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Published: July 25th 2014
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We survived the night without mobile coverage, access to the internet and heating!! The accommodation at Lake St Clair is true 'wilderness' accommodation with no wi-fi and no service on either the 3G or 4G networks. And we turned the heating off to sleep and we were plenty warm enough under the doona.
This morning we completed three of the short Cradle Mountain walks. First we walked via Cynthia Bay on the Watersmeet Trail to the point where the Cuvier & Hugel Rivers converge before entering Lake St Clair. As we walked along this path we saw three yellow-tailed black cockatoos which was quite exciting - certainly the closest that we have been to yellow-tailed black cockatoos. Hopefully we managed to take at least one decent photo!
From the bridge at Watersmeet we completed the Platypus Bay circuit, but unfortunately we didn't see a Platypus. Even if we had been on the walking trail closer to dawn it's hard to say whether we would have been any more successful? Back at the bridge over the rivers' convergence we took the Larmairremener tabelti (Aboriginal cultural walk) to return to the car park at the Visitor Centre.
After driving back
out of the National Park to Derwent Bridge we pointed the car east to head towards Hobart. Before we got properly underway though, we made one more stop just out of Derwent Bridge at 'The Wall'. This is an incredible sculptural undertaking by Artist Greg Duncan commemorating those who helped shape the past and present of Tasmania’s central highlands. Still a work in progress, The Wall is being painstakingly carved from three-metre high wooden panels. The carved panels tell the history of Tasmania's Central Highlands region - beginning with the indigenous people and progressing to the pioneering timber harvesters, pastoralists, miners and Hydro workers. To protect his artistic copyright photography is not permitted, but images of this ambitious work of art can be seen on the official website at
http://www.thewalltasmania.com.
With Hobart in our sights we only had one more stop at the historic town of Hamilton. We thought that we would arrive in Hamilton at about lunchtime and it would be a good place to stop for some food. Maybe in the summer time it is bustling but, at present, it's practically a ghost town! Fortunately we did find one small cafe that was open so we didn't
have to resort to Pringles and chocolate for lunch!
After a week in the wilderness it was a bit of a shock nearing Hobart and having to contend with the dual carriageway and quite a bit of traffic! On top of which the SatNav wanted Bernie to complete an impossible manoeuvre around a roundabout to reach the Fountainside Hotel. After two attempts we gave up and went through the roundabout and took a right, a right and a left and drove pretty much straight into the hotel's car park. Still not sure quite sure what the SatNav was suggesting?!
Checked in, unloaded the car and walked to the supermarket for a few more supplies before putting our feet up for a short while in our room. After dark we walked down to the wharf to check out some restaurants. Bernie had read some good Trip Advisor reviews for The Drunken Admiral so we found our way there for a delicious seafood meal.
Steps for the day 18,036 (12.28 km)
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Janet Morrison
non-member comment
lucky meeting
How lucky to be able to get such a good photo of the black cockatoo! We saw some in Darwin but were not camera ready for them. We are both enjoying your photos so much. You both have a good eye. I am presuming that you are each contributing images to the blog of course! We loved your tree canopy photo so much, amazing patterns almost like coral! I was intrigued to read about the Wall project as I have not heard of this before. It is almost like a modern Bayeux Tapestry. Will be a lovely sight when completed. The few images on the website suggest that he is a quality wood sculptor. Stay warm!