Down in the Far South of Australia
It's cool temperate rainforest down here and a bit of a shock if you're used to warmer parts of Australia, but remember to pack the sun-block cream. The sun is fierce here, no matter the season.
The Huon Valley, shown here on the map, is in Tasmania's Far South, the most southerly point in Australia. Next stop - Antarctica!
Contents at a Glance
The Huon Trail
The best way to enjoy this pristine region of waterways and wilderness is to drive around the quiet country roads and highways.
Along a clearly defined and safe-driving touring route you will discover just what it is that makes the Huon Valley a place of beauty - the World Heritage Wilderness.
The views are superb, spectacular scarps and intensely beautiful coastlines with towering sea cliffs along estuaries and sheltered waterways. The Huon and Picton Rivers are the focus for a range of activity from gentle cruising to white water rafting amongst magnificent forests.
As you travel further south, it gradually becomes more untamed and rugged.
Despite the cold water, the surfing beaches are fantastic, unspoiled and uncrowded. For serious surfers, Bruny Island and South Cape Bay receive enormous swells from the Southern Ocean and Antarctica.
Down here among the Gondwanaland plants, boat building, apples and aquaculture, the little towns yield many surprises. Boutique wineries, farm-door cheeses and world class eateries are interspersed with art galleries and home-spun wool craft outlets.
Come along on the Huon Trail!
History
The coastlines of the Huon Trail were first charted late in the 18th Century during the race between England and France to chart and explore new lands.Captain Cook landed on Bruny Island in 1780 and in 1792 Rear Admiral Bruni D'Entrecasteaux entered the waters of the River Derwent, passing through a channel now named for him.
Recherché Bay, in the far south, also inspired French botanist Labilliadiere who collected Tasmanian plant specimens, including Eucalyptus globulus, now Tasmania's floral emblem.
Australia might easily have been named La France Australe as the French, like so many European nations between the 16th and 19th centuries, were attempting to expand their trading routes into the Indian and Pacific oceans. They were also seeking the legendary southern continent, shown in vague outline on many ancient maps as Terra Australis Incognita.
In fact the French sent numerous expeditions to southern seas during that period, contributing enormously to scientific knowledge about the Indian-Pacific regions, in anthropology, botany, zoology, astronomy, geography and geology.
They also left a legacy of hundreds of French names on the Australian coast
Recherche Bay
Recherche Bay was the landing place of the D'Entrecasteaux expedition to find missing explorer La Pérouse.The explorers setup a camp, made a garden and scientific observatory at Recherche Bay in April 1792 for 26 days, and again in January 1793 for 24 days.
Both landings were made to seek refuge and replenish supplies although as much time as possible was dedicated to scientific research. The botanists Jacques Labillardière, Claude Riche and Étienne Pierre Ventenat collected and catalogued almost 5000 specimens including the blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus) which later became Tasmania's floral emblem.
The expedition also made friendly contact with the Tasmanian Aboriginal people here in 1793.
The scientific observatory at Recherche Bay was the site of the first deliberate scientific experiment on Australian soil. At this observatory, geoscientist Elisabeth P.E. de Rosse conducted a series of measurements that proved geomagnetism varied with latitude.Being isolated from the main areas of early settlement, exposed to easterly gales, and the terrain and soils of a nature that discouraged European agriculture, Recherche Bay saw only moderate activity following the English settlement of Van Diemens Land.
During the 1830s and 1840s it was the site of a bay whaling station as as well as a base for pilots guiding ships up the D'Entrecasteaux Channel.
Bruny Island
Down the highway from Hobart, Bruny Island is home to a large colony of some 8000 seals. There is also a penguin rookery, seabirds and dolphins.
The Island is formed with a dramatic weathered coastline, the second highest sea cliffs in Australia, dolphins, seabirds and penguins.
The best way to see it is on a guided boat tour and I fully recommend the excellent and very affordable tours from Bruny Charters
Ferry Across
The Mirambeena travels over to Bruny Island ($25 as of July 2008) ten times each day from Kettering and back again.
Crossing to the island takes 20 minutes and offers excellent views of the D'Entrecasteaux Channel from the upper deck.
On the way over keep your camera handy for the seals and dolphins who follow the wake. I can't describe the thrill of seeing these delightful creatures frolicking around the ferry!
Bruny Island was originally inhabited by Aborigines who named it Alonnah Lunawanna. This traditional name now survives as the name of two island settlements, Alonnah and Lunawanna.
In more recent history, Bruny Island was the site of a land transfer to local Aboriginal people.
Off Bruny Island
Huon Valley Cheese
Grandvewe Cheese is a family run business specialising in Sheep's milk cheese from their herd of East Friesland (Friesian) Sheep.They are also organically certified and have a range of Organic Wines to complement their cheese.
Drop in for a wine and cheese tasting afternoon, relax and take in the view overlooking the D'Entrecasteaux Channel and Bruny Island.
Have a chat with Cheesemaker, Diane Rae, Winner of the 2004 Tasmanian Rural Woman of the Year Award and the 2006 Telstra Business Womens Innovation Award. She'll tell you about the health benefits of organic cheese and a peptide found in sheep's milk which could help prevent Alzheimer's disease.
For a very reasonable postage, Grandvewe will ship cheese and wine anywhere in Australia.
More details at Grandvewe Organic Sheep Cheesery
More on Cheese
-
I Love Cheese!
-
There's something quite indulgent about the delicious labours of the ancient craft of cheese-making - the sheer enjoyment from a simple wedge of crumbly red cheddar or a sharp shaving of tart parmesan. Cheese tastes best in its country of origin and...
