Goodbye Dad and Mum!

We have had a slower week and it has been nice to be in one spot and enjoy the cool but sunny wather. On Sunday we went to a great church and met another GFA family here in Launceston. Afterwards we took a drive to Cararact Gorge and walked across the suspension bridge there, this is nearly in the centre of Launceston and is very picturesque.

Monday was pack up day and on Tuesday, we sadly said goodbye to Dad and Mum, we have had a great time with them and they enjoyed being here too, although I am sure Dad was sorry to miss the BIG storm Perth had last week!

Tueday was a lovely day, so we decided to try not to mope around and hired some kayaks here at the van park, to go for a paddle along the river that runs along the edge of the park. The kids had a great time paddling and enjoying the sunshine and Darren and I got some good exercise too! (PS remember don't paddle too far downstream because you have to get back!) It was a great family activity and a good distraction too. We miss you Mum and Dad, but we are glad you got home safely!

Today we went for a drive east of Launceston and went into Launceston CBD for a walk around. We look forward to exploring more of the area over the next few weeks. Happy Easter to everyone and may you know God loves you so much He sent His son that you may have an eternal destiny with Him - what GREAT news!

more photos

PS Here are some more photos of our time over the last week, and regarding those 19 years, yes Darren and I are grateful for the first 19 years we have had together, it has been a great ride, and here's to the next 19 ahead!

Photos:
Axeman's Hall of Fame

Us and the Motorhome!

Tip #2 from Jerome - Make sure the van park is near the train line because then we will have lots of interesting things to look at - namely all the trains that go by!

Check out the names on these signs at Sheffield!

Some amazing wood carvings at Campbell Town

This week has seen some super weather in Tasmania. We spent a day in Ross, which is in the centre, up the Midland Hwy and enjoyed the Wool Museum which was a tribute to the Wool Industry and particularly merino wool. It had great samples of super fine merino wool, 15 micron, and Dad greatly enjoyed signing the visitors book in the centre, agreeing in appreciation of this tribute to an industry that used to be the strength of our great country.

A minor history lesson - We did pass through Campbell Town again, where the paving bricks go up the street listing the name of every convict that came to Tasmania, there were 70,000 convicts that came to Tas, not the small number that I misquoted in my last post, sorry. There were 200,000 convicts transported to Australia overall.

From here we headed north west to St Helens on the coast and did some free camping at Dora Point. We parked in the bush close to the beach and the bay was beautiful clear water and lovely squeaky sand, the best beach we have seen so far. The kids swum for a few hours and had a great time - even though the water was cold - they don't seem to feel it.

Free camping is great but Tip #1, don't park under a tree, as the possums find it a perfect place to party - on the roof of our caravan - and then just jump back to the tree after they've thumped around for a while! And they are BIG possums too, not like those cute little ones we see down in Busselton!

The sunrises were magnificent over the ocean, the water was calm and still in the morning and the days were warm, which was perfect for being on the coast. Rocks have a red lichen tinge which is why the area was called Bay of Fires, I guess. We drove into St Columbia Falls, at 90m, the biggest in Tasmania I think. It was a nice walk in the rainforrest into the falls and an impressive view when we got there. On the way out we visited the Holy Cow Cafe, and watched the process of cheese being made, that was very interesting and, as Darren loves cheese, he enjoyed tasting the different cheeses, settling on a small block that was two years old - mmm, yummy. Apparently you don't keep it in the fridge, but have to eat it in three days or so, he had no trouble with that! The kids enjoyed the icecream that Papa bought for everyone!

Darren and I celebrated our 19th Anniversary this week, too, and conveniently, we got to go out to dinner because the grandparents were here to child mind (well planned wasn't it!) As I reflected on time gone by I recognized that time marches on, it keeps going regardless and I was challenged to make the most of every day, to live well, to live honestly and with integrity, to grow in character, to be content, to work in our strengths and develop our weaknesses, to consider every day is valuable. Ultimately we choose to work and serve a higher purpose, one that will follow into life after this life here has finished - reading in the last chapter of the book of Joshua this week, I noteced he stood up before the people and called to them - "Who will you serve, which of the idols before you do you want to give your life to? Well, whoever you choose, AS FOR ME AND MY HOUSEHOLD WE WILL SERVE THE LORD."

This did make me think, what/who do we choose to serve? More stuff, things we want, our career, ourself... there is so much more to life than these things and what a privilege it is to serve the Lord in all we do.

