EXETER

1/ Notley Fern Gorge is a lovely nature reserve just west of Exeter in northern central Tasmania. It was once part of a large country estate. The owners had preserved the fern gorge as a private walk.

2/ After you enter Notely Fern Gorge, you walk down hill through a light forest into the lovely fern gorge below.

3/ You are surrounded on all sides by a plethora of ferns in Notely Fern Gorge.

4/ The path through Notely Fern Gorge is well marked and is often made of raised wood. The ferns are so thick in some places that they shade out the sun.

5/ These man ferns at Notely Fern Gorge are twice as high as a normal man.

6/ These man ferns were the size of small trees.

7/ Deep in the valley of Notely Fern Gorge is a small creek, which this bridge crosses.

8/ I used my arms to demonstrate how large the trunk of this ancient tree really was at Notely Fern Gorge.

9/ The canopy of this tree was about 80 metres above the ground. It really towered over Notely Fern Gorge.

10/ The path through Notely Fern Gorge wanders through a wonderland of tall ferns.

11/ The Brady tree is the largest tree in Notely Fern Gorge. It is claimed that the bandit Matthew Brady and his gang once used it as a refuge.

1/ Rosevears is a settlement on the Tamar River in central northern Tasmania. It is north of Launceston and south of Exeter. This photo shows the old Rosevears Hotel. The Rosevears Hotel has both excellent meals and excellent views of the Tamar River. It boasts of being the longest, continuously operated hotel in Australia.

2/ The Past Time Restaurant on Rosevears Road has good views of the Tamar River and is surrounded by vineyards.

3/ Many local people from have small boats that debark from the Rosevears Pontoon.

4/ On the eastern side of the Tamar River, opposite Rosevears, is this lovely, little church at Windermere. You can see close up photos on the LILYDALE page.

5/ Mt Barrow dominates the skyline, as you look south down the Tamar River from Rosevears.

6/ These lovely palms decorate Rosevears Road near the settlement of Gravelly Beach.

7/ On Rosevears Road at Gravelly Beach is this pontoon. Note how it can rise to match the water level.

8/ This is the lone pine tree at Rosevears. It is symbolic of the Battle of Lone Pine at Gallipoli in 1915. It has a very interesting plaque at its base.

9/ The lone pine tree is a memorial to a young soldier who was killed in WW1. The "white feather" refers to the practice of sending a white feather (a symbol of cowardice) to shame men to join the army. This plaque is plainly condemning the practice.

10/ At the base of "Brady's Lookout" is the building site of a very historically important ship.

11/ The "Rebecca" was the ship that took the first settlers from Van Diemen's Land to start what is now the great city of Melbourne.

12/ The Tamar River near Rosevears is a busy place for pleasure boats.

13/ This photo shows a peaceful bank of the Tamar River near Lanena, which is South of Rosevears.

14/ On Rosevears Road are many vineyards that use the water of the Tamar River.

15/ This photo was taken from Brady's Lookout and is looking North. It shows a classic view of the attractions of the Tamar River near Rosevears. Brady's Lookout is on the A7 West Tamar Highway.

16/ This is the view south from Brady's Lookout. The peaks that you see are mounts Arthur and Barrow.

17/ There is a considerable drop from Brady's Lookout to the Tamar River below.

1/ Exeter is in central northern Tasmania north of Launceston. It has a few heritage buildings, like this lovely Anglican church, which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2017.

2/ The interior shows a good balance of fine wood work and long windows.

3/ At the rear of the church is this lovely mural, which celebrates both the church and life in Exeter.

4/ The pretty Uniting Church is unique in that it is actually two churches. The church at the rear was moved from nearby Winkleigh.

5/ Tresca House is a former orphanage, where British children once stayed. It is now a community centre.

6/ Exeter has a number of shops, as well as a bakery, petrol station and a hotel.

7/ This is the historic hotel at Exeter. It has as much potential as the Pier Hotel in George Town, which is shown in the photo below.

8/ This is the Pier Hotel in nearby George Town. It has been tastefully restored to become a major historic asset of George Town.

9/ The northern end of Exeter has a number of large buildings that look like old army barracks. The white building in the centre is the Tourist Information Centre.

10/ This is the quaint, historic church at Supply River, west of Exeter. The Supply River church shown above is many kilometres up stream from the historic Supply River Mill shown in the next tab.

1/ The Supply River Mill is located in central northern Tasmania near Rosevears. This is the modern bridge across the Supply River located north east of Exeter. A short distance from here is the historic Supply River Mill built in 1825. This mill exported wheat to Sydney and Melbourne in the late 19th Century.

2/ This is a view of the peaceful Tamar River near the mouth of the Supply River.

3/ The Supply River Mill ruins have an ancient feeling about them. The mill was abandoned due to competition from steam powered mills in 1872. The ruins are now being protected.

4/ This is the view into the Supply River Mill ruins from a nearby hill. You can see from the water that the Supply River here is very polluted. Historically the mill was located here, because the water was once pure.

5/ This is the remains of the dam of the Supply River Mill. It was built to force water to rush past the paddle wheel of the mill and turn it.

6/ This is an ancient photo of the Supply River Mill taken shortly after it was abandoned in 1872. The paddle wheel was a massive 5.5 metres in diameter.

7/ Near the Supply River Mill is the oldest known graffiti in Australia. It was carved into a rock by Adolarius Humphrey, the first mineralogist for Van Diemen's Land, in 1804. To protect it, the exact location is not marked.

8/ This is the view of the Supply River Mill ruins and the Supply River. It has a feeling of history about it.

1/ Frankford is a settlement on B71 the alternate road from the West Tamar Valley to Devonport. It has this interesting example of a Victorian era shop, which is now used as a house.

2/ Frankford is also the location of the only cafe on the B71 road between the West Tamar Valley and Devonport.

3/ Glengarry is a historic locality on the B71 road to Devonport. It has this lovely historic church.

4/ This is another view of the Glengarry church showing the entrance hall.

5/ Winkleigh is a historic locality on C717 west of Exeter. It is the site of this lovely historic church.