The inaugural Tassal Ten

Until recently, I was one of the those who think the words "fun" and "run" don't belong in the same sentence. Well today I completed my first 10km fun run, the inaugural Tassal Ten at beautiful Dover in Tasmania's far south. It was great fun and I'll definitely be back for more. While I walked a few (mainly uphill) sections, I was happy enough to have run most of it. For proof of actual running see photo right - that's me in the purple shirt.

It was such a great community run event, raising funds for Hobart's Paediatric Intensive Care Unit. At about the halfway point the rain came down but it didn't stop the smiles on everyone's faces. There was an excellent contingent of Huon Runners / Geeveston parkrun folk with infectious enthusiasm to share. After the adults run there was a 2km run called Annabelle's run. It is so great to see so many local kids getting out there with their family doing something both healthy and fun. And great work by the volunteers who made it happen.

Parkrunning

After many - and I mean MANY - months of "thinking about it" (making excuses mostly) I finally completed my first parkrun this morning. Parkrun is a global movement and there are more than 350 of these events across Australia each week, bringing people together for better health and mental wellbeing, fun and a sense of community. Around 2,000 people run every week across Tasmania, as I found out watching this video of local MP David O'Byrne talking about the first anniversary of the Geeveston Parkrun in the Tasmanian Parliament last week.

The sun came out as I arrived in Geeveston and the friendly volunteers made me feel welcome. A tree had fallen across the usual track in last night's high winds and they'd set up a small diversion. Three laps of the course - for me part-running, part-walking - a stretch and that's exercise done for the day. Then it's off for coffee and well-deserved cake or onto whatever other activities the day holds. I can see why it's kind of addictive. Now let's see how my legs feel tomorrow!

Franklin History Walk

A couple of months back, beautiful timber plinths started appearing along the main street of Franklin. Then slowly, plaques outlining the history of each building were attached to them all, as well as to the walls of street-fronting buildings like our own new home, the former Commercial Bank of Australia building.

Today, the Franklin History Walk was officially opened, with a launch at Abbey on Main (former Methodist church, now accommodation) and a display of snippets of Franklin history. The walk is a project of the Franklin Progress Association, funded by a Tasmanian Government community infrastructure grant, and clearly took a lot of work from the Franklin History Group and others in the local community. It's a fantastic addition to the village and hopefully will encourage people to walk the full length of the main street as well as along the river banks, where a series of waterside panels explain more about life on the water.

A lovely booklet outlining the town's history and including a map listing all the points of interest along the walk is available for only $2. In addition to the white settler history, the booklet pays respect to the traditional and original owners of this land, the melukerdee people, as well as today's Tasmanian Aboriginal community who are the custodians of this land. I picked up one copy today, but think I'd better keep a few more handy for visitors. Come on down sometime for a stroll. It takes about 1.5 hours to walk the whole thing, depending on how fast you walk and read I guess!

The Franklin Fruit Loop

Some years back, friends and neighbours Deb and Martin and Shane and Jane had a really lovely idea - to create a public walkway lined with fruit trees along the boundary of their land, between Old Road and New Road in Franklin. The sun came out this afternoon as we gathered for the official opening of this great gift to the local community. We took the dog and a thermos of tea and enjoyed some sweet treats, the violin of Marjorie Gadd and a poem written and read by Steve Gadd for the occasion. The walk has beautiful views over Franklin village, the river and Egg Islands and north to the Wellington Range. Cattle graze in the neighbouring paddocks. The walk is being planted with fruit and nut trees and runs alongside a wildlife corridor with bandicoots frequent visitors to the property.

The first home we tried to purchase in Tasmania was in Lalla in the north of the state. On the boundary was a 'pear walk', a corridor of pear trees planted more than 100 years ago. I thought it was a wonderful idea. Now thanks to the generosity and vision of these local property owners, our community will be able to enjoy the peace, get some exercise and in time, pick some fruit along the way on this lovely pathway. From the Huon Highway, walk up either Old Road or New Road and you can't miss the signs.

Village life

It's been ten days since we moved down from the hills of Franklin into the centre of the village. This morning we walked across the road to the war memorial for the Anzac Day service, followed by a community breakfast at the Franklin Bowls Club. We've gone from having a large fenced yard to a small garden with no grass, so we take Gretchen across the road for regular short walks along the river. She's quickly settling in to being dog-about-town instead of farm dog. Yesterday evening we ran into friends on our walk who mentioned they were heading to the pub afterwards, so we met them there. Collecting our mail means wandering next door instead of a drive down the hill. There's a lovely little organic store only a short walk down the road, where you can refill your jars of dry goods like flour, rice and spices. David has had customers visit his main road office. And to my great surprise, the traffic noise hasn't kept me awake at all. I'm sure it will have its challenges, but so far village life is proving to be a nice change and an interesting little adventure.