Towards the end of the week we headed back to Deloraine to a fantastic caravan park on the river bank. We took a drive to see the local farming areas and the Axemans Hall of fame, which was really interesting, showing how many world champion axemen come from this area. Also went to see the Spirit of Tasmania dock in the evening. Dad and Mum loved this as it really is an impressive vehicle and they offloaded five semi trailors and multiple trucks, as well as many cars, etc.

See next post for more photos
It has been a great week, and we look forward to making to most of next and last two weeks here in Tasmania.

Dad and Mum H in Tassie

The weekends seem to roll around so fast and we seem to cover so much ground during our days! This week we were very sad to leave the Wieske's, we have had a wonderful time together and we know it will be a highlight of our time in Tasmania. We headed off on Monday morning, after being served hot chocolates from the wonderful Wieske Cafe! We had to drop the van into the shop to get the hand break looked at and then headed to the Botanic Gardens. I enjoyed the Sub-Antarctic the best, it is kept at 9 degrees, a little chilly, and is modelled on the enironment of Macquarie Island south of Tasmania.

We visited the Hobart Aquatic Centre which was nice, although it was smaller than Arena Joondalup! As expected, Hobart is a small city and doesn't seem to need the large facilities we have in Perth. We were very excited to pick up Dad and Mum from the airport Monday evening and to have them with us for a few weeks to share in seeing the sights of Tasmania.

Tuesday the kids got to see Nanna and Papa for the first time in a few months and we had a great time checking out their motor home that we picked up for them to travel in. We drove up to Mt Wellington to enjoy the view from this 1270m high masterpiece of creation. It was a lovely day, blue skies and puffy clouds and made for a great view across the Derwent and down over Hobart.

On Wednesday we visited Port Arthur and found the learning of this part of history very interesting. We went on a cruise around the bay, viewing the Isle of the Dead, where all the dead were taken and buried, free settlers on the high ground and convicts on the low ground (reaffirming the high/low class of course). We cruised past Point Peur, where the boys were housed in the first successful separation of boys from the men, as convicts. Aged between 9 and 18 they lived, went to school, worked, learnt a trade and most importantly went to church, everyday, in the hopes of reforming their delinquent tendencies. What a tough life.

Back on the mainland we did a walking tour with a very informative, humourous and interesting guide. We saw where, between 1830 and 1877 some 12,000 convicts had come to serve their sentences. They established timber farming, ship building, crops and a granary, where the convicts pedalled a huge grinding machine to grind the wheat into flour. If they didn't behave they were dealt with mercilessly, flogging and isolation, and if they did behave they could learn a trade and rise up through the ranks to be servants for the free settlers with better conditions. Some had their sentences reduced, earnt freedom and became decent citizens of our early colonial life. The life of the Commandant and the Medical Officer were different, they enjoyed English cottage gardens, lovely furniture and 5 bedroom houses with servants etc. It was an interesting day, the weather was grey and overcast but warm and very still and we enjoyed our time learning and looking.

Thursday we shifted into Hobart and then visited Alpen rail and model rail set up modelled on a Swiss village, Jerome loved it and we all thought the mock thunderstorm over the mountains was well done, Sophia kept commenting, "It isn't real, is it Mummy?! It's not scary, is it!"

Friday we took a drive out to Hounville, some 40kms south of Hobart. This is the major apple growing region of the state and we figured Dad, being an apple fan, would enjoy visiting here! At the Apple Heritage Museum we found out there are 386 different varieties of apple grown here, all of which were displayed on their shelving - wow, how amazing and we enjoyed tasting apple jelly, apple jams and apple juice.

We visited the Wieske's on our way home and it was great to see them again, to share afternoon tea and dinner together and we are grateful for the friendship we have developed in such a short time. Sad to say goodbye again...

Today has been cool and we thought it nice to have a quiet morning and then take a drive out to Mt Field National Park - an hours drive - and walk to Russell Falls (20mins). I love the cool forrest with natures carpet - soft green moss - everywhere, the ferns and the natural water cascading over the rocks. I am continually in awe of what beauty we have around us to enjoy, if we can take the time. We hope you have had time to enjoy a sunset, a walk in a garden or along the beach or maybe been able to get out into the bush lately, to enjoy the peace, the serenity and the stillness.

