Thursday, July 15, 2010
Great Aussie Adventure - Day 1
Today(Saturday, May 22, 2010) was the start of my Great Aussie Adventure/lighthouse trip. I began by flying from Sydney to Launceston, Tasmania. I did not believe the pilot when he said it was 4°C (39°F) in Launceston. I was sure I misheard and he really said 24 (75°F), but once I stepped off the plane I knew he was telling the truth!! So I got into my little Hyundai Getz and headed towards Low Head (AKA Georgetown), an hour north of Launceston. Georgetown claims to be Australia’s oldest town. Here I found Low Heads Lighthouse, She Oaks Lighthouse and The Middle Channel Lighthouse (AKA Navigational Lead Light.) These three lighthouses make up the Tamar River lights. Very good first day!!
Low Head Lighthouse originally was a light station established in 1805. It is Australia’s oldest continuously used pilot station. In 1827, it was decided to built a lighthouse and in 1833, it was converted to a light station. This is Australia’s third and Tasmania’s second lighthouse. It was originally called the Georgetown Station. Today it flashes three times in 30 seconds. It is 43 meters (141 feet) above sea level and is 19 meters (62 feet) tall. It can be seen for 23 nautical miles (22 miles or 35 K’s). This lighthouse was necessary as there were 12 shipwrecks in the Tamar River from 1808 to 1908. In the early 1800’s, when a ship was sighted at dusk, a fire was lit and kept burning during the night to keep the ship in touch with the port. Low Heat Lighthouse was built of local rubble with a coat of stucco to make it durable. The crown was built of freestone from Launceston. The keepers’ quarters were 4 rooms attached to the base of the tower (which is the only case of the quarters being attached in any Tasmanian lighthouses.) The lantern room was built of timber in Launceston. Colonial Architect John Lee Archer was the designer. Originally, there was a head light keeper and two convict assistants who were locked in their quarters at night. (The convicts, not the head keeper!!) In 1833 the original convict-built stone tower was demolished and it was replaced with the present double brick structure. In 1835, a revolving shutter was installed and was rotated byweight-driven clockwork mechanism. And in 1916, it was updated with a revolving lens and an incandescent kerosene mantle lantern. The broad red band was painted in 1926 so that it was visible during the day. In 1929, Tasmania’s only foghorn was installed at the lighthouse, but discontinued in 1973. In 1940, electricity replaced the old vaporised oil system and mantle, and the clockwork rotating mechanism was replaced by an electric motor. The light station was also responsible for the smaller Tamar Leading Lights which were separately manned. The light stations are now unmanned.
Low Head Lighthouse originally was a light station established in 1805. It is Australia’s oldest continuously used pilot station. In 1827, it was decided to built a lighthouse and in 1833, it was converted to a light station. This is Australia’s third and Tasmania’s second lighthouse. It was originally called the Georgetown Station. Today it flashes three times in 30 seconds. It is 43 meters (141 feet) above sea level and is 19 meters (62 feet) tall. It can be seen for 23 nautical miles (22 miles or 35 K’s). This lighthouse was necessary as there were 12 shipwrecks in the Tamar River from 1808 to 1908. In the early 1800’s, when a ship was sighted at dusk, a fire was lit and kept burning during the night to keep the ship in touch with the port. Low Heat Lighthouse was built of local rubble with a coat of stucco to make it durable. The crown was built of freestone from Launceston. The keepers’ quarters were 4 rooms attached to the base of the tower (which is the only case of the quarters being attached in any Tasmanian lighthouses.) The lantern room was built of timber in Launceston. Colonial Architect John Lee Archer was the designer. Originally, there was a head light keeper and two convict assistants who were locked in their quarters at night. (The convicts, not the head keeper!!) In 1833 the original convict-built stone tower was demolished and it was replaced with the present double brick structure. In 1835, a revolving shutter was installed and was rotated byweight-driven clockwork mechanism. And in 1916, it was updated with a revolving lens and an incandescent kerosene mantle lantern. The broad red band was painted in 1926 so that it was visible during the day. In 1929, Tasmania’s only foghorn was installed at the lighthouse, but discontinued in 1973. In 1940, electricity replaced the old vaporised oil system and mantle, and the clockwork rotating mechanism was replaced by an electric motor. The light station was also responsible for the smaller Tamar Leading Lights which were separately manned. The light stations are now unmanned.
Then I drove towards Devonport, passing the Batman Bridge. Once in Devonport, I found what I thought was the lighthouse, but it didn’t look like the one in my travel magazines. As it was 5pm and getting dark, the visitor center was closed. But the girl at the hotel gave me a map to find the proper lighthouse. Funny as it’s Tasmania’s most photographed lighthouse and I couldn’t figure out why it didn’t look right! But I’ll see it first thing in the morning. However, since the fire fighters are back burning here, the sunset was lovely - all pink and purple and orange because of the smoke, so I was able to get some really nice photos of the little lighthouse!
I can’t help but wonder if this trip was a good idea in fall. It gets dark at 5pm and I’m heading further south tomorrow (don’t forget - South in the Southern Hemisphere is away from the equator and therefore colder and darker!!) Tomorrow will be closer to Antarctica!
I can’t help but wonder if this trip was a good idea in fall. It gets dark at 5pm and I’m heading further south tomorrow (don’t forget - South in the Southern Hemisphere is away from the equator and therefore colder and darker!!) Tomorrow will be closer to Antarctica!
Labels:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
About Me
- Laura
- Denver, Colorado, United States
- I'm originally from Colorado, but I've been living in Australia for three years. Before that, I lived all over the U.S.: Washington State, Maine, California, Oregon, Nebraska, North Carolina, Arizona, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and more... No, I'm not a military brat or a military wife; I was a traveling nurse for 5 years so I moved to a new city every 3 months. During my travels, I became intrigued with lighthouses and started making plans to photograph as many as I could in whichever state I was living (including the two in Nebraska!) My blog is about my trips to various lighthouses, as well as other interesting trips. I hope you enjoy reading, and leave a comment or two!
2 comments:
Ooh, nice sunset pics! I never would have guessed it was that cold by the bright blue sky (but I guess Denver is deceiving that too).
Very true! Just remember this temperature when I get to day 30 or so!!! But the sunsets were amazing on the entire journey!!
Post a Comment