In the foreground we have the rocky islands known as "The Nuggets" off Cape Tourville. More about them tomorrow. But in the distance we can see a bulk carrier cargo ship heading for Hobart. I tracked it down online, and it is the Phoebe Star, registered in the Marshall Islands.
www.vesselfinder.com/vessels/PHOEBE-STAR-IMO-9559688-MMSI...
Tags: Luminosity7 Nikon D850 Launceston Tasmania Australia Freycinet Peninsula Freycinet National Park Tasman Sea Ship Phoebe Star Bulk Carrier Seascape The Nuggets Ship in the Distance Cape Tourville
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One thing I've learned in the forest is to always look up. Some of the best sights are up through the trees. On our walk up the saddle to the Wineglass Bay lookout the trees were a standout. But so were the rock formations. And a combination of the two with that beautiful morning sunlight produced a view that is uniquely Australia. This scene would not look out of place in parts of Central Australia.
Tags: Luminosity7 Nikon D850 Launceston Tasmania Australia Freycinet Peninsula Freycinet National Park Up Through the Trees The Hazards Bushland Trees Sunlight Rocks Framing
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[You must enlarge this shot.]
The first thing a lot of people say about Wineglass Bay is that it doesn't look like a wineglass. Well, that's not how it got its name, and if you are squeamish, look away now. In the 1820s the seas off the east coast of Tasmania were almost stripped bare of the largest mammals in the world, the magnificent whale species like the Blue Whale, and the Sperm Whale. Whale oil at the time was the way people lit their lamps. It's a miracle any whales survived, but the great news is that now whales are seen down the east coast of Tasmania - but it took decades of conservation to achieve that.
American sea captain, Richard Hazard, set up base here in the 1820s. And this safe harbour got its name in this manner:
"The whalers set up shore bases in the bay, sparking violent clashes with the Pydairrerme (the local indigenous people). An American whaler, Captain Richard Hazard of the Thalia, would give his name to the great granite peaks that loom over the bay and the bay itself would take its name from the whalers’ method of hunting. From shore, they would set out in small boats to chase and harpoon passing whales, then tow the carcasses back to shore to butcher and boil down the blubber to extract oil. The oil was shipped to Britain to be used for lighting and the whalebone for ladies’ corsets and hoop skirts. Shore-based whaling lasted about 20 years on the peninsula but in that time, whenever the whalers were about their grisly business, the bay was dyed red with blood – like rich red wine in a glass.
necessaryindulgences.com/2017/10/wineglass-bay/
There you go, a closer image to Hell one could not imagine! So very different from the serene and beautiful scene that greets us all these years later. If you stand here on a day like this, sun in the air and a gentle breeze, and you really "listen", you can almost hear the cries from 200 years ago. The cries of busy whalers, but also the cries of a people crushed and driven from their sacred lands. We must not forget.
Tags: Luminosity7 Nikon D850 Launceston Tasmania Australia Freycinet Peninsula Freycinet National Park Wineglass Bay Captain Richard Hazard Whaling 1820s Beach Safe harbour Iconic scene
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Before we start our walk over The Hazards and down to Wineglass Bay on the southern side, I thought I'd show you three more Infra Red shots. It's handy having my little converted compact camera in the back pocket at times like this. Infra Red provides another dimension on a landscape. In all these shots today I have not converted them to black and white, but present them as they came out of camera.
Tags: Luminosity7 Panasonic DMC-TZ40 Infra Red Duotone Landscape Sky Clouds Freycinet Peninsula Coles Bay The Hazards Rocks Trees Tasmania Australia The Hazards IR Straight out of camera
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Mount Amos is the second highest of The Hazards. Here we see the pink granite being lit by the faint early light as the sun peeps over the horizon. But most surprising of all is the way that prominent rockface is suddenly lit by the direct rays of the sun and begins to glow like a golden nugget.
Tags: Luminosity7 Nikon D850 Launceston Tasmania Australia Freycinet Peninsula Coles Bay The Hazards Mount Amos Sunlight Early morning light Landscape Seascape Rocks Light and Shade
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