BICHENO FOOD & WINE FESTIVAL

We traveled the 43kms to Bicheno (north) for their Food and Wine Festival.  It was a overcast day, no rain.  Everything from cheeses, home made jams, pickles, chutneys, food from all over Tasmania to many of our local wines. I must mention the cheese which we purchased from Fowlers Cheese, 25824 Tasman Highway, St Helens.  For more information call Ian 0488907107 or email ifowler@rocketmail.com.  Beautiful tasting cows milk cheese.

We spent a several hours listening & enjoying the "Blues in the Park" with Pete Cornelius & the DeVilles.   Pete has released 8 full length Blues Albums, and his new release 'Groundswell' is receiving airplay nation wide. Pete and the DeVilles have featured at many festivals including, Festivale, Byron Bay's Blues Fest, The Great Spouthern Blues Festival, The Australian Blues Festival.   Blues artist Toby Garrett and contemporary guitarist 'Joff'   were on the main stage and at the main entrance to the festival.

All in all it was a great day  loved the music & food/wine, lots of people there.
I would recommend if traveling to Tasmania's east coast in late November come along to the Bicheno Food & Wine Festival.

Hobart weekend - Outdoor, Camping & Leisure Show

Another visit to Hobart to take in the Salamanca markets and this time for the Outdoors Camping Leisure and Lifestyle show held at No. 1 Wharf at Salamanca.  We stayed at our usual place "Salamanca Inn" where we are always treated well.  The cost for our one bedroom self contained unit was $528 for the two nights.    Arriving Friday night and departed Sunday morning.
Saturday morning woke and it was very, very windy.  Off we went early to the markets as the Leisure & Lifestyle show was did not open until 10am.
Even early there were masses of people around purchasing their fresh organic vegies, and wandering the various dozens & dozens of stalls.  Drew has a liking for blueberry jam, so we purchased it - in the backpack & off we go again.
We walked across the road to No 1 Wharf to wait for the opening of the Leisure show.  Drew found it funny to see a dozen or so motor bikes & step throughs parked under a sign which said "NO BIKE PARKING HERE" - I guess if they were going to book one they would have to book the lot!!!
We enjoyed the Leisure & Camping Show - found the one caravan which we loved.   It is made by Harman Caravans in Sorrell.  Only we have to win Lotto to purchase the van, not that it is so expensive, but at around $60,000 is above our budget.
We ended up purchasing "leveling ramps" for the caravan and a awning off the 4 x 4 for when we are on the beach fishing, yes I said fishing as Drew has purchased and set himself up with a fishing rod, bait and tackle box etc.

After spending a couple of hours at the show we ventured back to the markets, and then decided to pull up a stool at a great hotel on the Salamanca strip called "KNOPWOODS RETEAT" where we were served by Georgie & James - lovely young people who I think do a very good job, thank you to both of you.  It is a great hotel with a lot of history.

A rich history…

The Reverend Robert (Bobby) Knopwood was Hobart’s first man of the cloth.  He was also a larger-than-life figure who left behind him a trail of debt, a famously detailed diary, a broken spirit and a significant contribution to life of early Hobartians.  He was a man who enjoyed the plonk and lived life large, and we love that about him.

You can read about the good Reverend ‘Bobby’ Knopwood in these intriguing documents that are, along with his grisly death mask, still on display at Knopwoods Retreat to this day.

Salamanca Place:

Salamanca Place itself consists of rows of sandstone buildings, formerly warehouses for the port of Hobart Town that have since been converted into restaurants, galleries, craft shops and offices. It was named after the victory in 1812 of the Duke of Wellington in the Battle of Salamanca in the Spanish province of Salamanca. It was previously called "The Cottage Green".
Each Saturday, Salamanca Place is the site for Salamanca Market, which is popular with tourists and locals.
Salamanca Place is also popular after dark with both locals and visitors enjoying bars and eateries located there and the nearby wharves.
In the mid-1990s, Salamanca Square, a sheltered public square was built. Ringed by shops, cafes, and restaurants, the centrepiece fountain and its lawns are a safe environment where children play alongside individuals and families. There is also an adjoining undercover carpark and a large apartment complex.
There are many laneways and several squares adjacent to Salamanca Place, built during the whaling industry boom in the early and mid-19th century.

Stanley - The Nut - Arthur river - Rocky Cape - Wynyard - Burnie - Ulverstone

Drew travelled on the Monday to Hobart to collect our dear friends Chris & Ross McKenzie, I was left to work.
Drew & I decided to take time off with our lifelong friends Chris & Ross McKenzie who had come down to spend sometime with us in Tasmania
After a few wines & a few laughs the night before we left early enough the next morning - set off on the road well travelled now we have been Tasweegians for over 6 months - through Campbelltown, which Chris & Ross were quite impressed with the wooden carving in the park - all done by chain saws.    A bookstore caught the eye of  Drew, then Ross & then Chris .... oh well when in Rome.  Didn't think I would ever get Drew out, but we did and off we travelled through country which was getting greener every km driven.  Stopped in Perth for photos then headed to Deloraine, took a short cut through Pateena heading towards Hadspen & by this time it had started to rain.  Tasmania the rainbow state.  Arrived in Deoraine where all decided it was time to eat - and eat we did at a small cafe, all tasted very delightful.   A trip to the you know where (what goes in must come out!!!) and on the road again heading for Ulverstone.  
We drove into Ulverstone and the rain was coming down.  We found accommodation at Ulverstone River Retreat where the river was literally at the back door.

Ulverstone is a major town on the north-west coast of Tasmania,  on the mouth of the Leven River, on Bass Straight. It is on the Bass Highway, 21 kilometres (13 mi) west of Devonport and 12 kilometres (7 mi) east of Penguin.    Ulverstone had a population of 6,343.

