Salmon Ponds

Salmon Ponds a Heritage Hatchery and Gardens in the New Norfolk area is where we visited whilst staying in New Norfolk.  Intending to have lunch there but alas, it was booked out for in came a bus load of people who had of course already booked.  That day we had a very late lunch.

For those that wish to know more about Salmon Ponds this is their website.

There of course are fish in various sizes and in another post or two I'll show more of the ponds and gardens.

Below, a photo of the Restaurant from inside Salmon Ponds. 

View from the Caravan Park.

A little about New Norfolk.  The town is next to the Derwent River or River Derwent.  Population is about 5,600 people. Hops are grown in the area. There is a paper mill near by.

*About 163 of the pioneers who settled around the town were from the 554 folk resettled when the first Norfolk Island settlement was closed, most arriving between 1807 and 1808.  These Norfolk Islanders were mainly farming families, who were offered land grants in Tasmania as compensation for their relocation.
Many founding folk were "First Fleeters", transferred from Sydney to Norfolk Island when it was settled just a few weeks after Sydney.  Ten First Fleeters are buried in the Methodist Chapel at Lawitta, New Norfolk.
Notable is Betty King, nee Thackery, a first fleet convict girl who married in New Norfolk in 1810. The headstone on Betty's well-tended grave reads. "The first white women to set foot in Australia" from the First Fleet at Sydney Cove.* Wikipeadia
Of course many other people came to live, free settlers also settled in New Norfolk and surrounding areas.

The photos, the view from the Caravan Park in New Norfolk, the park is right next to the Derwent River.

New Norfolk, Tasmania.

Spent a few nights in Cambridge near the Hobart Airport where we visited some of my cousins which took longer than we thought, but how wonderful to have a good catch up.  Having no brothers or sisters some of these cousins are like brothers and sisters to me 😀😀
All this took place before Covid-19.

After Cambridge we went to New Norfolk spending over a week there.  I lived in New Norfolk for 4 years when my later father was a Policeman.  The town is where I started my schooling at St. Brigid's School, taught by Nuns, some of them were Irish. When I was 3 years old the nuns used to look after me whilst my parents worked. On their days off my parents looked after me, plus my father was on shift work.  There is more about me and my life at New Norfolk here.  Also there is a photo in HDR of the house I lived in.

The Police Station below photo, well that wasn't there but from memory there was a house that was the Police Station, then the below one was built, now I understand that a new one is going to be built.

Have never stayed in New Norfolk since leaving until this March, so that is many years.

The photo above is now a restaurant once was something to do with the English Church and below is the English Church.

There is a green park or square in New Norfolk opposite the above restaurant and English Church.

Found a new map other than google maps online.  We were in Cambridge and went to New Norfolk but followed the 'red' line, it wasn't a long way and we arrived about lunch time.

A view of Lake Dulverton, Oatlands.

All the photos are taken at Lake Dulverton in Oatlands and this was our view from the caravan and also when we sat outside. Some of the photos are zoomed in all the way without a tripod.

Amazing, the day we left Lake Dulverton Margaret Attwood the author of The Handmaid's Tale a TV Series, and of course other books, Margaret popped out of a car as we drove off.  Margaret had been in the Hobart area for a few days attending some convention for authors.

Coot and below two plovers.

The Black Swans

The Swans on Lake Dulverton in the town of Oatlands in the midlands of Tasmania.

Was born in Oatlands and moved to Hobart when 7 months old when my late dad joined the Police Force.

On the 1st of March we went from Launceston here in Tasmania my home State for a holiday travelling to some areas of the Island when we had never heard of Covid-19. During this time from the blog High Riser Andrew and his partner were travelling the Island too, we were always in different places at different times which was unfortunate because we never got that chance to meet.

Took our caravan and camped for the first night by Lake Dulverton arriving just after lunch, set everything up and sat on the seat provided and watched the Black Swans.

Amazing creatures to observe.

*Click on the images to see larger view.*

Having a squabble.

Sleeping.

Some younger ones.

These two were eyeing up each other.

Arriving home to Tasmania

After our few nights and days in Bendigo we headed to the Port of  Melbourne to catch the ferry, The Spirit of Tasmania home to the Island of Tasmania. The trip takes 1 hour 40 minutes approximately from Bendigo to the Port of Melbourne.
We had a good run through the traffic and over the Westgate Bridge arriving in ample time to get inline to go onboard when the time came.

The first photo is of Bass Strait. The second one being the building of  Station Pier, both photos taken a few years back so therefore not this trip.

So this is the end of our holiday in 2019. I presume I will follow with more photos of our Tasmanian trips before Covid-19.

Above, The Spirit of Tasmania, the cabin we had which has an ensuite and even though there are two extra beds the cabin is single occupation only.

Above is the Quarantine Station at Devonport, Tasmania where every vehicle under and through.  Caravans are checked by the men inside and out, boots and bonnets of vehicles also.
What are they looking for?
Guns, drugs, food, flowers, soil and so on, things that are not permitted into Tasmania.
The link to bio security Tasmania which is a good site to visit and to know exactly what is permitted and what is not permitted.

We had breakfast at Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm near Elizabeth Town and we passed this ground tank (watering hole or dam) along the way.  Below photo and above is a small pond at Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm. A link to the menu is here .

We drove past this pine plantation..it's about 100 klm from Devonport to home in Launceston, Tasmania

Bendigo Cathedral Victoria

Sacred Heart Cathedral (a Catholic Church) was built of Sandstone in the mid to late 1800's, after a rest the Cathedral was completed in recent times being one of the largest Cathedral's in Australia.

Didn't visit the Cathedral this visit (2019) as there was a funeral.  The photos were taken several visits ago.