in the morning, karyn, teresa and i decided to go for a wander through the grindelwald swiss shopping village which was located next to the tamar valley resort where we were staying.

the shopping village has local arts & crafts, souvenirs, a chocolate shop, an ice creamery, a bakery, a newsagency and a general store.

grindelwald is a swiss village inspired town set on over 150 acres of landscaped gardens.

after the morning tea break, we headed into the city to visit cataract gorge – otherwise known as the wilderness in the city.

teresa and i decided to go on the chair lift. at 308 metres, the chairlift, built in 1972, crossing the gorge is the longest single span chairlift in the world.

on the first leg of the chairlift (going up) this was the view to our left >

and the view to our right >

on the way back we spotted karyn down below.

the chair lift ride allows you to fully appreciate the beauty of the area.

there is a 20 minute stroll that you can take which is the first basin loop around cataract gorge. you head towards the suspension bridge. the alexandra suspension bridge spans the south esk river as it enters the gorge.

stunning views all round. on one side is the gorge.

and on the other side is the first basin.

after crossing the bridge, you can ascend to a higher point. this is nosebleed territory.

that was a truly spectacular stroll. cataract gorge did not disappoint.

lunch was in the city next to the launceston city park.

amusing graffiti …

it seems we can’t get enough of windmills …

we drove to the the ritchies mill complex. within the complex is the stillwater cafe, restaurant and wine bar and the mill providore and gallery. we spent a long time in the providore looking at the various arts and crafts made by the locals. the gallery was upstairs.

this is the tamar river from the upstairs gallery >

and this is the view on the grounds of the ritchies mill complex >

when we got back to the tamar valley resort (for a breather before dinner) we went up to the resort’s tamar horn look out.

wow! great views of the tamar valley region and the tamar river.

another great day in tasmania. there’s only thing one thing i can say about this place and i’ll let the photo say it for me :)

“it is not down in any map; true places never are.” ~ herman melville

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