Fri, 6th Feb, 2015 Gordon Dam carpark to Bethune Park, Meadowbank Lake

Set the alarm for 6.00am to get up early so we can watch Eddie at work but it was too cold so get up yet. Took a photo of the moon though.

Steve fed his friend while he had his cup of tea. Yes we have a cup of tea each morning – old grey nomads now!!

He would pick up each of the pieces in his beak all at once then fly off to stash them or eat them!!

The dam and lake look beautiful this morning.

We were just in time to watch Eddie do the 7.00am weather forecast down on the dam wall.

Eddie saw us and called out “Good morning Sharon and Stephen”. She is very good remembering people’s names. We went down the stairs, legs creaking in the early morning coolness!!

Eddie was all kitted up for her abseil. She had the camera strapped to her wrist. She was feeling very nervous but looking forward to it.

Another chap arrived to take some photos for the Aardvark Adventures (can’t remember his name now) and he said he had to drive through heavy mist to get here. You can see it hanging over the mountains.

Wayne got the antennas ready with Ken watching on. Ken is going to abseil down too.

With lots of instructions, Eddie climbs over the fence and hangs off the side. That bit was scary enough for me and she thought so too!!

When she was all set up they found they had a problem with one of the cameras that they needed for the abseil down so after much chat with Trent up at the tower above and the station (through her earpiece) they decided to read the weather with her hanging there.

She called out to me to come and hold her weather forecast paper as she didn’t want to let go of the pole. Steve got a couple of photos of my claim to fame.

Mum taped it on TV and Dad took a photo and emailed it to me so I included it here.

I was holding it tight and up for a while so by the time she was reading it my arms had started to wobble but she read it ok. It was great to be involved and see all the goings on behind the scene.

She certainly has a lovely face and smile and is so relaxed even when things were going wrong.

She was very pleased to get back over the rail for a while. She said it was nerve racking hanging there. Chatting with the others and one guy said the dam was low as they have been selling their power to the mainland as there is no carbon tax. Another chap is a painter for the power station and said there is a maintenance shutdown on at the moment. We saw two big generators being brought in and one was at the Chalet. We asked if they used the cable car normally and he said yes.

Back over again and with the camera connection fixed she got another run through on what she was to do. She was sounding very nervous, quite concerned about what happens with the rope she is feeding through from the bag under her. The Aardvark chap said he had the main rope and would feed her down slowly or she could call out if she wanted it faster. He reassured her he had control of the descent totally.

As they were about to go to air she realised there was too much sun on her so they got the other chaps watching to stand and make a screen.

Another chap held the weather this time (I didn’t hog it!!) and then she started her descent.

Down she went – you don’t touch the wall at all just slowly go down. She was feeding the rope with one hand and holding up the camera and talking live to the studio as she went down. She called out at one stage saying she wanted to go faster as it was taking a long time but she was hanging on to the rope to tight so she was slowing her descent. We yelled back, let go of the rope so he could drop her quicker. I took videos of her descent.

Cochie was giving her a hard time so there was quite a lot of banter going on too with the studio. At last she got to the bottom.

Wayne then realised she wouldn’t have enough time to climb up the 470 ladder stairs up to the top to do the next broadcast so he put the next weather forecast in a glove and then threw it over the side to the other chap at the bottom. He was from Tas Power who also abseils and had come to help unhook her etc at the bottom. Eddie couldn’t hear us and had started up the ladders. The glove had gone over the barricade but he climbed over and got it and then started up the stairs after her. He caught her then they kept climbing.

She got about two-thirds up when Trent yelled for her to stop and he would zoom in on her on the stairs.

Trent perched himself on the edge and another chap and Steve helped with the legs and cables.

Eddie did the next weather broadcast from the ladder stairs.

We were to bunch up and cheer Eddie as he panned over us, which we did enthusiastically!!

Eventually she made it to the top and we all cheered again. More photos, poor girl didn’t even get a chance to catch her breath.

We climbed back up the stairs to the top with Eddie and Wayne, chatting between breaths!! 

She has a wedding this weekend so will fly back to the mainland for it. They are planning 6 months on the road though she thinks it might blow out to 9 months. She can choose where she wants to go and what to do, which she says is great. They don’t have anything yet in their camper trailer as they have been staying in hotels etc but she said they will need to kit it out for the Nullarbor etc.

Headed back to the van for breakfast. More people were arriving.

Made another cuppa and wandered back to watch Ken’s descent. The painter chap was going down. His parents bought him the abseil for his 40^th birthday. She was regretting it now she had to walk up and down those stairs!!

Watched the packing up ordeal. This chap was in charge of the satellite etc and was having a mutter to me about the young ones not rolling up the cables properly so they unfurl easily. Not sure if he is part of their usual crew or just on loan from Tassie. Trent gets to drive the van.

As Eddie came pass I got a photo with her and Steve.

She had a heap of blueberries from the Huon Valley so gave them so us to share out.