Hastings Caves
Hastings Caves were formed over 40 million years ago, and discovered by white settlers in 1917.The spectacular formations include flowstones, stalactites, columns, stalagmites and helictites.
Thermal Springs are near the cave complex, warm water set in beautiful surrounds with towering eucalypts and stunning rainforest ferns.
The Thermal Pool is fed by a natural spring and is an ideal 28 degrees Celsius all year round,it's an ideal spot for family relaxation.
Don't expect a luxury spa resort, this is a naturally heated swimming pools in an amazing surround.
The visitor centre has plenty of information on the caves, and samples of local arts, crafts as souvenirs.
Tahune
The Tahune Air Walk is a suspended tree canopy walk that offers up amazing views of the Tahune State forest, nearby Hartz mountains and the Huon and Picton rivers.Visitors to the Air Walk get a birds-eye view of a wet sclerophyll forest, with tall eucalypts and rainforest species in the understorey. Some of the things you'll see are treetops of King Billy pine and Celery Top, Sassafras and the flowering Leatherwood. Many of these trees are rare species - some found only in Tasmania
The Air Walk was made in Tasmania and designed to meet the highest safety standards. The steel framework is supported by 12 concrete towers embedded in the forest floor and stabilised by three elastic steel guy cables designed for each tower.
Don't let the wind make you jump - the walkway is built to withstand winds up to 180 km.
The Tahune Air Walk opened in July 2001 and is now rated in the 'top ten' visited attractions in Tasmania.
It's perfectly safe for little chidren and full wheelchair access is available.
Tasmanian Tiger
-
Tasmanian Tiger : Wildlife Australia
-
The Tasmanian Tiger or, to give him his real name, the Thylacine, is generally believed to be extinct. However each year there are about a dozen unconfirmed sightings in remote areas, and several reported sets of Tiger tracks. As recently as 1995, a...
Huon Pine
Huon pine is one of the slowest-growing and longest-living plants in the world growing to the ripe old age of 3,000 years.It's a time capsule. A one metre diameter section can record a thousand years of history.
The richness of colour is prized in furniture and its durability make it one of the best ship building timbers known. The wood contains a natural preserving oil, methyl eugenol, an unmistakable perfume.
Apples!
Tasmania was once known around the world as the Apple Isle largely due to the wealth of apple production that stemmed from the Huon Valley.Although modern agriculture is more diversified, apples are still grown in large numbers, particularly in the Huon Valley, and you can still pick up a case or two directly from an apple shed by the roadside.
Tasmania's apples gained distinction as the first ever to be approved by the Japanese government for import, due to their verifiable pest-free status.The Huon Valley hosted a series of annual Apple Festivals that ran from 1953- 61, attracting crowds of up to 30,000 people.
The three day festival put Huon skill talent and produces on display. Competitions, activities and events were run constantly over the weekend, with the crowning of Apple Queen as the highlight.
At The Apple Isle, former Apple Queens recall their experiences of the festival.
Remembering the Whales
Tasmania was once part of the whaling industry. There are former whaling stations scattered around the south, and this sculpture reminds visitors of those days.
You'll find it at Cockle Creek, a tiny seaside settlement tucked away among the tranquil coves of Recherche Bay.
Discover Tasmania
Warning! Keep your hat on
Tasmania is pretty far south and the sunshine is constant in winter even if it's cold. With so much water around, the sun's rays are magnified and Antarctica, with its brilliant sunlight, is close by.
The Australian sun is always harsh - keep your hat on.
Huon Valley Trail Feedback
throughglasseyes wrote...
I was Writer in Residence at the Wilderness Camp on the Esperance River last week with a group of Huon Valley School kids. We had a great time. I particularly enjoyed learning about the early French connection from a local historian.
I too have a squidoo lens about Tasmania which includes some pics from the Huon region.
Margaret Muir
Posted November 01, 2009
Bemused-in-Tasmania wrote...
Excellent lens. I shall favorite it. My lens, and my blog, on https://meanderingmatriarch.wordpress.com are more about living in Tasmania, so this lens fits it beautifully, focusing on the travel aspects.Thanks!
Posted September 24, 2009
LetaRussell wrote...
My husband and I just have to get down there while we're in Australia. It's absolutely beautiful and your lens is enticing.
Posted October 02, 2008
Spook wrote...
Have always wanted to go to Tasmania, but so far have never got around to it. Great lens and keep it up.
Posted August 04, 2008
Stazjia wrote...
Great 5* lens. I'd never even heard of the Huon Valley before. Now it's yet another place I want to visit!
Posted August 03, 2008
Thanks for dropping by ...
Thanks very much for dropping by to read about the Huon Valley, You're more than welcome to leave a note in the guest book above and, if you're a member of Squidoo, you can also rate this lens :)It's all much appreciated, Susanna
For more pages like this, my lens collection is at Susanna's Lensography
The Feral Squid
Through a lens darkly
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byMake your own lens!
Everybody has a favourite subject, everyone is an expert in something, Get your own revenue generating page about your favourite.
All you need is an email address, no complicated forms! Making a Squidoo Lens is a great way to get the word out about any topic, a garden gnome collection, your passion for scuba-diving, that recipe from your grandmother, tips for pruning hibiscus or tuning a truck, how to start a celebrity fan club or how to supplement your home income.
The first step is to think of your topic and make your first lens now. Come and join the Squidoo community.
High Five
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byDownunder Update
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byby susannaduffy
More in my Lensography..... (more)
