Tag Archives: Salamanca Market

A traveller – at the Salamanca Market set up by the Derwent River

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Since April I have been waiting for the weather to warm up so I can continue my walk to the source of the Derwent River more comfortably. Between then and now my posts have connected with the Derwent River by various degrees. This posting is no different. Months ago I walked past historic Salamanca in Hobart as I walked the edge of the Derwent River and last Saturday, I headed back again to the area for the renowned Salamanca Market.

The big find was an Englishman who has relocated to live in Tasmania and had set up a stall to sell his book.  A few years ago his Tasmanian wife lured him here for a holiday and when she flew back to England, he decided to return by hitching his way half way around the world.  After starting from Hobart by accepting a lift on a Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race yacht returning to Sydney, his trek took 6 months via the countries north of the Himalayas.  Apparently it only took 800 rides, through 19 countries! Out of the adventure and experiences Jamie Maslin wrote his story: ‘The Long Hitch Home’.

The Long Hitch Home Jamie Maslin book cover

In more recent times, Jamie has relocated to Hobart for permanent residence.

Past posts have indicated my awe and amazement about the achievements of people who take on, what seem to me to be, herculean tasks – These always excite me to make yet another step.  Inspiring others to make the first step in their own backyard is one of the goals of this ongoing blog.

From Parliament House via Salamanca towards the suburb of Battery Point

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Preceding Salamanca Place where the famed Salamanca Market occurs every Saturday throughout the year, Tasmania’s House of Parliament sits atop a green leafy Parliamentary Gardens on the other side of Morrison Street away from the Derwent River.  I walked past this on Stage 11 of my walk along the Derwent River, at 7.38am.

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I continued around Princes Wharf as close to the River as possible and joined Castray Esplanade. Within a couple of minutes the historic buildings of Salamanca Place were separated from me by the strip of Salamanca Gardens.  Most of these sandstone buildings were built early in the 19th century and therefore present a considerable part of the story of the early history of Hobart settlement.

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By 7.43, I had almost reached the southern end of Castray Esplanade, was passing the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, and could see the old buildings on Hunter Street away in the distance.

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A few minutes later I was abreast of the CSIRO Marine Laboratories, behind which I could see that Tasmania’s latest massive ice breaker ship was in port, presumably loading up before travelling to the Antarctic.  Before I reached that location I passed a very red piece of history; an old fashioned postal box.  The large scale of this ‘box’ made me stop. I marvelled about how much postal material must have been in circulation in the 19th century to warrant such a beast.

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At 7.50pm the tiny Princes Park was opposite.

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Near the end of the Laboratories I took a walking path to the left through a car park to the edge of the Derwent River. The photo below shows my view as I continued my walk toward Battery Point.

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