Sue and I are now “Empty Nesters”, by which I mean for the first time in nearly twenty years we don’t have children to look after.  This last weekend was a conference for Sue in Launceston (north-central Tasmania) and I could go along as an Accompanying Person.

So whilst Sue was in the conference, I could go walking in the Tasmanian forests near Cradle Mountain, as shown here.

Tasmania for me is very like the Lake District in England – wet, fertile, lots of mountains and cool (by Australian standards).

I went walking up through forest to find this waterfall.  It was very like walking in The Lakes, except that on this day in early Autumn, I could do a two-hour walk and not meet another person.

The following day I went up to Beaconsfield, where there used to be a gold mine.  It closed a few years ago, shortly after there was a well-publicised mining accident when two miners were trapped underground and only rescued after a truly spectacular rescue effort.

There is now a mining museum there, well worth some time spent looking around.

They even had a well-restored traction engine.

I also spent some effort to get right up to the north coast of Tasmania, up to a point called “Low Head”.  There they have a restored lighthouse, and evidence that nerds occur even in Tasmania: a group of enthusiasts have restored the Victorian-era fog-horn from the lighthouse.  It is apparently the only one of these “precision instruments” still in working condition, anywhere in the world.  If you would like to hear the “famous Groan-Grunt” of this foghorn, a volunteer is there to set it going every Sunday at noon.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t wait ….