Tasmanian cuisine
Rocky Cape Lighthouse.
A view along the coast of the Rocky Cape National Park
There is a cave, entrance to the left of the cliff face.It was an aboriginal shelter and there is a creation story associated with the area. The adults were away and the teenagers were left in charge of the younger children They got bored and went to play on the beach. The younger children drowned. When the adults returned, the teenagers were thrown out of the group. They were so ashamed about how badly they had acted that they wondered off and became Rocky Point, Table Point and The Nut.
We drove further along the coast to Penguin. The town used to have Fairy Penguins, the smallest of all the species of penguins, and hence the name although the penguins have moved on and nest in burrows either side of the town where it is quieter.
The town developed from the Victorian gold rush. Wood was needed for construction and there was a plentiful supply of good quality timber in the area. It got a big boost when William Philosopher Smith discovered tin and silver in the area.
The town also had a guerilla crochetter...several of the trees had pink scarves.
And another...
...and some were other colours...such as this white scarf with pink dots...
...but the theme was repeated.
It was all to raise awareness and funds for the McGrath Foundation. It was founded by Glen McGarth, the cricketer, after his wife died early of cancer. It raises funds for cre and research into breast cancer.
There is also a link to penguins and a reaon for this penguin wearing a pink T shirt. There was an oil spill at sea and the local penguins were covered on oil. They were rounded up and detergent was used to wash off the oil. It also of course washed away their natural oils and they got cold. The town asked for volunteers and the citizens knitted jumpers for the penguins to wear whilst they recuperated.
Down on the seafront, there was also a police box. I looked for a plaque to explain its significance but perhaps it was just Dr Who dropping in to see the penguins.
The penguin theme is repeated throughout te town, such as this bollard mae to look like a penguin...
...and the rubbish bins continue the penguin theme.
Our next stop was the Tasmanian Arboretum. It is full of trees with hunderds of specimens. But we were actually going there for a totally different purpose. There is a creek thar runs through the property and whilst not guareenteed, there ar several platypus in the rivers and lakes around which the arboretum is established. It was also a chance to see the black swans. It is the emblem of Western Australia but they occur throughout the country.
At first we only saw a dark shadow as one come to the surface to take a lungful of air before diving again in its serach for food. For a long while this is all we saw.
Then it stopped in a shallow part to preen. Its bill is to the left of the photo. Unfortunately, it chose a spot where my view was partilly obstructed by grass. By the time I oved to get a better photo, it had finished preening and was back hunting.
Another photo with its bill to the right of the photo.
And as we moved through the arboeretum, there were more trees, more lakes and more sightings of platypus. The males are territorial but there is enough space along the river and in the lakes for several platypus to share this area.
Other wildlife included a lot of birds, often to far away to see clearly or too fast. This is a native hen.
And then the tasting circuit began. It is promoted as the Cradle to Coast Tasting Circuit, running from Cradle Mountain and east along the coast. First stop was Spreyton Cider at Spreyton. There were different ciders, cloudy, clear,mild to strong with an 8.7% ABV. There were also other fruit flavours such as raspberry and strawberry plus non-alcoholic apple juice and ginger beer.
There was the Anvers Chocolate Factory tour and tasting. There is a museum telling the story of chocolate through the ages, a collection of chocolate moulds, the factory where they make the choclate and of course a tasting.
It is an eco-friendly milk producer. Cows produce a lot of methane as they digest grass to produce milk. This series of farms process the milk into several types of cheeses. But thy also do it with an eco-friendly aspect. It feeds its cows with asparagopsis, a type of seaweed that is grown commercially nearby. It significantly reduces the amount of methane that the cows produce, so while it is more costly, it is more eco-friendly and the diary produces a high quality, high value product.
It is a great place to visit as it has a diary, a large cafe, cheese tasting and a lot of colourful cows that are a pull for families.
They are scattered across the farm. I have worked on farms but didn't recognise these breeds.
And the theme is repeated...
They have stakes to hold them down for two reasons. The wind can be strong and they can be blown over. The other is for security as they are susceptible to cattle rustlers and a very tempting target for a certain section of the population and several have been kidnapped
The cow equivalent of the cavalry to guard the other cows.
A wine and cheese tasting opportunity. Cheese made on the farm and locally produced wines.
And another diary, specialising in ice cream...
Their hoarding to enourage visitors...
...and another farm growing raspberrys
...their cafe and tasting hall...
...some of the poly tunnels where they grow the raspberries.
And there are plenty of other opportunities such as truffles, mushrooms and wineries along the route so something for everyone.
And finally we reached Launceston. I had missed the monkeys on my first visit so we arrived just before closing time at the local city park.
...to view the monkeys...
...sitting about, chasing each other, grooming...
A fountain in the park...
...and a close up of the old letter box at the entrance to the park.
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