SOME FINAL SNIPPETS - STANLEY - PART 6 (PORT LATTA, THE COAST AND A FEW TOWN SNIPPETS) (5 - 11 FEBRUARY)

During our stay in Stanley the need for a re-supply arose, and whilst the town does boast a reasonable supermarket, 

almost within spitting distance of our caravan park,











we opted for the familiarity (and price advantages) of the nearest Woollies. This meant a quick trip east along the Bass Highway to nearby Wynyard.

which gave us the opportunity to make a brief stop-over at the Port Latta iron ore facility. This was probably not something which would have normally attracted our attention,

but having seen the sludge lake earlier at Savage River I was interested to see the 'reconstituting' facility. The stock pile of ore was pretty impressive,















as was the long loading wharf which we had been able to see from Stanley. The bulk carriers which haul ore from this site are typically large, which means that with their draft the loading point has to be positioned well off shore.









And just too remind all and sundry of the scale of this enterprise, this odd shaped monument


















includes a plaque showing the route and relative distance of the pipeline which runs between Savage River and Port Latta.

We did stop on another occasion to take in the views east along the northern coast in the Wynyard area,













where a twist of the focus brought one of the delightfully located small beach area villages into a hazy close-up (and I now cannot for the life of me remember the name of this one!)




I should comment at this stage that we did later pop into a few of the small coastal villages in this region of the State where we found that at this time of the year they were well populated by holiday makers. This came as no surprise. Many of the sheltered beaches were more than appealing.

But, for now, it's back to Stanley and just a couple of random snippets with which to complete our stay here, beginning with one of the most unusual 'caravans' we had ever come across. We had wandered down to check out the free campsite which was located just east of our 'formal' park.





This camp fares well in all the reviews, and as we soon saw, a great many had taken up the option of a few days here on the cheap. The front row, directly overlooking the beach and Sawyer Bay, was fully occupied.








And it was here that we came across this extraordinary vehicle, one which looked for all the world like a small houseboat on a caravan chassis. There was a very good reason for that,  because that's exactly what it was.





Here is the outboard motor to prove it. This 'boatahome' comes with the trailer included and can be used equally easily as a caravan or a house boat, and all this could be yours (or ours) for about $150,000. I must admit I was pretty taken by both the concept and this rig, but it was far too squeezy for a permanent life on the road. Mind you, the seed has been planted for later years (in your scribe's mind at least!)





And finally, for something completely different, a couple of floral tributes to this most charming of Tasmanian towns, where the spectacular New Zealand Xmas tree can be found everywhere, in private homes











and as part of the streetscape. These stunning trees were in full bloom, or approaching it, during the time we were here, and I for one was delighted.











Not to be outdone, a local red-flowering gum was also demanding attention, not only from passers by such as us,














but also from the monster Tasmanian bumble bees we had first come across in Dover, all those weeks ago.








And so, with this short salute to the beauty of nature, we say farewell to Stanley. This past week had been without a doubt one of the most enjoyable we had spent to date on the Apple Isle (apart from the wind!!).

Next on our visiting schedule was a town on my bucket list. For some reason which remains a complete mystery, I have always hankered to see Penguin. It was about to happen.