This morning we had anticipated an early wake up call in order to get to the wharf at 8:00 a.m. for a 6 hour cruise of the Gorden and Franklin Rivers and MacQuarrie harbour. However, we were awakened a little earlier than the norm by loud trucks, shouting, bangs, etc.. Thinking nothing of it I rolled over and tried to sleep but, peeking out the window, Nancy saw a raging fire very close to the caravan park. Having just seen the devastation caused by the bush fires a few days previously we thought the worst. We drove the van out of the park anticipating an evacuation. The truck and shouting we heard earlier were related to a house fire that burnt to the ground in a few hours - the bangs were something in the back exploding. How the surrounding trees didn't catch fire was beyond us but it did sprinkle a little during the night. A local policeman said everybody was safe with the exception of 2 cats.
We sleepily made our way to the dock and eventually boarded the 36 meter boat, Eagle.
By then unfortunately it was quite cool. raining and cloudy - weather quite common to Tasmania any time of year. The cruise tours the Franklin Gordon rivers winding through a temperate rainforest that is classified as a protected World Heritage site. The dreary weather prevented us from seeing all that the region had to offer but - oh well - what can one do? There actually was gorgeous mountain ranges beyond the low lying cloud.
The weather brightened up a little by the time we toured Sarahs Island.The Macquarie Harbour Penal Station was established there.It operated between 1822 and 1833. The settlement housed mainly male convicts, with a small number of women. During its 11 years of operation, the penal colony achieved a reputation as one of the harshest penal settlements in the Australian colonies.
The penal station was established as a place of banishment within the Australian colonies. It took the worst convicts and those who had escaped from other settlements. The isolated land was ideally suited for its purpose. It was separated from the mainland by treacherous seas, surrounded by a mountainous wilderness and was hundreds of miles away from the colony's other settled areas.
Despite its isolated location, a considerable number of convicts attempted to escape from the island. Sarah Island's most infamous escapee was a convict who managed to get away twice. On both occasions, he cannabalized his fellow escapees.Nice guy!
Back at the dock were were dropped of at a small sawmill that still milled Huon Pine, a slow growing tree that has been logged in the area for many years.It takes 500 years for a tree to prodce its first seed.
After a short drive from Strahan through even more hills we settled into Rosebery, a little mining town, to catch up on some sleep in anticipation of a hike at Cradle Mountain the following day.
The penal station was established as a place of banishment within the Australian colonies. It took the worst convicts and those who had escaped from other settlements. The isolated land was ideally suited for its purpose. It was separated from the mainland by treacherous seas, surrounded by a mountainous wilderness and was hundreds of miles away from the colony's other settled areas.
Despite its isolated location, a considerable number of convicts attempted to escape from the island. Sarah Island's most infamous escapee was a convict who managed to get away twice. On both occasions, he cannabalized his fellow escapees.Nice guy!
Back at the dock were were dropped of at a small sawmill that still milled Huon Pine, a slow growing tree that has been logged in the area for many years.It takes 500 years for a tree to prodce its first seed.
After a short drive from Strahan through even more hills we settled into Rosebery, a little mining town, to catch up on some sleep in anticipation of a hike at Cradle Mountain the following day.
No comments:
Post a Comment