"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart..." - Helen Keller
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| (West Coast Wilderness Railway, Strahan) |
Route: Hobart - Queenstown - Strahan
Distance: 300 km
Hotel: Strahan Village Hotel, Strahan
Distance: 300 km
Hotel: Strahan Village Hotel, Strahan
We had breakfast of toast and eggs. After we checked out we drove on Highway A10 towards Strahan. It was the start of our Western Loop road trip. We passed through several National Parks, many lakes and dams. The temperature was about 3⁰ celcius. The sky was clear and sunny.
Just 5 km from Queenstown we passed the Horsetail Falls which is located in the small village of Gormanston. From the carpark, a boardwalk with a few steps winds its way uphill around the mountain, providing great views of the falls with Mt. Owen as its backdrop.
The drive into Queenstown was spectacularly scenic and a little stomach churning as we wind our way down the 99-bends of the Gormanston Hill. A short distance away from the Horsetail Falls we stopped to take a breather at a beautiful viewpoint with Queenstown Steel Road Sign.
Queenstown is the terminus of the West Coast Wilderness Railway, which travels southwards alongside the Queen River, and then along the northern slopes of the King River to the port of Strahan in Macquarie Harbour. Unfortunately we were unable to ride the train as it does not operate in winter and will only be operational in September. We drove through and snap a few pictures of the historical mining town.
As we were running low in gas, we drove around to look for petrol stations. There were a few but were already closed for the day. Our only choice was to drive to Strahan Airport, 4 km away to fill up our tank. The petrol pump was fully automated and unmanned.
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| (A beautiful day for a long-haul road trip) |
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| (Comfort stop in the wild) |
Just 5 km from Queenstown we passed the Horsetail Falls which is located in the small village of Gormanston. From the carpark, a boardwalk with a few steps winds its way uphill around the mountain, providing great views of the falls with Mt. Owen as its backdrop.
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| (A small village of Gormanston) |
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| (Strong wind on the mountainous winding road) |
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| (A boardwalk giving closer access to the falls) |
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| (A large seasonal waterfall on Moore Creek) |
The drive into Queenstown was spectacularly scenic and a little stomach churning as we wind our way down the 99-bends of the Gormanston Hill. A short distance away from the Horsetail Falls we stopped to take a breather at a beautiful viewpoint with Queenstown Steel Road Sign.
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| (The summit blazed in orange rock) |
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| (The signage on top of the mountain) |
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| (West Coast Wilderness Railway) |
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| (The summit resembles cratered moonscape) |
Queenstown is the terminus of the West Coast Wilderness Railway, which travels southwards alongside the Queen River, and then along the northern slopes of the King River to the port of Strahan in Macquarie Harbour. Unfortunately we were unable to ride the train as it does not operate in winter and will only be operational in September. We drove through and snap a few pictures of the historical mining town.
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| (The town centre and Railway Station) |
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| (A town with a brutal mining past) |
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| (A milestone at Zeehan Highway) |
We arrived at Strahan about 3:00 pm and checked in at the Strahan Village Motel. Our room was upgraded from a hill view standard room to a beautiful cottage over looking the Esplanade.
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| (Charming accommodation and delicious local dining) |
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| (Beautiful deco at the reception) |
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| (Upgraded to a cute cottage) |
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| (Spacious and cozy, our lodging for the night) |
Strahan sits on the northern end of Macquarie Harbour on Long Bay. The Macquarie Harbour is the terminus for the King River in the north and the Gordon River in the south. Entrance to the bay is through Hell's Gates, named for the shallow channel that made ship navigation difficult.
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| (Strahan Village Hotel in the background) |
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| (Spirit of the wild cruise on the Gordon River) |
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| (Another cruise ship at the Macquarie Harbour) |
After prayers we walked to a nearby restaurant but it will only be opened at 5:30 pm for dinner and early booking was necessary. We drove to Macquarie Harbour and had some photo shots of the Train Station and the famous train.
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| (A reconstruction of the Mount Lyell Mining Railway) |
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| (The railway officially opened in 1897) |
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| (Stretching 35 km between Queenstown and Strahan) |
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| (The end of the line at Regatta Point, Strahan) |
As we were running low in gas, we drove around to look for petrol stations. There were a few but were already closed for the day. Our only choice was to drive to Strahan Airport, 4 km away to fill up our tank. The petrol pump was fully automated and unmanned.
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| (The main airport for the West Coast of Tasmania) |
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| (Cashless payment terminal at the petrol pump) |
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| (A lone unmanned petrol pump at the airport) |
On the way back to town, we stopped at Molly's Takeaway restaurant and had dinner of Fish and Calamari with Chips and salad. We were out of luck, lobsters are out of season this time of the year.
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| (A small seafood restaurant in town) |
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| (Fish & Chips and squid rings) |
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