A moment in time

Almost two years ago, we were among the first to experience long table dining at the newly opened Fat Pig Farm, run by Matthew Evans and Sadie Chrestman, at a local business dinner organised by the Kingborough & Huon Community Enterprise Centre (KHBEC). Last week we were back, for another KHBEC dinner. Paddock to plate has become a cliche these days, but you can see it with your own eyes at Fat Pig Farm. Sadie told us about the philosophy of Fat Pig Farm. It's about a moment in time: the produce harvested and cooked that day is different from any other day. It's also about community: the local producers, growers, winemakers and staff who share a love of real food, as well as the people who come together at the table to eat it. The meal was truly special, from the lemon and ginger hot toddy served on arrival to individual desserts served in glasses to make standing up and networking easy. The Fat Pig Farm team knows how to cater, that's for sure. David and I have wanted to visit for a Friday Feast for ages. We've held out, thinking that friends or family visiting from the mainland might be keen to join us, but to no avail. We'll just have to book it in for ourselves sometime.

Dover Seafest

The sun shone and the crowds turned out for Dover Seafest on Easter Saturday, the first one in 18 years apparently. We took the dogs down for a couple of hours and met lots of friendly locals and visitors who came up for a pat - or even a selfie. It was a lovely outing, with busy food and drink stalls, entertainment, kids activities and of course water based action including rowing and sailing. The queue for Masaaki's Sushi was huge (as usual), so we had a pale ale from Devils Brewery and a delicious burger, followed by a good old flake cone from Huon Valley Soft Serve. Then we all had to go home for a lie down, especially the dogs, who were all patted and cuddled out.

Gong xi fa cai

Happy lunar new year to our Chinese friends and colleagues! Last Sunday, Huonville was host to a performance by members of the Chinese Community Association of Tasmania. In the river foreshore park, we were treated to traditional Chinese songs (from the young lady in pink below), Wushu martial arts and of course, the famous dragon dance. A cute-as-a-button four-year-old girl stole the show as she practiced her martial arts moves in a striking red outfit.

The group decided this year to take their traditions out to rural and regional areas in Tasmania, partly to share the celebrations and partly as a rehearsal for this Sunday's big festival performance on Parliament House Lawns. Red envelopes were presented to audience members who could answer some basic questions about lunar new year. I won a red dragon decoration for saying the traditional new year greeting in Mandarin. Well, kind of. As above.

Le Weekend in Cygnet

The French flag flew on top of the Cygnet Town Hall. The car park opposite featured a collection of old and new cars from the French Car Club of Tasmania. The town was draped in blue, white and red. From baguettes to berets, it was all there. Le Weekend Cygnet is such a great idea for a town with a French history. With our (Swiss) dogs in tow, we strolled around town, stopping every few metres to chat with locals and visitors. But the highlight was a relaxing couple of hours spent at Pagan Cider. The dogs were allowed (no, welcomed) inside the shed to hang out with us on the cool cement. French films played and cider flowed. We had a very tasty lunch from the Tickled Rib food van and a couple of blueberry and quince ciders. Just a terrific afternoon. If you like the sound of it, Le Weekend continues tomorrow!

Australia Day 2017 in Franklin

Huon Valley Council has been rotating the location of its annual Australia Day breakfast, awards and market through different towns and villages in the valley. This year it was Franklin's turn. Our dear old dog Baerli can't walk far now, but we thought she would make it around the oval, so we decided to head down the hill for it. It was a beautiful summery day along the river. Locals were taking fruit picking backpackers out rowing. It took us a long time to get around the market stands on the oval because so many people stopped us to ask what breed the dogs are (no not Burmese Mountain Dogs, they are Bernese, you know, from Bern in Switzerland) and pat and cuddle them. Little girls especially seem to love the dogs, it's so sweet. On the way around we gobbled a gorgeous sourdough doughnut with raspberry jam and a coffee. I feel a bit ambivalent about Australia Day, but it was nice to see some newly minted Australian citizens proudly holding their certificates and smiling for photographs.

Build me a boat

And then there were three! A third St. Ayles Skiff built in Franklin was launched on the Huon River under a perfect sunny blue sky today, as part of the Swiftsure Regatta. The community gathered on the shore to wish her well. Speeches were made. Scotch whisky was poured over the bow. She was named 'Freyja', after the goddess from Norse mythology. The Little Boat Choir sang appropriately boaty songs, and into the water she went, alongside Billie and Imagine. Wonderful.

The water is wide, I can't get o'er
And neither have I wings to fly
Build me a boat that will carry two
And both shall row, my love and I.

[folk song of Scottish origin]

Bowled over by roses

The weather is warming up, and a bunch of locals have started playing barefoot bowls again on a Friday afternoon. Just like in the movie Crackerjack, the Franklin Bowls Club is looking at ways to expand its membership and remain relevant to the local community. It's a great way for us to unwind and have a laugh at the end of the week.

As the sun set on Friday, I turned around to admire the green hills of Franklin, but got distracted by the gorgeous rose bushes of different varieties all around the bowling green. Someone from the bowls club has been tending these beauties well...