Whoopee! My walk from the mouth to the source of the Derwent River is complete, and the complete record of that walk has now been posted to this blog.

Undoubtedly information, ideas and events that relate to the Derwent River may attract my attention and leave me compelled to blog them. I expect to add very few new posts  but please, do not stop ‘following’ the blog just in case I find new aspects of the river from new angles and can show you more wonderful vistas which complement those previously posted.

STOP PRESS – I have been offered a ride along some TasNetworks tracks beside the Derwent upstream, and this trip will take place before Easter – more stories guaranteed.

Less exciting news: this blog will cease to exist in December 2017 despite the fact that I know it contains a wealth of useful information. The reason is simple. I cannot afford to continue it. When I started the blog I was happy to pay the tiny amount for an address that didn’t contain ‘wordpress’ within it but, after adding many hundreds if not thousands of photographs, I exceeded the 3GB limit and for the past two years have paid a larger amount to keep the blog in existence. The fee is due for renewal this December and I will not be paying it. On this basis I am assuming WordPress will prevent visibility and stop access.

Now what?

My next project is to create a small book using the material from the blog; online and in hard copy.  My goal is probably unrealistic. I aim to publish the book by the end of November this year.

But before I get involved on that serious business, I would like your feedback about the nature of the book.

• Who do you think will be the most frequent type of reader; would it be a bushwalker, a tourist, a local, a historian or some other type of person?
• What should be the style? A descriptive book, a how-to-do-it explanation for getting around the Greater Hobart Area,  a personalised story,  a humorous account, or should I take some other approach?  If so, what do you suggest?
• What should be the content? For example, should it be about the mechanics of such a walk,  or about the personal development associated with such a walk, or about the history and use of the River, or about the land use either side of the River, or what?  Are there particular stories or parts of the River that you loved which you believe must be included?
• Should the book contain photos? If so, should there be lots or a few?  What sort of photos do you think should be included?  Are you able to remember favourite photos that I simply ‘must’ use?
• Should the book contain maps and diagrams?
• What size do you prefer books to be?

Your ideas will help me as I compress and select from the 250,000 plus words and thousands of photographs.  With the sheer volume of information (and I have files of unwritten material as well) this book could take form in so many different ways.  At the moment I am torn between a few options so your thoughts will be useful to help me refine mine.

There are different ways you can offer your ideas.  You can add a comment directly onto this blog.  Alternatively you can email me at walkingthederwent@gmail.com.  If you view my blog on Twitter (named as walkingthederwent), Facebook  (named as Walking TheDerwent) or LinkedIn (named as Tasmanian Traveller) then comments or messages can be added on those sites.  I look forward to hearing your ideas.