Animals and Lookout

Hi again.  Sunday morning we left LONGFORD and headed west towards DELORAINE, and then on to a small town called MOLE CREEK.  Sounds elegant, doesn’t it?  Our reason for heading to Mole Creek was to visit the nearby TROWUNNA WILDLIFE PARK which had been highly recommended to us, as had the nearby DEVILS GULLET LOOKOUT.  We had also been told Mole Creek Caravan Park was a lovely place to stay while visiting these attractions.

On the way to Mole Creek we passed through some quaint little towns with names like WESTBURY, DELORAINE, and CHUDLEIGH.  Mole Creek Camp Ground was on the banks of a small stream which we were told was good for trout fishing, so guess what Cameron did while we set up camp.  Then it was off to visit Trowunna Wild Life Park.   It is a privately run park which specialises in rehabilitating injured and orphaned  wildlife, and also specialises in breeding the Tasmanian Devil which is rapidly becoming a threatened species.

They encourage hands on experiences, and for the first time we were able to not only see a live Wombat, but also get to nurse it.  Up until now, the only Wombats we had seen were lying on the side of the road with their feet in the air, being picked over by crows.  Cameron was in absolute raptures to be able to hold a real live Wombat after seeing so many dead ones on the side of the road.

We also got to stroke a young Tasmanian Devil, and watch as our guide fed several juveniles.  It was easy to understand how they got their European name of Tasmanian Devil, when you saw the way they snapped and snarled while they were feeding.

We also saw several different species of Quolls, and another highlight to see up close, the regal Wedge Tailed Eagles.  Wandering further around in the bush which forms part of the park, we came across several Gray Kangaroos, lying in the cool shade of the Gum Trees. 

We sneaked up trying to get as close as possible for photographs, trying hard not to alarm them before they ran away, only to discover that as we got close, they came bounding over to investigate us, shoving their noses into our cameras, and then just carrying on their everyday business as though we weren’t there.  We spent a good hour socialising with them, including getting photos of Cameron lying down beside the biggest buck we could see, who was quite happy to enjoy Cameron’s company while he had his afternoon siesta.  Once again Cameron started to run out of big words trying to explain his emotions after experiencing these encounters.

Back at camp, Cameron immediately had his line in the water of the creek running in front of our tent.  The fact that other campers told him they had caught trout from the very spot he was fishing, and he could see trout rising near his line, kept him entertained until after dark.  After tea, we lit a camp fire and sat around for the evening recounting our day’s experiences.

Monday morning after school work was finished, we went off to visit Devils Gullet, a lookout high up in the ranges they call the Great Western Tiers.  They form part of the Central Highlands of Tasmania which includes Cradle Mountain and Lake St Clair National Park.  The whole Central Highlands of Tasmania is made up of Dolomite which has existed for over 200 million years and is gradually being worn away by the repeated action of the weather.  They are of a similar geographical structure as Ben Lomond with its terrifying Jacobs Ladder access road.

The road in was a 14 km climb up a fairly rough corrugated metal road,  but the effort of getting there was worth the view from the top.  From the car park we walked about 500mtrs further up the escarpment, when the track suddenly ended at a platform lookout built RIGHT on the edge of the escarpment.  Step out onto the platform and you are looking STRAIGHTDOWN FOR 220 MTRS to the rocks below. Absolutely spine tingling.  Even thinking about it now while typing this, my feet are starting to tingle.  Brilliant views to the southwest out over the central plateau, with Cradle mountain on the skyline about 35 km away, but looking straight down really gives you the sh#$%^&ts.

From there we travelled on another 7 or 8km to Lake Mackenzie, and man-made lake high on the plateau.  Seems so out of place to have a lake away up on a plateau.  However as we were to find out, not so unusual for Tasmania.

Tuesday morning it was a scrambled pack up in a howling gale, to beat the rain that was getting very close, and then off back to DELORAINE, were we turned south towards GREAT LAKE in the Central Highlands.  We had no firm destination in mind, but hoped to be able to free camp somewhere in the area, and maybe get in some serious fishing for Cameron.  There are several lakes in the  Central Highlands and it is the Mecca of trout fishing for Tasmania.  Not only both rainbow and brown trout, but also salmon.  Unfortunately it was not to be.....