I love country pubs, well most of them at least. Quaint, colourful, creatively decorated, and invariably occupied by locals who are always prepared to share a yarn or provide advice to a pair of thirsty travellers. With a few exceptions, that is, the classic being the McKinlay Hotel (of Crocodile Dundee fame) we visited some years ago. We have never forgotten our encounter with the most ignorant and arrogant publican in the country. I have heard since he has finally moved on and things have improved dramatically....we shall see in due course.
But back to the present. The more astute amongst you may have noted that in my last and probably overly extensive missive about Geeveston, there was not one mention or photograph of the local pub. There is a very good reason for that....there isn't one anywhere in the town.
What an incredible thing this is, I thought. A town full of timber fellers (think about it!), timber millers and wood pulp factory workers and nowhere to replace the fluid lost during a hard day's labour. What was going on?
The answer is surprisingly simple, and serves to demonstrate the sway the founding Geeves family held. They were staunch Congregationalists, and as such firmly believed in a life which embraced temperance. The establishment of the town of Geeveston specifically excluded any public houses within its boundaries, a situation which continues to this day.
Ah, but that is not to say those wishing to slake a well earned thirst could not do so with a minimum of fuss.
Port Huon, but a few kilometres from Geeveston, had now such restrictions, and the Kermandie Hotel, which now dominates one side of the highway through this area, does the job admirably.
The pub looks out over the small boat marina
and part of the working area of Port Huon on this wide and picturesque section of the Huon River.
The dates during which we were in Geeveston were of some significance to all of us. In Liz's and my case they encompassed our birthdays....for Vicki and Andy they included the date of their wedding anniversary. What more excuse could be needed for a celebration?
It was off to the pub for all of us where we found that on arrival we had the large and well decorated dining room (the 'trees' are actually paintings on the windows)
and bar area almost to ourselves. Things did pick up later,
but we managed to enjoy quite exclusive service for the majority of our visit. And the food? Excellent. This was a very good evening out.
As does the Geeveston Bowls Club, which I passed en route to checking out the RSL, but I am unsure if one must trundle a bowl down the rink to qualify for an ale or two at this venue.
I must say that in the early morning light of the day of my recce here the RSL clubrooms did not look wonderfully inspiring, but I cannot comment on the interior as we just did not have the time to breast the bar.
Here, in addition to raising a glass, itinerants can drop anchor in the second of the town's fee camps.
And, like the area of our choice, the sites here are well grassed. This camp comes with a small rotunda
perched on the banks of a narrow stream which flows through this part of town. There can be no doubt that Geeveston certainly does put its claim to be 'RV friendly' into practice, and it is beginning to pay real dividends with tourist numbers steadily increasing.
All this is to be found just south of the CBD, and here too one cannot avoid reminders of the town's history.
This beautiful old wooden church, now a Community Church, graces the Huon Highway opposite the bowls club, and just north of this, in an open space on the edge of the highway,
a huge log and two more pine statues demanded a closer look.
Appropriately close to the sawn bottom of this massive Swamp Gum log, stands the carved tribute to John Geeves, one of the real movers and shakers in respect of the development of the town.
Born in England, he followed his father William to Tasmania in 1842 and, unsurprisingly, settled with the rest of the clan in Lightwood Bottom. Whilst all the Geeves family were enterprising, John was a tad ahead of the rest. After initially farming in the area, he later became involved in saw milling, shop keeping and growing fruit.
The steam driven 'Speedwell Mill' he built in 1875 was one of the first saw mills in the entire district and could cut 40,000 super feet of timber per week, an astonishing amount for the time. John's enterprise and energy soon found him more than well off. In addition to his mill, shops and orchards, he owned and operated a ketch with his brother, and was the proud owner of fine sailing boat. He served on many local boards and committees, and was described as a man of ability, firmness of character, strict integrity and deep perception. And, unusually for his time, he was particularly kind to, and well liked by, the children of the town.
He build Cambridge House, which now stands opposite his statue. At the time it was the social centre of the ever expanding town, and is now an up-market Geeveston B&B
where more of the colourful Tassie rhododendrons were a garden feature.
