Strahan is a small town on the west coast of Tasmania on the shores of Macquarie Harbour. It is a popular tourist destination these days due to the stunning scenery of mountains, rivers and rainforest. I’ve visited there several times, most recently nearly five years ago, and it is one of my favourite places in Tasmania. Strahan is one of Tasmania’s most isolated towns as it is several hours drive from both Launceston and Hobart.
The area has an interesting history which I may write about in another post. I have provided a couple of links at the end of this one.
Early morning view of Strahan taken from our hotel in the Strahan Village.
Strahan TasmaniaHamers Hotel in the main street of Strahan.
The place to book a cruise on the Gordon River or steam train trip to Queenstown.
Gordon River, Tasmania
In the early years of the colony the British government ordered the worst behaved convicts to be housed on Sarah Island a small settlement in Macquarie Harbour. If you take a cruise on the Gordon River you have the opportunity to step ashore and imagine what kind of place it was to live. My visits to the area have nearly all been in autumn or winter and believe me it gets cold and wet down there.
The ruins of the Sarah Island Penal Colony can still be seen here.
Strahan is the terminus of the West Coast Wilderness Railway. The railway was originally built to bring tin from the mines around Queenstown to the port at Strahan.
The station at Regatta Point, the Strahan terminus.
Locomotive on the West Coast Wilderness Railway near Strahan
Born in England in 1957 my family came to Australia in 1966. I grew up in Adelaide, South Australia, where I met and married my husband David. We came together over a mutual love of trains. Both of us worked for the railways for many years, his job was with Australian National Railways, while I spent 12 years working for the STA, later TransAdelaide the Adelaide city transit system. After leaving that job I worked in hospitality until 2008.
We moved to Tasmania in 2002 to live in the beautiful Huon Valley. David passed away in 2015 and I'm here on my own now but I have Cindy the dog and Polly the cat to keep me company.
I currently co-write two Wordpress blogswith my sister Naomi. Our doll blog "Dolls, Dolls, Dolls", and a "Our Other Blog" which is about everything else but with a focus on photographs and places in Tasmania.
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4 thoughts on “A Photo A Week Challenge: Small Towns”
Your blog is taking me to places I never thought I would see. I thank you for the wonderful photos and history lesson.
I have a friend from Tasssie (as he calls it), and he talks about how beautiful it is. Your pictures certainly support his boast. Lovely. I hope to get there soon! Thanks for joining the challenge!
Your blog is taking me to places I never thought I would see. I thank you for the wonderful photos and history lesson.
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Thank you. I like to share photos and stories of places that I love.
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I have a friend from Tasssie (as he calls it), and he talks about how beautiful it is. Your pictures certainly support his boast. Lovely. I hope to get there soon! Thanks for joining the challenge!
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Yes most of us say Tassie but I think it is an Australian thing to give familar names to places.
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