of fairly steep open forest. The home has a lovely garden and I think it is a good thing the driveway is bitumen because is as steep as Jo and Peter Mullers driveway. After a tour of the gardens etc. they took us for a drive south as far as Dover, showing us several places that they had inspected when searching for a house. Allan builds Guitars whilst Rhondda normally works for Centrelink but is on leave of absence for the moment.
We had dinner with the Bulls and then headed back to Keren and Ron’s where we sat up and talked until quite late.
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