We thought we would go back to Hadspen, where we spent most of last winter, but they wanted $35 per night, as opposed to $27 when we were there last. When Marilyn queried the increase, the cheeky girl on the phone said it was supply and demand – there were a couple of events on in Launceston and everyone wanted space. Fair enough! We can reduce the ‘demand’ by going somewhere else so we have booked in to the Apex Caravan Park in Deloraine. $150 per week is much more reasonable and it is a much nicer park, right on the banks of the river with the town a short walk away.
This picture shows where we sit at Cocktail Hour, contemplating the inexorable movement of the river. We bought the little folding bicycle in Kmart for $40 and it’s great for zooming around the park.While we are here, we will be able to sort out the clothes we will need for the cruise, which leaves in under two weeks. There is not much in the caravan which will be suitable for the voyage.
I had forgotten that there is a railway line running along the boundary of the park, about 20m from where we sleep. Last night, there were three trains went through and another one mid-morning today. Marilyn heard nothing last night and she believes she is a light sleeper. No doubt she would wake if she heard a baby crying, or one of the girls in the boarding house creeping around after lights-out, but a train has no significance in her world view so she can afford to ignore it.
I suppose it’s good to hear trains coming through, even at 2 o’clock in the morning. For too many years, Tasmania’s railway has been a joke. The last private operator, Pacific National pulled out last year, leaving the State Government to pick up the pieces and deal with the huge debt. The infrastructure is run-down and the rolling stock inadequate and the only way it can pick itself up is to carry as much freight as possible (no passengers have been carried since the early-1970s). I don’t know what was on the trains last night but this morning’s noisy intruder had 4 engines and about 50 containers. That will keep 25 trucks off the road, at least.Thinking about passenger trains reminds me of a school trip I did when I first came to Tasmania in 1975. There might have been one regular passenger service at the time, linking Hobart with Launceston (the Tasman Limited), but for our excursion, we had to hire a train to take us to Mt Field National Park. It was a hot and dry day and, when the carriages were loaded, the guard cam around and locked us in. I remember, most of us were affected by hay-fever from the dusty carriages and the hop fields at Bushy Park. We only got relief when we let the spray from Russell Falls wash our faces.
This afternoon, I intend to explore an area nearby which is owned by the Rotary Club. I’ve been a member of the club for ten tears and have never walked in what we call the Wild Wood (shades of Pooh Bear!). The club has had a long tradition of looking after the river bank and we have built two footbridges and developed picnic areas for the community. The Wild Wood is, apparently, used by horse riders so it must be quite a large area. Somehow, the club maintains it but I’ve never been to a working bee. Maybe, they’re held in working hours and I’ve never been available.
As I type this, I can hear another train coming. Four engines again but with a much longer line of containers. Railways are alive and well in Tasmania, and that can only be a good thing.
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