Tag Archives: Kingston

Stage 2 on 4/9/2014 Mitchell’s Beach Email 4 of 14

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The roadway above Opossum Bay beach being narrow and without public footpaths meant it was important not to day dream and for me to be vigilant for the occasional car.  But Opossum Bay is a relaxed seaside village and even cars seem to move sedately.

I continued walking on the road from Opossum Bay beach until I reached a 50Km hour sign for cars, then I moved left off the road onto a well-trodden narrow track through a clutch of Casuarina trees and walked down to the next beach – Mitchell’s Beach. When I checked my watch, only 20 minutes had passed since I had left the bus. Yet already my head was filled with ideas and new information, and my heart was open with joy. The pleasure of walking in clean clear environments cannot be underestimated.

The winding track from the road finished on the sandstone rocks. After an easy few movements and a short distance, I walked onto the sand of Mitchell’s Beach. As I padded along the beach, a gentle breeze whispered across my face while the water lapped quietly onto the sandy shore. Silver gulls wandered around. Opened mussel and oyster shells strewn along the beach, were blanching in the sunlight. I marvelled at the various seaweeds thrown up at high tide, at the decaying ribbons of sea grass and at the fish eggs collapsed like bizarre multi-shaped condoms. The air was rich with the sweet and salty smell of dying seaplants. The water a soft greeny grey. Blissful.

When I come across a few bright orange starfish on the edge of the tide, I cartwheeled them into the dry sand at the upper edges of the beach. I was simply doing my tiny bit to reduce the infestation of these seastars (http://www.abc.net.au/science/slab/starfish/) as devastating invaders of our local marine environment.

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From Mitchell’s Beach I looked directly across the Derwent River and could see the suburbs of Kingston and Taroona with the Alum Cliffs below Bonnet Hill between them. Strikingly, Taroona’s Shot Tower stood tall.  Stunning.

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A pair of footprints impressed in the sand let me know that someone had walked the beach earlier.

Mitchell’s Beach was edged with three to four metre high dunes with tussocky grass on top, which were gradually crumbling into the beach. Demarcations between dirt and sand strata were clearly visible. Towards the northern end of the beach, small seas of water smoothed grey stones provided a separation layer between the beach and the dunes.

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A lone Dominican gull with his pure white tail, pale grey legs and small yellow bill flew off leaving me in charge of his beach.

I reached the end of Mitchell’s beach 40 minutes or so after setting off from the Opossum Bay shop. Again a rocky headland stopped me continuing but I couldn’t see a defined track up the hill onto the land at the top.  Clearly people had found a way judging from a mishmash of bits of tracks.  I chose the least steep section and was surprised when after my first steps up I slid back down. The previous day’s rain had kept the ground lush and damp, and it was clear that the soil included slippery clay. By a more careful choice of foot placements, I eventually reached the top.

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22 Aug 2014 South Arm beach and the walking continues – Posting 7 of 8

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Around 11.30 am, I made myself comfortable on a rock on the South Arm beach, ate some pre-packed lunch and enjoyed the glorious qualities of the day and the location. The view across the broad Derwent towards Blackmans Bay, Kingston, and Mount Wellington with a scribble of snow on its summit was sensational. South Arm beach stretched as a thinning arc and seemed impossibly long and pure.

The photo below is the viewpoint directly in front of me as I ate my lunch.  Glorious Mount Wellington on the western side of the Derwent River.  Closer to the shore, a platform bobbed with the comings and goings of Pied Cormorants while they searched for their fish dinners.

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Meanwhile my feet hurt to walk on. I felt crippled. But I had two hours before the bus returned so, as with any days spent travelling overseas, time was not to be wasted simply sitting around.

It wasn’t part of the plan for my first day walking the Derwent, however I decided to walk (shuffle if I must) the length of the South Arm beach, then take to the road and continue on towards Opossum Bay to find a bus stop.

It took me 45 minutes to plod along the long South Arm beach. Apart from a few locals the beach was deserted, except for the Silver Gulls who entertained me with their happy feet.   George Miller – forget those penguins! Here were normal ordinary seagulls performing a manoeuvre that left me astonished. As the short cold waves spread up the sandy beach, a seagull would stand knee deep waiting for the water to recede. When the water thinned, the gull would stamp both feet alternately on the wet sand at a super speed. Obviously this practice dislodged some wonderful edibles from the wet sand. With speed and agility, the gulls grabbed their lunch with a peck of their beaks. Then the speedy stomping began all over again.  Very funny.  Very clever.

From the end of the beach it was clear there was no track around the headland and later, as I walked towards Opossum Bay, I saw a private house ‘owning’ the space – refer to the photo below.

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I used the gravel bicycle and walking track next to the main road which extended from the beach end of South Arm beach to Opossum Bay Store, with a bus stop opposite. This is where I finished my walk. 

During my walk from South Arm to Opossum Bay I looked back at the long stretch of South Arm Beach. Fort Hill is above the township to the upper right.  The photo below gives some idea of the beauty of the place, and I hope it inspires others to take the walk.

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This last leg took about 45 minutes. On route to the store, I passed two tourist information stands, both of which referred to this roadway being part of a convict trail, something which a team of local residents have researched (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-22/a-trail-between-south-arm-and-opossum-bay-tells-tales-of-tasman/5171434). The information which I found most interesting was that approximately 70,000 people came to Hobart on the prison and other ships between 1804 and 1853. I reflected that, of course, they all had to pass by Cape Direction, Cape Deliverance, Johns Point and the beaches on which I had been walking. It’s impossible to imagine how foreign this land of ours would have looked. And to think I started the day with trepidation!

Celebrity spotting: Brian Ritchie, once of Violent Femmes and now of MONA fame, filling up his car with fuel at the Opossum Bay store. Well I think it was him.

If you follow my walk and are in need, the public toilets are located 100 metres further along from the Opossum Bay Shop toward Opossum Bay beach.

Outside the Opossum Bay store are tables and benches, so I took the opportunity to finish my lunch. Sitting nibbling and watching people come and go occupied me until it was time to catch the bus.