Exploring King Island 2 - Lighthouses, Cheese and Raptors

 

We had high hopes for the day. A morning shower dampened us a bit as we motored ashore in the dinghy, but resulted in a rainbow over the bay. Then we saw the flat tire on the rental car.

This is not quite what David had in mind when he wrote about repairs in exotic places, but he changed the tire with minimal grumbling and we were off. We stopped in Currie to get another spare and headed north.

King Island was once quite forested, but milling, clearing and fires have rendered it mostly grassy, rolling hills now that stretch from sea to sea, good for farming and pastureland. Only a few main roads on the island are paved, the rest are gravel or hard packed dirt. Wallabies jump out of the bush at you frequently. Wild North American turkeys comb the fields for breakfast and peafowl and ring-necked pheasants roam quite freely. We probably saw more raptors (kestrels, harriers and falcons) than any other type of bird, except maybe pied magpies and ravens. An abundance of roadkill provides food for scavengers all up and down the food chain.

We headed first to Penny's Lagoon in the Martha Lavinia Nature Reserve. This is place noted for observing a wide array of native birds, but we saw very few . Perhaps we were too late in the day with our flat tire delay. We did the circuit walk and did see two large tiger snakes in the bush which gave me an adrenaline rush. We think it was coitus interruptus because they scurried off, each in their own direction, embarrassed by our intrusion. We beach combed for a short while on sprawling Lavinia Beach known primarily for its surfing waves. The rollers were huge, but other than two surf casters, the beach was totally deserted … save massive hordes of huge biting flies.

At the northernmost point of the island sits the Cape Wickham Lighthouse. Now, this is a traditional lighthouse, unmanned, but still in operation. It's a beauty. Completed in 1861 and constructed of local granite, it is the tallest lighthouse in Australia and the southern hemisphere. In case you're wondering, the Deal Island Lighthouse is the “highest” light, not the tallest.

The views of Cape Wickham, with huge rollers crashing on the reefs and rocks below, was stupendous and definitely sobering. Several stone memorials nearby marked the graves of people drowned at sea as well as lighthouse keepers and their families who had died here.

We'd sampled King Island cheese while in Tassie and there was no question that we'd stop at their Fromagerie and tasting room along the route. We were allowed to taste nearly a dozen different cheeses. We had little rating sheets to help us make our buying selection at the end. We liked them all though, so we bought a bit of everything. We'll be good on cheeses in the larder for quite some time to come.

Beyond the cheeses, we'd heard wonderful things about King Island beef, but unfortunately David didn't have the chance to try any. We're always on the lookout for unique items at each place we visit. The kelp industry and art are, of course, unique, but we found more. King Island Cloud Juice is the local gourmet bottled rain water available in lots of upscale places worldwide. King Island honey is considered quite a delicacy. At the Cultural Center in Currie, we found mutton bird oil for sale for softening leather as well as feral cat skins which I guess can be fashioned into hats, fur collars, etc. (Here, Tabby, Tabby.)

We reconnoitered Currie and then Grassy for a potential dinner-out alternative. Unfortunately, our budget and the menu prices were not in sync. We passed and headed back to Cups. That old frugal versus cheap thing won out. As we congratulated each other over our savings by eating aboard Cups, thoughts of how we could spend that money on another car rental down the road came to mind.

Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

International Gumdrop Day

It might be easy to just buy gumdrops in your favorite flavor and pop them in your mouth, but where's the celebration in that? They're not hard to make yourself. Give it a try!

Exploring King Island - Currie, Kelp and Cows

 

We arrived at Grassy Harbour Port late afternoon. After recovering from the excitement of the dolphin ballet, we were thrilled to arrive at King Island. We'd heard so much about it from folks who had visited that we hardly believed we were really here.

Grassy Harbour Port is located behind a man-made breakwater and we were fortunate to be able to pick up a local's mooring for use while we were here. Another Dutch-flagged cruising yacht was already at anchor in the little harbor and a small ship was at the dock, loading prime King Island cattle aboard. The breakwater, we later learned, was made of tailings and rubble from an open pit scheelite mine that was active until 1990 and now closed. The breakwater is also the best vantage point for watching a colony of fairy penguins return to their nests at dusk.

