Ted's Beach, Strathgordon, Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park, Tasmania

---

10 January 2011

We had a long drive from Bruny Island over towards the western side of Tasmania to Lake Gordon. The drive was very scenic but the road was not very smooth so it was a pretty bumpy stretch. We arrived at Ted's Beach campground in the early evening and were surprised at how small it was. In all honesty, we thought it was going to be much prettier but nonetheless it was still good to go and see that area as it is the only road to the western southern side of Tasmania.

We camped for one night then headed towards Maydena which is near the Big Tree Reserve. This made the trek to Strathgordon all worthwhile. The Big Tree Reserve (located in the Styx Forest) was absolutely amazing and the Big Tree was incredible.

We also walked down the river walk which was also stunning. Reefy is a great little walker but Oscar is a bit of a terror in the hiking backpack.. He doesn't like being restrained in any way so it can be a little tricky at times..

We drove past the green activitists that have been living in the Florentine Forest for two years now, trying to stop it's destruction. Many people write them off as "tree-hugging hippies" but I think they do an amazing job for the benefit of us all. It's such a shock and so sad to drive through so many parts of Tasmania and see complete destruction of the forests. One minute you're driving through beautiful ancient forest, then next minute you are surrounded by mountains completely stripped of trees and wildlife. Sounds extreme but it really did look like a war zone with all the beautiful old trees lying there like corpses. It just didn't look right and left you with a bit of an empty feeling.

The bulk of the south western part of Tasmania is not accesible by vehicle but the driving that you do leads you through so many mountains and there are beautiful fast flowing rivers everywhere. It's no wonder they call it "The Wild West".

---