Derwent Bridge

Saturday March 10th saw us say our goodbyes to Strahan. We got an early start and were on the road by 8:30. The trip was slow going with the caravans on but thankfully not too much traffic at that time on a Saturday morning. We stopped briefly in Queenstown to gather our courage for the trip up the mountain on the other side. Was a bit anticlimactic as no other traffic in either direction made the short trip to the top fairly stress free. We continued on past Lake Burbury again which was beautiful with a fog stretching across the water near the bridge.

We stopped at Nelson Falls shortly after Lake Burbury. Luckily there was room for both of us to get a parking spot with our vans as parking is limited. What a lovely little surprise! There was a short boardwalk in to the falls through rainforest. The falls were very pretty and the walk was nice as well.

We continued on towards our destination on a very winding and hilly road. We took our time and traffic wasn't too bad other than some motorcycles who didn't care too much about not seeing ahead when they passed. We arrived safely at the Derwent Bridge Hotel just before lunch. This is a free camp in the Hotel parking lot with the hope/expectation that you will enjoy a cold drink or meal at the Hotel. Rans and I enjoyed a couple of cold drinks in the afternoon to fulfil our obligation. There are limited spots in the main area so we were glad we arrived early. No facilities but we utilized the amenities in the hotel.

After lunch we set out to explore a bit of the surrounding area. The main attraction is Lake St Clare which is the southern end of the National Park that Cradle Mountain is located in. We did a couple of short walks totalling about 5Km near the Lake. The walks were ok but again we were left a bit underwhelmed by the whole Cradle Mountain/Lake St. Clare experience. We did see a small echidna trying to hide it's head in the sand to avoid us and Sandra saw a small Tiger snake. Luckily it was heading in the other direction but still made us a bit more leery for the rest of the walk. We also enjoyed watching a Kookaburra eat a rather large grub of some sort.

We decided that one night would be enough and made plans to visit The Wall (art display) early the following morning before leaving Derwent Bridge. We were waiting at the doors/gate at 9am for opening. What a great surprise and the highlight of our Tassie trip to this point. Very hard to describe and you aren't allowed to take pictures but definitely a must see when is Tasmania. The artist has done 3D sculptures in Huon Pine panels lined up in two very long walls. The scenes are of everyday life in Tasmania's history and are spectacular. The intricate detail in faces, clothing, chains etc are amazing. Quite an emotional experience!

We returned to the Hotel and prepared our caravans for our next journey.