Just as a painting has a painter and a building has a builder, makes us realize that this awesome creation we see everywhere around us must have a truly magnificent Creator.

Hobart

This week we have greatly enjoyed parking in the one spot (at the Wieske's) and then going out for day trips to see the sights of Hobart and the surrounding area. Monday was a rainy day and so we visited the Museum in town and found that we were once again enamoured with the information about the Antarctic, they had an ice map of Antarctic, a map that you could touch and it was actually ice, so that was really cool too! Cool, see, ha, ha! The information about the Convict settlement was also interesting history.

On Tuesday we visited Richmond a historic village where there is a bridge built by those early convicts back in the 1830's, I think. The town is quaint and there was a model of Old Hobart Town as it was in the early days. In the model we found Birch's House, built by the entreprneur Thomas Birch, a very prestigious man in those days (any relation to us Sue?) You can see our house in the picture!

On Wednesday we took the opportunity to walk around more local history spots in the centre of Hobart, around Constitution Docks (a bit like Freo), where IXL jam was founded by Henry Jones, whose shrewd business practice was not the most ethical, but whose motto was "I excel at everything I do" I guess this was true as at one time his jam producing empire was the biggest outside of England! We walked around to Battery Point a great lookout spot and then had fish and chips at the Dock, a favourite thing to do in Hobart, I hear.

On Thursday I enjoyed sharing at a Mother's meeting and was encouraged by the wonderful families that we have been meeting. There is a community of families here who are building and encouraging each other to grow strong in the Lord as they disciple and train their children. It was lovely to share in their hospitality and fellowship.

Friday saw another lovely sunny day, cool in the morning but warming up very nicely, as the locals have said, it has been a great summer this year. We were very blessed by the Wieske Cafe which had tea and scones on the menu for morning tea! We continue to be inundated with generous hospitality and warm fellowship which we are so grateful for. We took a drive to Snug Falls and, after walking the rocky, somewhat meandering trail into the falls we were pleasantly surprised by the oasis we found. It was worth the walk. We went on to BIRCH'S BAY down the road and found it so kind of Tassie to have a secluded bay with wonderful views all ready for us to inherit!

All in all, it has been a great week as we explored Hobart and the lovely south of Tasmania.

Visiting the Wieske's in Kingston

We arrived at Warren and Sarah Wieske's on Thursday afternoon and it was sooo good to see our friends. For those of you who don't know the Wieske's, Warren and Sarah moved to Tasmania last September and they are a wonderful family with six children, the youngest being 5 months old. When we arrived it was terrific to see all their children and our kids were VERY excited to have some friends to play with! Sarah had dinner all ready for us all, and we have continued to be inundated with their generous hospitality, wonderful home cooked food throughout the day and a guided tour today with a picnic in the bush by a creek, and forest walks included! Yes if you are thinking of coming to Tassie, this IS the place to stay! Thanks so much Warren and Sarah.

This morning was raining, but the sun came out and the weather was perfect for our picnic outing which everyone enjoyed sooo much, only a few children got wet in the creek! As you can see by the photos, there are lots of kids (and lots of great food and fellowship!) and we are so blessed to be having a wonderful time on such a beautiful day in this colourful and picturesque corner of Tasmania.

Yesterday saw us visit the Australian Antarctic Division just down the road in Kingston. It was very interesting to see what research and work is being done in the antarctic,how they weigh penguins, what is 1500m down under the sea and we got to dress up in three layers of clothes as if we were really freezing cold - Darren (and the kids) had lots of fun doing that! Especially heading out with the husky dogs, as you can see in the photo! And yes an Emporer penguin IS really as tall as Sophia, and fatter as well!

We also took a drive up Mt Wellington a zig zag, windy, steep road, as we should expect! 30 minutes out of Hobart and we are 1270m above sea level, that means a great view of Hobart and an impressive piece of land that we are standing on. The day was a little hazy but it was a remarkably warm still day and we were in awe of the view that could be seen from this masterpiece of creation. We enjoyed a picnic lunch on our way down Mt Wellington and then headed back to the Wieskes, which is actually where the kids really wanted to be all day! - playing with their friends.