Another important aspect in the development of the Geeveston area, and the enterprise of the Geeves family, is commemorated and remembered by the other Bernie Tarr statue in this spot. The Apple Picker acknowledges the planting of the area's first fruit orchard by William Geeves in 1851.
In complete contrast to the quiet grandeur of Cambridge House, this old brown wooden apple shed opposite, a building so typical of many throughout the entire Huon Valley, provided a real counterpoint......the infrastructure of enterprise and the evidence of its rewards, both within spitting distance of each other.
I think it now high time to move on from Geeveston's history, but before we also move on from the town itself, a few snippets of interest (for me at least) beginning with the most improbable of sites, the town recycling depot. This has almost become a tourist destination in itself, and I have to say that as we drove in I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
This is 'street art' at its best, on the buildings
the fences
and even on a few old car bodies which have become improbable works of art. Dare I say no further comment is necessary.
At the opposite end of town, whilst not quite as artistic, but almost as arresting, the red and white chequerboard decor draws equally inescapable attention to the presence of the Geeveston One Stop, a cafe and take-away with a distinct difference
It was only a few hundred metres from the entrance to our camp site, and together with the nearby roadhouse, provided a very handy service for those visitors who feel the galley is a place to be avoided.
We had already noticed that Turkish food is not uncommon in Tasmanian fast food outlets. Gozleme, a Turkish flat bread, formed into pockets and filled with any of a variety of goodies before being cooked on a hot plate, is particularly popular. The One Stop offers these and many other similarly ethnic based selections, as well as the expected take-away standards of burgers, fish and chips and so on.
But as I walked in I found that this is a fast food outlet with a difference (apart from the exterior paint job). Standing in pride of place on the front counter was this striking silver coffee maker, brought with them by the owners from their native Turkey.
And I ask you, how often could you sit down to a cafe meal on red velvet formal chairs, furniture which would have looked more at home in Cambridge House.
And finally, before we move on, let me share a little more of the charm of the river, houses and gardens we found here. After our platypus experience, Liz was a woman on a mission. This time, however, our return visit to Kermandie River was less productive,
but we did enjoy the walk back to camp, which took us across this small bridge to School Road.
where the colours of spring were on full display in the front hedges,
As well as my street rambles, I did take the time for a quick drive along a few of the back roads out of Geeveston, where I found that this whole area was dotted with lovely country homes of which this is but one example.
The dates during which we were in Geeveston were of some significance to all of us. In Liz's and my case they encompassed our birthdays....for Vicki and Andy they included the date of their wedding anniversary. What more excuse could be needed for a celebration?
It was off to the pub for all of us where we found that on arrival we had the large and well decorated dining room (the 'trees' are actually paintings on the windows)
and bar area almost to ourselves. Things did pick up later,
but we managed to enjoy quite exclusive service for the majority of our visit. And the food? Excellent. This was a very good evening out.
The absence of a pub in Geeveston does not mean that visitors and locals cannot buy a drink. The local RSL has its own bar and welcomes visitors.
As does the Geeveston Bowls Club, which I passed en route to checking out the RSL, but I am unsure if one must trundle a bowl down the rink to qualify for an ale or two at this venue.
I must say that in the early morning light of the day of my recce here the RSL clubrooms did not look wonderfully inspiring, but I cannot comment on the interior as we just did not have the time to breast the bar.
Here, in addition to raising a glass, itinerants can drop anchor in the second of the town's fee camps.
And, like the area of our choice, the sites here are well grassed. This camp comes with a small rotunda
perched on the banks of a narrow stream which flows through this part of town. There can be no doubt that Geeveston certainly does put its claim to be 'RV friendly' into practice, and it is beginning to pay real dividends with tourist numbers steadily increasing.
All this is to be found just south of the CBD, and here too one cannot avoid reminders of the town's history.
This beautiful old wooden church, now a Community Church, graces the Huon Highway opposite the bowls club, and just north of this, in an open space on the edge of the highway,
a huge log and two more pine statues demanded a closer look.
