Not having done enough exercise lately ;-), and the weather forecast being pretty good (and work looming next week!), I went off to
South Cape Bay today. Quite an easy walk, but enjoyable, and the beach is attractive and interesting. The road was being graded today, and is certainly in better nick than previously.
The beach appears to have a lot more pebbles and exposed rock than the last time I was there. Don't know if the weather has been particularly rough, but some of the sand has been washed
away at least for now. Made for more interesting photos though. I went there a while back after a storm, and the whole bay was a seething mass of foam. The waves moved around under the foam. I got some photos, but they just don't convey the amazing sight that day. These photos are from today.
Blowhole Valley, which burnt some time ago, is looking better although not great yet. They've done a fair bit of work on the track, restoring some boardwalks, some stonework here and there, and some other work. In particular, the boardwalks are now above the waterline in a few places where previously they were submerged. Makes for a very easy walk. I noted that someone has cleaned up the beach, and there's a pile of fishing detritus where the steps go down to the beach.
In 2004, when the area was burnt, they used explosives to make holes to collect water as a safety precaution. These were very unsightly, and spread an "explosion" of black mud across the landscape. A couple of them caused the track to flood. No doubt they were useful at the time.
The minister assured us that it was necessary, and that the holes would refill themselves (?!). Anyway, he was wrong, the holes are still there. Accident-prone Ken was wrong about a few things in his time, and is no longer with us in an official capacity!
South East Cape is the most southerly point of mainland Tasmania, and should probably be recognised more clearly as Australia's most southern point. Trouble has been, it's virtually inaccessible. However, I have heard a rumour that some naughty person has cut a track through the infamous scrub. I'll investigate further!
Not having done enough exercise lately ;-), and the weather forecast being pretty good (and work looming next week!), I went off to South Cape Bay today. Quite an easy walk, but enjoyable, and the beach is attractive and interesting. The road was being graded today, and is certainly in better nick than previously. 
The beach appears to have a lot more pebbles and exposed rock than the last time I was there. Don't know if the weather has been particularly rough, but some of the sand has been washed 
away at least for now. Made for more interesting photos though. I went there a while back after a storm, and the whole bay was a seething mass of foam. The waves moved around under the foam. I got some photos, but they just don't convey the amazing sight that day. These photos are from today. 
Blowhole Valley, which burnt some time ago, is looking better although not great yet. They've done a fair bit of work on the track, restoring some boardwalks, some stonework here and there, and some other work. In particular, the boardwalks are now above the waterline in a few places where previously they were submerged. Makes for a very easy walk. I noted that someone has cleaned up the beach, and there's a pile of fishing detritus where the steps go down to the beach. 
In 2004, when the area was burnt, they used explosives to make holes to collect water as a safety precaution. These were very unsightly, and spread an "explosion" of black mud across the landscape. A couple of them caused the track to flood. No doubt they were useful at the time. The minister assured us that it was necessary, and that the holes would refill themselves (?!). Anyway, he was wrong, the holes are still there. Accident-prone Ken was wrong about a few things in his time, and is no longer with us in an official capacity! 
South East Cape is the most southerly point of mainland Tasmania, and should probably be recognised more clearly as Australia's most southern point. Trouble has been, it's virtually inaccessible. However, I have heard a rumour that some naughty person has cut a track through the infamous scrub. I'll investigate further!