A visit to Dip Falls in northwest Tasmania isn’t complete without venturing a further kilometre up the road to experience The Big Tree. At the end of a short walk down a well defined track
surrounded by eucalypt forest and towering manferns
was most certainly a big tree.
The Browntop stringybark, formally known as Eucalyptus obliqua, is not especially tall at 62 metres, considering the species can reach heights of 90 metres. However, the circumference at the base is an impressive and unusually large 16 metres.
There used to be a boardwalk around the base for a close up inspection, I don’t know when or why it was removed.
The tree is estimated to be around 400 years old and it now has large holes and hollow cavities in it’s trunk.
Once it becomes unsafe it will, sadly, be cut down and laid to rest among fallen friends.
After many years exposed to the Tasmanian elements, the timber edging along our blackberry patch was starting to crumble. We had erected a temporary protective net that we have been meaning to upgrade for the same number of years.
Last winter, we purchased a couple of garden tunnels and finally got around to it. The new edging was laid with space to allow for the depth of the new covers
followed by plastic to discourage weeds and grass growth.
We filled in with soil
and a hefty layer of mulch.
Job done!
Or not. Our measurements hadn’t allowed for the 100mm skirt around the base of the covers. Back to the drawing board. We moved the edging another 200mm
and repeated the filling process. A new frame was added to support the training wires and the first cover fit like a glove.
With both tunnels in place
the canes were fixed to the wires, ready for some warmer weather.
We had a bumper crop this year, a few kilos of berries still being harvested at the end of April.
There are a few ways to experience the Tarkine Wilderness while staying at Corinna and the Old Telegraph Hill walk is one of them. The beginning of the 1.5 kilometre walk is easy going along a boardwalk through typical Tasmanian rainforest. Towering trees shelter luscious lichens and tannin stained streams.
Fifty metres along, the walkway ends and the trail becomes a little less obvious.
The old cable line reassured us we were on the right track.
Someone has thoughtfully fashioned a stile of sorts to help negotiate the huge body of a fallen hero.
We continued to climb, surrounded by ancient myrtles and leatherwoods
playing host to myriad fungi and lichen.
With feet slipping at all angles along the twisted track
we came across a series of dangling cables and a lone telegraph pole.
The step ladder and aerial confirmed our suspicion that this was our destination.
We had read that there was a chance of getting a signal at this point, although it was hit and miss. With some minor acrobatics we were rewarded.
We had a poke around and found some remnants of long abandoned equipment
before retracing our steps and following the cable downhill.
Toward the end of the boardwalk section, we noticed evidence of burrowing freshwater crayfish. They live in tunnel systems in muddy banks and seepages, rarely venturing out and they construct ‘chimneys’ made from balls of mud at the entrance to their burrows.
We have been to the town of Stanley on many occasions, it is one of the ‘go to’ places to take visitors. The signpost on the highway to Dip Falls, 27km inland, has always intrigued me but time has been our limiting factor in the past. We decided to stay overnight on our latest trip which gave us the opportunity for a detour and picnic lunch. The peaceful drive through picturesque farmland was on a mostly sealed road with the last few kilometres unsealed but well maintained. We chose to view the falls from below first, the initial impression on our descent held promise of something spectacular.
The stairs are steep but easily traversed (with a rest or two on the ascent).
The roar of the tumbling water and further glimpses through the foliage spurred us on.
The wonder that awaited us was breathtaking.
In the absence of a very wide angle lens, I resorted to photographing sections of the falls as the two tiers dropped thirty metres over distinctive dolerite columns.
The tranquility downstream belied the tempest of the falls mere metres away.
At the top of the falls, the serene waters were idyllically unaware of their impending adventure.
Even from the lookout, the extent of the vista demanded serial photographs.
Dip River was once a working forest and during the 1920s, the small community of three houses endured isolation and hardship to manage the sawmill. Not far from the top of the falls, remnants of an old boiler that provided steam to power the sawmill, lies as a reminder of Tasmania’s timber heritage.
A leisurely way to experience the Tarkine Wilderness is to spend a few hours on the Pieman River aboard the heritage vessel, MV Arcadia II.
The 17 metre boat was built of Huon Pine in 1939 as a luxury pleasure craft based in Hobart. She was requisitioned to serve as a supply ship in New Guinea during the Second World War. Life became more peaceful as a scallop fishing boat on the east coast of Tasmania and then as a cruise boat on Macquarie Harbour and the Gordon River in 1961.
The Arcadia II has been cruising the Pieman River since 1970 and is the only Huon Pine river cruiser still operating anywhere in the world. A refurbishment in 2006 returned her to original pristine condition. I was hoping we had no need for the lifeboat.
We departed from Corinna at 10am on a moody, overcast morning.
Huon Pines dipped their pendulous foliage in the tannin hued water
as we rounded a bend, leaving Corinna behind .
The 434 metre peak of Mount Donaldson, part of the Norfolk Range, loomed in the distance
as we passed the confluence of the Savage River, ending its 71.7km journey.
A little further downstream, the Donaldson River also flows into the Pieman after a 54km course from its source.
We were hopeful for a sighting of the ever elusive platypus and, keeping our eyes peeled, we weren’t disappointed.
We would have missed the sea eagles nest if it hadn’t been pointed out by the skipper.
Enjoying the tranquility, we were served hot chocolate, cake and biscuits – what could be better?
As the skies cleared and the forest vegetation changed, we soon arrived at our destination.
Pieman Heads, where the Pieman River meets the Indian Ocean, marks the southern extremity of the Arthur-Pieman Conservation Area.
Breathing in the freshest air on Earth, we walked a few hundred metres from the boat and perched amongst the driftwood to savour our tasty packed lunch.
Strolling back an hour or so later, we came across an interesting structure. The Huon Pine timbers were recovered from the river in 2005 after spending forty years buried in silt and sand at the heads. They were part of the original Corinna barge, built in 1878, that transported prospectors, surveyors, livestock and general goods across the river using a cable and hand winch. From 1945, the barge plied up and down the river assisted by a power boat tied alongside. It’s life came to an end when, in 1964, it was washed away from its moorings in a flood and lost.
We returned to our more reliable form of transport
with nothing to do but relax and enjoy the ride.
The mysterious stairway along the river, not far downstream from Corinna, leads to Lovers Falls.
There is a shorter cruise on a smaller craft, (Sweetwater Cruise) that ties up at the stairs to enable a walk to the waterfall. The only other way to reach them is by kayak.
Arriving back at Corinna at 2.30pm, we had time for a short walk before bevvies and a delicious dinner at the hotel.
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