Day 43. Launceston.

Today, our last day at Boat Harbour, the weather turned bleak. No, more than bleak, it was positively miserable. It rained all night and this morning with 7.5degC on the thermometer and with the rain still falling it was a trial going out and getting the daily paper from the front yard. Photo 1. Brendan was off today to Melbourne, leaving from Burnie. He planned to return to Wynyard, so was going to drive his ute there. After a fortifying breakfast we followed Brendan to Wynyard. This was Joanne's first opportunity to program the GPS, and liked it. We met Brendan in the airport carpark at Wynyard and then were off to Burnie.

At Burnie, we dropped the ladies in a shopping precinct while we went to an antiques shop to look at some period newspaper clippings of car advertisements. The earliest was for a 1928 Willys Whippet. We returned to pick up the ladies and headed for the airport and bid Brendan goodbye. We headed for the Tamar River valley. Our first stop was at La Trobe, which is the town where Adrienne was born. They took a nostalgic walk down the street and a photo in front of Coventry's old chemist's shop. Photo 2. In the late 1960's Joanne and Adrienne, while holidaying in Tasmania stayed with the Coventry family above the dispensary. The Dorneys and Coventrys were friends during Dr Dorney's tenure at the Devonport Hospital which was in La Trobe

We then took a diversion through Beaconsfield. The most interesting thing I found about Beaconsfield was that the mine where Todd Russell and Brant Webb were rescued following an earthquake was actually in the town, and just one street back from the main street. There is a mining interpretive centre at the mine. Photo 3.

After Beaconsfield we headed up the valley to the Ninth Island Winery. There we enjoyed the views and one of the more memorable meals we have had on this trip. Photo 4. The meals were taken with the wine suggested by the chef, and he knows his food as well as the complementary wine.

After lunch, and without due haste, we headed into Launceston to the home of Owen, affectionately called Tubby and Angela. Recall that Angela is Nancye's daughter and sister to Christine. We were greeted by Angela, whom I had not previously met, but who had known Adrienne and Joanne from a very young age in Townsville. There was coffee and chat until Tubby arrived home from work. After that Angela treated us to a sumptuous meal commencing with nibblies through to a main dish of Thai curry and followed by a crowning dessert.

We talked late into the night, which meant that the daily bLog was not completed.