The hut used to be the information centre but now Aardvark Abseiling is set up there. There is an old 3D model like the other one we saw in there and bit of information. Water from Lake Gordon flows through the trashracks down the intake shaft then through the power tunnel penstocks and to the turbines in the power station. After passing through the turbines the water flows into the draft tubes then through the tailrace tunnel and back to the Gordon River. Power from the alternators which are driven by the turbines is carried by the busbars up the busbar shaft to the switchyard and then to consumers via 220,000 volt transmission line.

Another info board about the dam.

Ken getting ready for his abseil. After he has done the 140m drop they are all going to go down the 50m one where you can touch the wall and do twirls etc.

He swung around more than Eddie did.

Isabel taking a video from the top of the dam wall.

He looks so tiny against the wall.

Nearly down. I couldn’t see him from the top of the tower when he got to the bottom.

Headed back to the van. Left some blueberries and our card for Ken and Isabel. They will be here a while longer doing the other drop so we just yelled goodbye to them on the dam wall.

Back on the road again up and down the hills. Long slow haul over Sawback Range which Boyd’s Lookout is (12% incline). The next one said 9%!!

Stopped at Maydena and parked the van next to an old steam hauler. Unhooked the van to go for a drive to Junee Cave. Phone reception here so got lots of texts from everyone who saw me on TV, even ones I hadn’t told had seen me so I mustn’t have looked too bad.

This is the same photo we tried photographing at the old tramway and trestle bridge near Geeveston.

Narrow forestry road up to the cave area. Then a walk through cleared forests then along the Junee River. Lovely and clear.

Even saw some trout.

Interesting info about the water. “After a dry spell the water in this river is clear or slight bluish-green. This tells you that the water is flowing from a limestone cave system. Most other surface streams in the southwest are stained brown with tannins from the peat soils. In limestone areas the tannins are deposited on the stream beds within the caves leaving the water clearer.”

Nice stroll by the river then up to the mouth of the cave.

Another info board near the cave. We can’t go into it and didn’t think to bring a torch. It is lovely and cool.

Back past the clear plantation with the new trees coming up in between the old stumps.

Looking across to the patchwork of other plantations.

Back to the car then further up the road and in the opposite direction to the caves we head up another forestry road for 15km up Maydena Range (in use but luckily it is Saturday and they are not working) to find the Big Tree and Bigger Tree. This is the area I took the photo of before of the patchwork of plantation trees. Passed a sign “Production forests proudly producing paper and timber.” Cleared area for the power lines coming up from Gordon Power Station.

At an intersection is a big board about the Styx State Forest. Home of the tallest hardwood trees on earth, more than 86m high and 5m wide and over 400 years old.

Across the Styx River.

Another info board.

Handicap friendly here with huge boardwalk which goes straight to the Big Tree.

We went the other way beside the old trees that are now horizontal.

Good place to be as they don’t get fires here very often.

Realised we are going the reverse way as we are at the “Bigger Tree” first. At 87 metres this swamp gum is one of the tallest trees on Earth. While taller trees continue to be discovered in the Styx State Forest, there is something about the Bigger Tree’s presence, sheer size and beauty that captivates the imagination.

I walked down so get a size relationship.

Then hurt my neck looking up.

They have made a great relaxing sitting area to sit back and view the tree.

The sheltered and fertile lower slopes of the Styx State Forest produce big trees. The original Big Tree, protected since 1957, has been surpassed by many trees in this forest. Steve found an old one and went for a long walk.

Check out the tree fern, determined to keep growing after falling over.

Further along the track we found the Big Tree. Poor thing is shrinking in its old age of 400 years.

More info on why they grow so tall.

Not sure the purpose of this pile of wood. Some sort of viewing devise.

The Big Tree. A long way up.

Steve likes these walks!!

The ravaged top of another big tree.

Stopped at the Styx River bridge for a cuppa. Marsh flies were making a pest of themselves but they are good to throw into the river for the trout.

Back to Maydena and hooked up the van. Certainly warming up in the sun now. Lovely clear sky. Headed back to Westerway along the Tyenna River, pass the little township of National Park (fancy saying “I live in National Park”). Lots of Platypus named accommodation which are right beside the river. Turned off towards to camp at Bethune Park. Saw a sign saying Lookout so Steve pulled up. It was a low lookout looking up at Mt Field East (1270m).

Info board all about Mt Field and Ellendale.

Quaint little town. Through grazing paddocks, up and down hills. As we were descending to our camp area this is the magnificent view, even though it is barren looking it was spectacular. Lots of open fields, hardly a tree in sight.

Across to the far hill it looks like an alien face mowed into the field.

Turned into a fenced paddock – narrow gateway to get through. It is called Bethune Park after the chap who donated the land.

There was a motorhome here and a toilet block. Down the road led to another paddock area that that was a bit muddy. We found a nice spot up top and set up camp.

Meadowbank Lake is part of the River Derwent as it winds its way to Hobart. There is another power station below the lake, part of the many on the river. Certainly a lovely view.

Great name for the bridge – Dunrobbin.

It is certainly warming up so changed into shorts and singlet and enjoyed the warmth.

Enjoyed a lovely afternoon and evening relaxing and enjoying this wonderful vista. We still had the door and windows open at 10pm and we could actually say we are hot (26 degrees).