Wednesday
An intrepid group of HASHers, organised by Terry Easther, (Terry and Christine, Nick and Kay, Jenny and Kevin, Jim and Penny, Maurice, Al, Brian, Steve, Bob and Dick) prepared for three days in the beautiful Tasmanian wilderness.
The first stop on our journey was the Deloraine Town Café in Emu Bay Road. After an extended coffee and snack, we drove on to Miena. The temperature was gradually descending and at the Great Lake Hotel we were met by a roaring open fire, great food and drinks, and friendly staff.
Our bodies replenished, we drove through to Bronte Park and checked in at our accommodation for the night, the Highland Cabins and Cottages. Our cabins were warm and comfortable and provided everything we needed including a pod coffee machine and delicious port to warm us after dinner.
Once settled in, we drove to Derwent Bridge and spent an hour or so at The Wall in the Wilderness. Most of us had visited before, but it is always worth another visit and we weren't disappointed. From there we drove through to the Lake St Clair Visitor Centre and walked to the waterfront, with Pumphouse Point in the background.
We called in at the iconic Derwent Bridge Wilderness Hotel for a refreshing drink in front of another open fire, and then some of us decided to stay for dinner - the tomato and vegetable soup was delicious! Then it was back to Bronte Park for the night.
Thursday
We left Bronte Park and drove to the charming village of Tarraleah. At this time of the year the Highlander Arms Hotel and café are both closed, and unfortunately the penstock viewing platform was not available, so we drove on to Ouse for coffee at the roadhouse. As we drove on to the Mt Field National Park, we passed through the picturesque villages of Fentonbury and Westerway. At Mt Field we checked-in and updated our parks passes before taking the 25-minute return walk to the magnificent Russell Falls. Some of the more adventurous ventured up hundreds of steps to the Horseshoe Falls.
The Styx Valley, also known as the Valley of the Giants, is dotted with 400-year-old swamp gums. As we stood in the Big Tree Reserve, our necks craning up to the sky, we could barely see the tops of the Eucalyptus regnans, the tallest hardwoods and tallest flowering plants on Earth.
Then it was on to our final destination, Lake Pedder and Strathgordon. Along the way we stopped to view an unusual sculpture by Alex Miles entitled 'Bitumen Bones'. The sculpture was inspired by a poem entitled 'The Wombat' by Sarah Bay. 'The quartzite earth wedge represents weather-bleached bones, and framing the view, the black wings of a Forest Raven (Corvus Tasmanicus) - often seen hopping along the roadside scavenging roadkill remnants.'
The Pedder Wilderness Lodge is perched on the banks of Lake Pedder and the view from the Lodge is nothing short of spectacular, in any kind of weather!
We settled into our warm motel-style rooms, unpacked and walked across to the Lodge for a drink in the lounge around the wood fire.
Our restaurant table was booked and one very noisy group of fourteen took their seats and enjoyed a lovely dinner. Back at the rooms, the noise continued until late - in one particular room!
Friday
Lake Pedder and its companion Lake Gordon, together comprise the largest inland freshwater storage in Australia, covering more than 500 square kms and holding more than 37 times the volume of water in Sydney Harbour. In fact, the combined Pedder and Gordon lakes hold the equivalent of 3.98 million Olympic swimming pools of water!
Following a delicious breakfast in the restaurant we headed to the Gordon Dam, 11 kms away, stopping on the way at the Lake Pedder Lookout. The Gordon Dam is a truly spectacular structure only matched by its surrounding views. Through driving rain we sheltered in the tiny visitor centre and took photographs, whilst a few of us climbed down the almost 200 steps to the dam wall and walked (or ran) the length of the wall and back. The sun finally came out so we could take full advantage of the views and on the way back to the Lodge we called in at the adjoining Serpentine Dam.
Terry pointing to the sign at the dam that states 'No Standing Anytime'!
The rain was coming in waves so some of us retired to the comfort of the Lodge for coffee and lunch, whilst others risked the weather for some long awaited exercise.
Later in the afternoon we again graced the Lodge lounge with our presence, for drinks followed by yet another superb dinner.
Saturday
We were met by much improved weather and as a bonus, snow on the mountains. One guest (not one of us!) braved the lake half naked, which certainly attracted our interest.
On our way out of the Pedder Wilderness Lodge we stopped to view a Veteran Huon Pine log which was salvaged in 1975 from the area now covered by Lake Gordon. It has an 8 metre girth and at the time of its salvage was 2,200 years old. Remarkable.
The white cards attached to the timber indicate the timing of famous events throughout the past 2,200 years including the birth of Jesus, signing of the Magna Carta and the arrival of the First Fleet at Botany Bay.
Following breakfast we packed up and left in our respective vehicles, soon to meet up again at Ted's Beach just a few kilometres down the road.
Edward (Ted) Hofto, a Tasmanian born and educated civil engineer was Project Manager of the Gordon River Power Development from 1969 to 1975. He conceived the idea of a beach to promote tourism and provide facilities for swimming, fishing and boating enthusiasts. So, to develop the beach, HEC employees stripped back the buttongrass plain to expose the underlying rock. Ted believed the erosive action of the rising lake waters on the rock would encourage sand to accumulate and form a beach. And he was right! Ted's Beach is a beautiful spot and made even better this morning by the snow on the mountains in the background.
And so our Wilderness Wanderings came to an end - what a fantastic few days: great views, great food and drinks, great accommodation and great company!