We got a lift to the little village of Grassy about 5 km away from the harbor. It's pleasant, but it's not much...a very small grocery, a couple of limited-hour restaurants, the Kelp Craft store (yes, kelp craft...more on that later), a laundromat. You know it's a small town when you see an ad on the bulletin board that offers “Number Cake Tins (0-9) for rent...$10 for 48 hours” and another offer to sell you “sticks for your stove – just call my mum for more info” with no name or phone number.

The “big smoke” on King Island is Currie on the west side of the island, some 30 km away. We were way under budget for expenses in January and thought we'd splurge on a car rental here ($$) for a couple of days in order to see the island. Part of the plan, right? Sail to places and then get off the boat and see what's there.

Back to the Kelp Craft, for a minute. When we envisioned “kelp craft”, or anything to do with kelp actually, we thought of the huge wads of thick, heavy brown weed that we pulled up on the chain and anchor in Patagonia. We had to use a machete to hack it off and it took forever. What “craft” could you fashion from these sea weeds? Well, Betty and Bevin have figured it out and the results are pretty outstanding. We were so impressed with their artwork that we bought a kelp seahorse. I mean when your art medium is kelp, you've got to be congratulated for your imaginative efforts, don't you think?

We walked back to Grassy Harbour along a gravel road that led past the scheelite mine and then to Sandblow Point. We saw wallabies, a rather large blue-tongued lizard crossing the road and lots of birds. We were especially warned about the venomous snakes here … tigers and copperheads … it's mating season and they're all a bit cranky. We didn't see any though (and I was just as glad). The walk back along the white sand beach was invigorating with the sand blowing (hmmm...Sandblow Point) and the waves licking our toes.

We picked up the car the next morning and decided to explore Currie first since we had to complete our rental paperwork there. It's not as small as Grassy, but it's not very big. Let's put it this way... there are no traffic lights on King Island and the only traffic circle (rotary) is in Currie. We saw the lighthouse (not impressive in our humble opinions), the museum was closed; visited the harbour (very impressive, especially the entrance with huge rollers impeding the entry...wow!) and the cemetery (lots of room for expansion). We picked up stuff for a picnic lunch at the Foodworks supermarket and then headed south.

First stop, the kelp processing factory. Now here's an interesting product to market (beyond the kelp craft previously described). How could we have ever known that durvillaea potatorum aka bull kelp could be of such importance to the biopolymer industry, but it is. We learned all about it, then found a beach where a fellow was harvesting kelp. Pretty interesting stuff. Toyota is even thinking of making a kelp car. Really!

We drove to Stokes Point at the southern tip of the island on a winding, narrow, gravel road. Not quite like four-wheeling, but close. The views were great; the lighthouse, not so much.

We noted lots of cows en route grazing on kelp … they must like the salt. There are lots and lots of cows on King Island. Not as many cows as wallabies though which they estimate to be 3X the human population of ~1700.

There were lots of walks to take, in fact we found a whole brochure describing King Island walks. We attempted to walk all of them, though gave up on a few when the flies drove us nearly mad. Now we know why Aussies wear those “swaggie hats” with the corks dangling off the brims.

The Calcified Forest was actually a surprise. Tree roots calcified over time and when the root died and rotted out, only hollow shells remained … a small forest of them.

The Cataraqui Memorial Walk was a sad reminder of the reason King Island's lighthouses were originally constructed. The entire coastline of King Island is dotted with shipwrecks, in fact more shipwrecks than any other part of Australia. There's a Shipwreck Trail to follow with memorials near the sites of the most disastrous ones. The Cataraqui which went down in 1845, is still the worst civil maritime disaster in Australia's history with a loss of 400 lives. A memorial marks the site of the mass grave.

We ended the day with a trip over to Naracoopa on the island's east coast and a look at Sea Elephant Bay. In the 1800's, elephant seals inhabited this island in great numbers, but after a “lawless frenzy” of sealing following the “discovery” of the island, they were hunted to local extinction. No more seals, but the name remains, a haunting legacy.

We were home just before dark, scampering down the rocks to recoup the dinghy which was moored a ways offshore to account for the sizable tides here (~2m /6'). We have the car another day and we plan to head north tomorrow. Want to join us?

Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

Ash Wednesday

The beginning of the Lenten Season for Christians; a time of penance and penitence. No more candy until Easter?

Get a Different Name Day

Don't like your given name? Today's the day to take care of it. Give yourself a name you like and use it all day. See if it grows on you.

Top Things to See and Do in Tasmania - A Circumnavigation

As we sailed into the south end of the Murray Channel and into Deal Island's East Cove, we completed our circumnavigation of Tasmania. It took a year, almost to the day, but hey, we're slow sailors. It gave us cause to sit back one evening, while sipping our congratulatory cups of Tasmanian wine, and reflect on the highlights of our time in and around this very special island. We readily admit we missed a lot...like most of the interior (no car) and all the north coast (no time). We would have loved to linger in the Furneaux Island Group and explore Flinders Island (bad weather). Though we try, we just can't do it all. These are our picks of the top things to see and do in Tasmania.  

Strahan

Our first port of call along Tassie's wild west coast the entry through the infamous Hell's Gate into Macquarie Harbour. The tiny town of Strahan was picturesque and a calm respite from the west coast's churning waters. We sailed up the Gordon River, explored the convict ruins at Sarah Island and traipsed around the bush at Kelly's Basin. It was spectacular. You can reach Strahan by car and take tours of the harbor and the river.

Port Davey

Approaching Breaksea Island, knowing we needed to skirt behind it to find the calm waters of the Bathurst Channel took a leap of faith. Rollers crashed and the craggy shore looked uninviting and ominous. But the chart and hundreds of mariners before us assured us there was peace behind those ragged spires...and there was. We hiked to tops of hills and mountains for glorious views and took the dinghy up the Melaleuca River to areas originally inhabited by Aborigines and rarely seen or visited by modern man. Part of Southwest Wilderness National Park, this area is only accessible by boat, on foot or by small plane. It's unbelievably and wonderfully remote.

Bruny Island

A world unto itself, the island offers history, spectacular vistas, beaches and diverse flora and fauna including rare, endangered birds and white wallabies. Reach the island via a tour, your own boat or the car/passenger ferry at Kettering.

Cygnet

This was our favorite little port on the east coast. It's friendly, tiny and a bit Bohemian with a cafe and boutique-lined main street. Drive there or sail there. It's worth the trip.

Hobart Town

An historic, must-see seaport with so much to do and explore. See our Top Things to See and Do in Hobart for specifics.

Port Arthur

Re-live history here while meandering through the remains of this substantial, well-preserved convict site. Take a tour, drive there or sail there.

Maria Island

Another of Tasmania's national parks and historic convict sites. View remnants of the convict colony and the past settlement at Darlington or hike for miles enjoying the natural beauty of the Painted Cliffs, sharing the experience with kangaroos, wombats, wallabies and hundreds of birds. Access via passenger ferry from Triabunna or your own boat, of course.

Deal Island

Magic in the middle of the Bass Strait. Climb the steep hill to the small complex of historic lightkeeper's buildings, visit the tiny museum, hike the path to the lighthouse and climb its spiral stairs to the top viewing platform for unsurpassed views of the Strait. Cape Barren geese, wallabies, butterflies and birds galore keep you company. Part of the Kent Group National Park and accessible only by boat.

People

Get to know the locals. They're warm, friendly and knowledgeable. Thanks to Ian & Wendy, Craig, Marcia & John, Tony & Mary Anne, Reg, Anne & Phil, Gerry, Jack & Jude, Jim & Anne, Bob the octogenarian kayaker, Jackie, Mary & David and Tom, Maree & Floyd. If we've missed some of the many people who showed us kindness and friendship, we humbly apologize. As always, it is the people who enhance our lives and give us a better appreciation of the places we visit.

Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

National Lox and Bagel Day

Bagels are not as easy to come by in Australia as they are in the US. We can find them, but it's not like Einsteins or Brueggers or a good deli in New York City. Revel in bagelry today. Schmear on the cream cheese. My mouth is watering!

National Read in the Bathtub Day

Hmmm...IF I had a bathtub, I'd consider this.