Appropriately close to the sawn bottom of this massive Swamp Gum log, stands the carved tribute to John Geeves, one of the real movers and shakers in respect of the development of the town.
Born in England, he followed his father William to Tasmania in 1842 and, unsurprisingly, settled with the rest of the clan in Lightwood Bottom. Whilst all the Geeves family were enterprising, John was a tad ahead of the rest. After initially farming in the area, he later became involved in saw milling, shop keeping and growing fruit.
The steam driven 'Speedwell Mill' he built in 1875 was one of the first saw mills in the entire district and could cut 40,000 super feet of timber per week, an astonishing amount for the time. John's enterprise and energy soon found him more than well off. In addition to his mill, shops and orchards, he owned and operated a ketch with his brother, and was the proud owner of fine sailing boat. He served on many local boards and committees, and was described as a man of ability, firmness of character, strict integrity and deep perception. And, unusually for his time, he was particularly kind to, and well liked by, the children of the town.
He build Cambridge House, which now stands opposite his statue. At the time it was the social centre of the ever expanding town, and is now an up-market Geeveston B&B
where more of the colourful Tassie rhododendrons were a garden feature.
Another important aspect in the development of the Geeveston area, and the enterprise of the Geeves family, is commemorated and remembered by the other Bernie Tarr statue in this spot. The Apple Picker acknowledges the planting of the area's first fruit orchard by William Geeves in 1851.
In complete contrast to the quiet grandeur of Cambridge House, this old brown wooden apple shed opposite, a building so typical of many throughout the entire Huon Valley, provided a real counterpoint......the infrastructure of enterprise and the evidence of its rewards, both within spitting distance of each other.
I think it now high time to move on from Geeveston's history, but before we also move on from the town itself, a few snippets of interest (for me at least) beginning with the most improbable of sites, the town recycling depot. This has almost become a tourist destination in itself, and I have to say that as we drove in I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
This is 'street art' at its best, on the buildings
the fences
and even on a few old car bodies which have become improbable works of art. Dare I say no further comment is necessary.
At the opposite end of town, whilst not quite as artistic, but almost as arresting, the red and white chequerboard decor draws equally inescapable attention to the presence of the Geeveston One Stop, a cafe and take-away with a distinct difference
It was only a few hundred metres from the entrance to our camp site, and together with the nearby roadhouse, provided a very handy service for those visitors who feel the galley is a place to be avoided.
We had already noticed that Turkish food is not uncommon in Tasmanian fast food outlets. Gozleme, a Turkish flat bread, formed into pockets and filled with any of a variety of goodies before being cooked on a hot plate, is particularly popular. The One Stop offers these and many other similarly ethnic based selections, as well as the expected take-away standards of burgers, fish and chips and so on.
But as I walked in I found that this is a fast food outlet with a difference (apart from the exterior paint job). Standing in pride of place on the front counter was this striking silver coffee maker, brought with them by the owners from their native Turkey.
And I ask you, how often could you sit down to a cafe meal on red velvet formal chairs, furniture which would have looked more at home in Cambridge House.
And finally, before we move on, let me share a little more of the charm of the river, houses and gardens we found here. After our platypus experience, Liz was a woman on a mission. This time, however, our return visit to Kermandie River was less productive,
but we did enjoy the walk back to camp, which took us across this small bridge to School Road.
where the colours of spring were on full display in the front hedges,
flowering trees
and one of my all time favourites, this drooping wisteria.
And unsurprisingly, at the end of School Road we did find the Geeveston Primary school.
As well as my street rambles, I did take the time for a quick drive along a few of the back roads out of Geeveston, where I found that this whole area was dotted with lovely country homes of which this is but one example.
And just look at the setting in which I found it!
And on this note, dear friends, we shall take our leave of Geeveston. I can only hope that you now see why it held so much appeal for us, and that I have been able to demonstrate just what a positive part local determination and enterprise has played in the fluctuating economic and social fortunes of this delightful little southern Tasmanian town, from its inception to the present day.
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