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“Small towns and scenery” |
Hired a car for about a week to explore Tassie's northwest. Spent time in many places along the way, including Queenstown, Strahan, Zeehan, Rosebery, Wynyard, Smithton, Stanley, Marrawah, Burnie and Devonport.
Driving on the left/wrong side of the road was at times frustating and challenging, but always fun. Fortunately for me there were few cars and live animals on the roads. On the other hand, there were more twists, turns and roadkills then I have ever experienced while driving.
Travelling this circuit does not include exciting, well-known attractions. The only areas that are given much mention in travel guides are Strahan and "The Nut" in Stanley. If you're interested in small towns though, and getting off the beaten track, it's great.
Highlights included:
Spending several hours in the Galley Museum in Queenstown, which contains 1,000+ photographs and other items that chronicle the history of this quintessential mining town. The area covering the disaster of 1912 -- a fire in a local mine shaft that claimed the lives of 42 -- was especially poignant.
Taking the recently restored and opened Abt Wilderness Railway from Queenstown to Strahan. It's amazing to me that the original railway was the only way to get to certain places for about 40 years.
Viewing an amazing sunset on Ocean Beach, near Strahan. Afterwards, watched mutton birds fly in, find the burrows of their young and feed them. It's hard to believe that these birds migrate to the Bering Sea (about 15,000 km), without stopping, at an average speed of about 80km (50 miles) per hour. It's even harder to believe that the very first time they fly, they make this journey.
Walking up "the Nut" in Stanley (the steepest climb I can recall doing), walking around the perimter at the top, and taking in the views.
previous travel blog entry
Drew Paton says:
Suffice to say... I am intensely jealous right now. It's cold in N.Y. Very, very cold. And there are no mountains, no beaches, no spray mine tunnels, no mutton birds and no nuts. Well... we've got our fair share of nuts I suppose... but not of the same sort. Which reminds me... I'd like to congratulate you on being the only person to use the phrase "the nut" MORE than Snoop Dogg on his famed album "Doggystyle"... without discussing the small, dry fruit consisting of an edible kernel in a shell. Having just returned from that immersion class in Appalachia I am quite interested to hear more about the history of the mines. It all sounds great man. I wish I could be there to do it with you. I miss you bro. Have fun okay? And be safe. I'll see you soon. God bless. -Drew