Our Touring Past

From Launceston we took a day trip North, and every one should be able to recognise the mast head in the photo below as the one from the Beaconsfield mine disaster.
Next door to the mine is the Beaconsfield Mine and Heritage Centre, and it is well worth a look not only do they have a lot of information on the mine disaster and a mock up cage that the two miners were trapped in, but there is also alot of things from the regions past as well. With one of the main differences with this museum to others being that you are allowed to touch some things and others have activities that you can do.

Link to the Beaconsfield Mine and Heritage Centre
Still heading North we stopped at Beauty Point for some of the best fish and chips we have had in a long time. Then it was off to Seahorse World to discover how seahorses are bred for the domestic market.

Link to Seahorse World
Looking North towards Beaconsfield.

Our last day in Tassie we left Launceston and made our way to Devenport, the ferry back to the mainland didnt leave till 7.30 that night so with a bit of time to spare we decided to stay off the main highway and stop off at the small towns along the way for a look.
Traveling through Hadspen, Carric and Hagley we found more of what Tasmania is famous for, beautifully restoerd convict built homes. We then travelled to Westbury where we stopped at a bakery for morning tea supplies only to find Pearns Steam World about 100 metres down the road. So with an entry fee of $7.00 who could not resist a look and a chat to some of the older locals that now look after the collection.

Link to Pearns Steam World

The Pearn family agricultural contracting business operated for over 80 years in the Westbury district. In the 1950s, the Pearns recognised the passing of the steam era and began collecting engines, tractors, equipment and memorabilia.

Pearn's Steam World collection of over 200 major items receives high praise from worldwide visitors and is the best in the Southern hemisphere.

Since its establishment in the 1980s, the museum has been run by volunteers and family members dedicated to the preservation and restoration of the collection.

Shed No1
A very nice timber and steam driven boat.
Shed No 2
An original old workmans caravan on display.
With another stop at Deloraine we then headed up To Devenport for a last look around till
it was time to leave for the Ferry.
Well here we are in the que to board the ferry back to the mainland, with the cars, bikes and caravans etc lined up in ques waiting to be loaded. We were getting a bit tired of waiting as we were some of the last to be loaded, which worked out well in the end as we were about the third car off the Ferry the next morning in Melbourne .

Linda and I had a fantastic time while we where there, the locals are very friendly and even courtious on the roads. ( it is a bit of a shock to come back to Melbourne at peak hour.) Most of the big motorhome owner look down on you, but in general, at times it was hard to do things as people would always come around for a chat about the caravan and its history. If you are considering taking a car and caravan over on the Ferry you would need to way up the cost with how long you intend to stay in Tasmania for.