We arrived at Strahan in the late morning and got setup in two power sites at the Strahan Beach Holiday Park. The sites were quite large but located on a closed in road which meant access was a bit tricky. Lucky for us the area wasn't full when we arrived so were able to get in without too much effort. Would have had to back all the way in if it was full. The amenity blocks were very dated and inadequate for the size of park. Not the cleanest either so only 2 Stars. Not great considering at $40/night this was our most expensive caravan park in Tassie to date. Other park across the road is even more expensive and the reviews for it were even worse! I guess you have to pay for location which was great as we backed onto the beach.
The girls got straight into the laundry upon arrival and I got busy on the computer playing some picture and blog catch up. Weather cleared up a bit which was nice for the laundry ladies. I booked tickets on the Gordon River Cruise for the 4 of us and our Harrington friends. Luckily we got the last 8 window seats available for Tuesday. We took a walk down the boardwalk to town and a look around. Also stopped in and paid for our cruise tickets. We ran into Carol, Rob, Chris, and Tom at a café during our walk. We all walked to the local IGA to buy some groceries. Selection was somewhat limited but prices were quite good. We enjoyed the walk back to the caravan park and a relaxing afternoon.
Tuesday morning we were up early and walked down to the wharf to catch our cruise. We went on the World Heritage Cruise (the red one), although we heard both options were very good. The boat was great and very smooth (weather was a big contributor to this). We headed out on the Harbour Master across Macquarie Harbour. Our first stop of interest was Hells Gate which is the narrow opening into the harbour from the Great Southern Ocean. It was very calm when we passed through but they have experienced swells over 25 metres in this area. Needless to say the tour doesn't go through Hells Gate on those days! Lots of bird life near the entrance as well. We passed through Hells Gates before turning and returning through them to the harbour again.
We headed back across the harbour stopping briefly to watch one of the salmon farms being fed. This is the largest industry along with tourism in the region with Salmon and Ocean Trout being farmed.
Next stop was near the other end of the harbour, at Sarah Island. These are the oldest convict ruins in Australia and was one of the worst gaols around by all reports. We enjoyed a guided tour of the island and it's history, which was very informative. The water was very peaceful which made for some beautiful pictures.
From there we headed into the Gordon River where we enjoyed the calm waters and beautiful views of this World Heritage listed park. Along the way we enjoyed a lovely buffet lunch which was delicious and had lots of gluten free options. The smoked salmon and local cheeses were two of the highlights. We stopped for a quick walk through the Huon Pine forest before beginning our return journey.
A relaxing couple of hours enjoying the views and the company of our friends made for a great afternoon. There was a brief film about the history of the Huon Pine industry and the people involved. It would have been a very hard life. All in all a wonderful day and I would recommend this tour very highly. 5 Stars and something not to be missed when in Strahan. It turned out to be our friend Carol's birthday as well so we entertained her with a few verses of Happy Birthday as well.
Wednesday was a rest day with a bit of cleaning and lots of computer work on my part. Almost caught up with my blog again. We enjoyed a BBQ at Carol, Rob, Tom, and Chris's caravan park. Very good night but a bit of a disappointment that there was only one BBQ in the park and was coin operated. A shame when they were already paying $150/night for their cabins. I don't think they would have been leaving very good reviews! Dinner was great though as was the company.
Thursday morning was another early start as we were all taking the West Coast Wilderness Railway from Strahan to Queenstown and return. We had splurged on the Wilderness carriage for the 8 of us and I would have to say it was good value. For the extra $50 we received champagne, morning/afternoon tea and snacks, and a lovely lunch at Queenstown. The snacks were cheese platters, scones and cream, and salmon canapés. Very nice as was the lunch. Once again the girls were well looked after with their gluten free options. The train trip itself was very informative about the region and it's history. Amazing that they could accomplish such incredible feats in the early 1900s! Unfortunately I don't think anyone has the vision or fortitude to attempt such projects in our current political climate. We enjoyed a number of stops along the way where we sampled local honey, gold panning, short walks, and the ever important toilet breaks (none on the train)! Carol and Stephen were celebrating their 32nd wedding anniversary on the day as well. One negative of the trip was the degree of pollution in the river near Queenstown. They have stopped the practises that caused it but will take many, many years to clear the water. Another great day with a tour that I would highly recommend. Was a long day as we boarded at 8:30 and didn't return until 6:00PM.
Friday saw our friends from Harrington continue on towards Hobart while we took a drive to Queenstown. We wanted to see a bit more of the town but also preview the road especially the climb out of the far side of Queenstown which we have heard bad things about. The road was very hilly and winding to Queenstown and the climb on the other side is steep and narrow. Fortunately though it wasn't too long. We ventured on to Lake Burbury and a campsite we were considering to stay at. The lake was beautiful but as we are becoming used to, no place to pull over to view it properly. The campground turned out to be fairly average so we explored a few other options on our return to Queenstown. We found a lovely place with lake views but we wouldn't be able to turn around with our caravans if the spots were already full. Got some lovely pictures of the lake from there though.
Back into Queenstown and up to the Spion Kopf lookout. Unfortunately like most of Queenstown the lookout was rundown and poorly maintained. Queenstown is a very sad tired town and one we won't be returning to anytime soon. We got a few photos of some of the houses to illustrate. Quite a bit of history in the region but not a place you want to spend any time. We returned back to Strahan where we made preparations for our trip the next day. We really enjoyed our time in Strahan with the cruise and train trip being the highlights. The town itself appears to be struggling a bit as there weren't a lot of facilities (grocery, restaurants etc) for the amount of accommodation options. Definitely worth a visit though when traveling to Tasmania.
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