Tag Archives: Maning Ave Reserve

From Sandy Bay to Lower Sandy Bay on Stage 11 of my walk along the Derwent River

After Maning Ave Reserve I continued walking along Sandy Bay Road and used every opportunity to glimpse the Derwent River down the driveways of large houses with expensive River frontage.

By 9.10am I reached the Red Chapel Reserve. Red Chapel Ave is one of Hobart’s well-known streets extending up the hill and connecting to other main streets but I had never known, until this walk, where the name came from. I wonder how many Hobartians know the source. Of course the source turned out to be so obvious once I knew and used my eyes. It was named after the red coloured chapel of the 20thcentury St Stephens Anglican church that was built on the River side of the Road next to the Reserve and opposite the uphill Avenue.  What can be said about the impoverishment of imagination? Refer to https://stainedglassaustralia.wordpress.com/2014/08/02/1914-st-stephens-anglican-church-lower-sandy-bay-tasmania/ for some glorious images. The photo below is courtesy ofhttp://www.anglicantas.org.au/parishes/?item=37

St Stephens Church

A minute or so further down the road and on the right was the highly esteemed Lipscombe Larder on the corner of … Lipscombe Ave.  Where else would it be?

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In addition to all its tasty delicatessen products and wines, this food paradise also sells exquisite cakes: refer to http://lipscombelarder.com.au/  for images.

At some stage during my walk in this suburb, I realised that no one was walking a mongrel dog. At the end of leads were expensive pedigreed dogs.  Certainly their owners seemed happy.

Before long, a set of steep stairs attracted my attention on the left. These were for public access to Nutgrove Beach. As I approached the Beach I was staggered by the size of an old pear tree on the dune edge, and loved the pigface plant which carpeted the area either side of the pathway. I was on the beach at 9.20am and turned right to walk southwards.

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Behind low sand dunes on my right, the roofs and second storeys of beach front houses were visible. At 9.23am, I passed public toilets almost hidden under a large pine tree, and by 9.30 I reached a corner of the beach with the Sandy Bay Sailing Club located up in the dunes.

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Moments later I turned the corner and was no longer able to look back at Wrest Point and Battery Point in the distance.

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I continued on a pathway over the shore and over the dunes some of which would be impassable at high tide without getting wet feet. Some of the rocks were unstable underfoot presenting the risk of a turned ankle or knee. Nutgrove Beach had been a simple delight, and before long I was on an easy, vegetated, and shaded walking track to Long Beach at Lower Sandy Bay. Then I arrived.

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Back out into the open by 9.35am, I could see public toilets nearby, and by looking across the Derwent River to the eastern shore, the yellow strips of Bellerive and Howrah Beaches (on which I walked in an early stage of my walk) were visible.

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I had been walking for over two hours so sat for a while in the gorgeous sun, watched the tiny waves rippling fluidly and regularly, stared at two fishing boats motoring out of the Derwent Harbour, listened to kids’ riotous laughter in a kids’ playground nearby, and then stood up and got going again at 9.50am.

I was delighted to discover Stephen Walker’s huge many part bronze sculpture, Tidal Pools, with its inbuilt water feature at Long Beach in Lower Sandy Bay.

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The remarkable 86 year old Tasmanian artist died only about 7 months ago leaving a great many large scale works around Tasmania and other parts of Australia, such as his Tank Stream Fountain (1981), near Circular Quay in Sydney. In the 1950s, Stephen Walker studied under the celebrated sculptor Englishman Henry Moore. Apparently Walker continued his bronze casting work well into his 70s using his foundry underneath the house.

Five minutes of walking the developed walkways of Long Beach brought me to a cul-de-sac with its carpark full of vehicles.  Further along that loop off Beach Road were bakeries, cafes, restaurants, etc.

Selection of landmarks along Sandy Bay Road

Once on Sandy Bay Road I turned left and continued walking southwards.When past the University of Tasmania grounds, over the road on my right was a Catholic co-educational secondary school operating in the Josephite tradition. This Mt Carmel College site includes an attractive 19th century sandstone building.

In a small park, a family of Sulphur Crested Cockatoos feasted on insects in the grass along with ducks and Silver Gulls.

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The day was very peaceful.

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At 8.40am I reached the entrance to Wrest Point Hotel (http://www.wrestpoint.com.au) which, in the 1970s, established the first legal casino in Australia.

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Apart from its poker machines and gambling rooms, this Hotel offers many bars and different restaurants. In addition, it runs a continuous program of concerts, guest artists and other entertainment events so that thousands of people pass through its doors weekly. With exploratory meandering I think it may be possible to walk through different parts of this Hotel and find a route close to the water’s edge. I didn’t feel confident that I would find my way around without finding myself in ‘no go’ areas. Instead I continued walking along Sandy Bay Road.

The business Network Gaming lives in what used to be a well-known and much loved pub, Travellers Rest:  one which I knew well in my student days.

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The Wrest Point Hotel land wraps around the old Travellers Rest hotel so, it wasn’t until I continued to walk along Sandy Bay Road that I discovered an original entrance to the Wrest Point property area.

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I reached the Derwent Water Beach Reserve at 8.50am.

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From there I could see two private jetties jutting out into the water.

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When I walked closer, it was clear that dozens of dinghies hung under protection waiting for their owners to come and row them out to yachts moored on the Derwent River.  In fact, as I watched, one fellow set off rowing.

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The time of day and the quality of the sunlight made this vista exceptionally beautiful; seagulls perched on the jetties, the water sparkled, a mild breeze dappled the surface of the River, happy dogs walked along attached to owners, and I was able to blot out the sound of noisy traffic streaming past behind and beside me. The water was crystal clear.

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By 9.05am I was reading the information panel at the Maning Ave Reserve. This Reserve seemed to mark the change from the suburb of Sandy Bay to the suburb of Lower Sandy Bay. I learnt Fred Maning arrived in 1824 and his family farmed in the area (however I understand he spent most of his life in New Zealand, and it is not clear why he is remembered with his name on this park and on streets etc in the Lower Sandy Bay area).  Information boards such as these help me to understand how Hobart developed.