Tasmanian Bush Heritage
Guest writer – Paula McCulloch About four years ago I was intrigued by the story Simon Cubit wrote on his blog (then later published in his book Mountain stories: echoes from the Tasmanian high country, vol.1) about a hut near Stretcher Creek in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park. It interested me that even with … Read moreStretcher Creek Hut Site
The Pelion Plains, in the middle of the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, are remote and stunningly beautiful. Some call them pristine wilderness. On the southern edge of the plains is the imposing two-storey edifice of New Pelion walkers’ hut. It is the newest and biggest of a series of huts that have … Read moreThe Forgotten Huts of the Pelion Plains
Not coming back again It just goes to show you can always learn more about a place. How many times do we visit some historic spot, look at it from every angle and then walk away saying that we won’t need to return. And then some extra information turns up which changes everything. So, we … Read moreThe Pelion Stockyards – Revisited
The Number Plate Tree We were looking for Damper Inn on the Gordon Track (read about that here). It turned out that knowing the location of the junction of the Gordon Track and the Port Davey Track would help us find the old hut. But the junction also had a history. Originally it was … Read moreThe Port Davey & Gordon Track Junction
A haven in the South West Again, a picture got Ian’s attention. It was a hut called Damper Inn and it was located somewhere in south-western Tasmania. The photo showed a neat corded track gently curved into the hut’s sunlit clearing. The hut looked like a welcoming haven in a dark forest. … Read moreDamper Inn than out
Another Barn Bluff Copper mystery Eddie I’ve been lucky enough to know Eddie Firth for years. He is a great walking companion; extremely experienced, easy to get along with and an infectious enthusiasm for the history of Tasmania’s high country. In many ways he is part of this history. Many would know him from his … Read moreEddie and the water wheel
We decided to visit the north-east in early 2019. That summer, the ‘tin province’ was the safest place in Tasmania. The rest of state seemed to be threatened by fires. Nic had a few things to show us. Near Gladstone, Ian and I followed him along some old roads towards the Ringarooma River. … Read moreDorset Dredge – the river eating machine
I hear the thresh of the spiteful hail, And I feel the lift of the wind beneath, The forward heave and the lightning lurch And the shuddering gasp like a living thing, As we crouched in the heel of the tempest’s grip High on the shoulder of Hamilton!1 – Marie EJ Pitt, ‘A West Coast … Read moreThe Hercules heist: a lament for Thomas Goldie and the Mount Read Hotel
The story so far It has been a few months since we posted about the Colebrook mine. We have told its story from the promise of a brilliant future to its reality as a sad memory.1 The Fiasco For years, the Colebrook Prospecting Association (the Association) had proclaimed that the mine was big, full of … Read moreThe Colebrook Fiasco Part 4 – Who caused the fiasco and the failure?
We didn’t find the old dray track on our first trip to the Waratah Dam. Our consolation prize was a very old timber tramway and bridge. They were pretty interesting. Searching in the forest had been easy. It had an open understorey and it was relatively undisturbed by later activity. Old things like a 150 … Read moreFollowing the Philosopher – The Mount Bischoff Dray Road