We spoke to the acting care takers of the property.  Telling them of our travels - they offered their "shack" for two nights at Rocky Cape (it is in a Rocky Cape National Park) for a nominal price.  This was something we did not expect as we would experience living like the locals.
The next morning we said our goodbyes and headed up through Penguin along the coast road.
Penguin is a town on the north-west coast of Tasmania. It is on the Bass Highway, between Burnie and Ulverstone.Penguin has a population of 3,924.
                  These photos are of Penguin.  Looking out to Bass Straight.  Love the street decorations.

Before Burnie we decided to check out Guide Falls - a walk down to the bottom and along the river was very nice.   It was set in a lovely parkland setting with Burnie. 

 

 The Guide Falls within in the township of Burnie.
 

        

This man is completely made of paper

Another model which has been made of paper

Burnie’s newest visitor attraction Makers’ Workshop is a place that honour's Burnie’s history, makers, innovators and artists.
Opened in November 2009 this contemporary structure is a new concept for Burnie, part contemporary museum, part arts centre and visitors information centre.

You can shop for some interesting locally made gifts and mementoes in the gift shop.  You are invited to try your hand at making paper under the guidance of experienced and informative paper makers. Depending on the day, there may be one or several makers working on site, producing any number of interesting things.
You are encouraged to meet the makers and have a chat about what they’re making or see their objects for sale in the gift shop.
Discover what makes Burnie tick from the interpretive displays or simply appreciate the stunning giant sepia images taken by Wolfgang Seivers, still recognised as one of the world’s finest industrial and architectural photographers.

Burnie is a port city on the north-west coast of Tasmania founded in 1827. The settlement was originally named Emu Bay but later renamed for William Burnie a director of theVan Dieman's Land Complany in the early 1840s.
The population of 19,329.

This an indication of where the Makers Workshop is located it is worth a visit, when we were there approx ten makers where showing their wears & making them while we watched.  But alas as we were heading further to Rocky Cape we had to leave.
Back on the road we head out of Burnie & still on the Bass Highway (coast road) we travelled through Somerset heading to Wynyard which we opted not to take a look at as we were going to come back to take a look around.
Our journey took us through Boat Harbour - this is where the road leaves the coast, come to Sisters Beach up to Rocky Cape where we turned down a dirt road and headed to the cape.
The "Shack" was not really a shack but a three bedroom house.

 Rocky Cape & beaches & house

Guess who will be our mascot on the bonnet??

 We stayed for two nights at the "shack" loved all of this area, Chris climbed up the side of the hill to visit the caves which we were told about by the "shack's" owner, boys were over walking on beaches etc, but little did they know that we had a lot more of that to come.

Rocky Cape - can see why the name "Rocky"

The caves which Chris walked up to see them.
Apparently they are everywhere around Rocky Cape.

The wooden walkway which Chris walked on up to the caves.

While staying at "the shack" we went on day trips to Arthur River & Stanley (see below)






Rocky Cape Tavern - Drew with the owner of the pub, John Aitken.

Rock Cape Tavern is a wonderful tavern as it is out on the main road between Burnie and Smithton, with only a scattering of houses nearby.   It has motel rooms + backpacker rooms, a restaurant which is open for both lunch and dinner and the cost was quite reasonable.  John also  offers free camping for those equipped if not he has powered sites, it certainly offers good level sites.   The address is 19375 Bass Highway, Rocky Cape - phone: 03 6443 4110.  We can certainly recommend this place.  We spent one night at the motel and had some fun playing pool and mixing with the locals.                                   
                  Our night at Rocky Cape Tavern.

Our day trip to Arthur River and the most westerly spot of Tasmania started with beautiful sunshine. Leaving Rocky Cape we traveled west through Smithton and traveling through some very green luscious looking land.  Past the turn off to Stanley that will be tomorrow's trip.
past the turn off to Takine Forest Adventures which I would love to have taken a drive down to see.  But we were more interested in Arthur River.  Soon it became prevalent we were getting close to the coast as the winds started to get gusty - we came across westpoint beach on the rugged West Coast of Tasmania.

 
                                                      
All of these photos are of Westpoint Beach.  A couple of brave souls were surfing when we arrived.

Once we had a good look around this rugged coastline on the western side of Tasmania we headed to Arthur River.

Arthur River is the name of both a river and a small township on the northern part of the West Coast.  At the 2006 Census Arthur River and the surrounding area had a population of 121.
The river is fed by several tributaries including the Frankland River. The region has been exploited commercially for timber and fisheries, but today is mostly a centre for tourism.

Gardiner Point

ARTHUR RIVER is known as the Edge of the World and this is how it can feel at times.  The sea west of Tasmania is the longest uninterrupted expanse of ocean on the globe. From Argentina the currents sweep unimpeded more than halfway around the planet until they hit this point. Nestled alongside the Arthur-Pieman River Protected Area, the town is an ideal base for camping, picnics and barbecues among the abundant wildlife and bird species including Tasmanian rosellas, orange-breasted parrots and wedge-tail eagles. is a plaque titled The Edge of the World. North West Coast Tasmania, and a poem by tourism pioneer Brian Inder, who coined the term, referring to the coastline at Arthur River which is regularly lashed by the gales of the Roaring Forties.                                                        

Some of the beautiful scenery at "The End of the World"  a must see.
The story goes about the tree's/logs/timber which had been washed down from the upper reaches of the Arthur River and her tributaries was as nature does the logs fall into the river and are carried down stream into the sea, but the sea was having nothing to do with it so the waves pushed the logs back onto the beach - all I can say is great fire wood as it is quite cold on this side of the island.