Tasmania's southwest

Yesterday we drove 60km to the bottom tip of our great southland - to Cockle Creek. They say when you are in Cockle Creek you are closer to the Antarctic than you are to Cairns! The wind was so cold, it felt like the Antarctic too! !t was an isolated and somewhat desolate spot, although we did get a picture with a baby humpback whale! So much of Tasmania seems ruggedly beautiful and remotely wild. WA has dry red outback, Tasmania has rugged green mountainous wilderness. It is a land of contrasts that is for sure!

We travelled north 20km to Ida Bay and enjoyed our lunch at the Ida Bay Railway Station, the southern most railway in Australia! There is a little diesel train that takes a 7km trip into the bush and along some of the coastline. Although we didn't take the trip Jerome enjoyed the tour of the works shed and a chat with the maintenance man, as we had lunch in a little carriage just for us! You can see Jerome enjoying the controls there!

We continued on to the Thermal Springs a naturally occuring warm spring that runs side by side with the cold mountain spring. They have captured some of the mineral water into a pool and after going for a walk in the forest we had a swim in the pool. It wasn't like a bath, but it was a comfortable 28 degrees or so and enjoyable for a dip and some laps in the cool Tasmanian weather. Afterwards we enjoyed our afternoon tea in a shelter that housed a log fire, that was great.

Today we returned to Huon (great apples) and then travelled on to Cygnet - a huge 20km down the road! It is a small town and we've enjoyed a sunny day of 25, great for getting the washing done - yes some of those jobs follow us everywhere! We had our afternoon tea at Eggs and Bacon Bay (not sure why it has that name!) Darren kindly took the drink orders for all of us, the girls collected shells and Jerome and I enjoyed reading for a little while in the warm sun. Weather continues to be great, with a little rain forecast on the weekend. It is amazing to see the wood piles outside the houses as we travel, so much wood all ready for the oncoming winter, brrr.

We look forward to travelling to Warren and Sarah Wieske's tomorrow, it will be nice to see some familiar faces and to enjoy the company for friends for some time, as we stop with them and spend some time exploring Hobart.

This week we have enjoyed travelling down the Midlands highway to the south. We have stopped at many interesting and quaint towns that show individual parts of Tasmania's history. These include Woolmers estate which houses the life and times of the Archer family as passed down from Thomas I to Thomas VI who died and left it to trust, it is a National Heritage Estate and some of the furniture in the house dates back to the 1840's from England. The grounds has the oldest working wool shed and also the National Rose Garden, which is lovely.

We also trvelled through Campbell where the main street has a paving brick laid for each of the convicts that came out here. There name, age, crime, punishment and ship are inscribed on the bricks, so we walked along reading them and their sorry tales. There is a brick bridge there that was built by the convicts in the 1830's and it still stands today as is. There were some amazing tree carvings here too, symbols of the area carved out of the branches as you can see in the photo.

For those who might be following on a map, we stayed in Oakland and then went on to New Norfolk just northwest of Hobart. From here we visited Mt Field national park and saw Russell Falls (picture) - tried some new shutter speed changes with the camera to get some good photos! and Horseshoe falls, as Molly said, it looks like a horse shoe, that's why they called it horse shoe falls, oh really! Amongst intermitent rain we drove 16km up to Lake Dobson, (945m) this is all yesterday. It was really cold when we got there and we had lunch in a shelter all huddled around our little gas stove. When we started down in dense clouds and Darren commented it was so cold he wouldn't be surprised if it hailed, true to form, 10 minutes later there was some light hail. Gee it was cold, and it was hard to imagine Perth sweltering in the record breaking hot dry spell at the same time.

From there we drove out to Gordon Dam (60km into the western wilderness, miles and miles of hills, forests and windy roads - it was all beautiful), the dam with the largest catchment area in Australia and the wall stands 178m high. The brave and courageous half of the family -Darren, Jerome, Josie and Molly - walked across the massive wall, while those less brave - Grace, Sophia and I thought it too chilly and too scary, we took the photos and then sat in the car to keep warm! Even Darren said it really was soooo high from up there it made him a little nervous. see photos

This morning we woke and the temperature wa 4.4 outside, 8.1 inside the van, a little chilly, but the sun came out and the day warmed up fast making it lovely to drive through Hobart and further south through to Franklin. We will spend a few days looking about right down at Cockle Creek - they say when here you are closer to the Antarctic than you are Cairns, wow! and then head up to Kingston to spend some time with Warren and Sarah Wieske and their family. We can't wait to see some friends whom we know, after a month now, we are looking forward to familiar faces!

Cheers to all