visit Circular OUR TOWNS AND Head TOURISM DESTINATIONS

TOURISM The town of Smithton, with 3,500 residents, ARTHUR PIEMAN CONSERVATION AREA is the administrative centre of Circular Head The Arthur Pieman Conservation Area is so while Stanley is one of Tasmania’s most named because of its location between the popular tourist destinations. Arthur River on Arthur River and the Pieman River and is the west coast is also a popular place for much-loved by Circular Head residents and both locals and visitors. For more visitors alike. Its location and openness to Dismal Swamp information on Circular Head Tourism visit the elements are part of its charm. The www.stanley.com.au. western coastline has a number of shack sites including Bluff Hill Point, Nelson Bay, DISMAL SWAMP Sarah Anne Rocks, Temma and Sandy Dismal Swamp, a popular tourist attraction, Cape. is a giant Blackwood sinkhole, accessible via a 110m slide or a gently sloping SMITHTON pathway. Four boardwalks allow visitors to Smithton is situated on the Duck River. With experience different facets of the sinkhole approximately 3,500 residents it is the which can be viewed from a cantilevered largest town and the administrative centre of platform. An observation deck overlooks the Circular Head, providing all the services you The Tasmanian Tiger (Thylacine) treetops. Dismal Swamp’s facilities include a would expect in a busy rural centre. Major forest interpretation centre, a café serving supermarket chains, bakeries, boutique Tasmanian food and wine and a gift shop. clothing and footwear stores, specialty shops and cafes abound. Smithton also has WOOLNORTH AND CAPE GRIM a medical centre, hospital, two full-service Located at the far north-west tip of Circular banks and ATM services. Head is the 22,200ha Woolnorth property, Smithton is home to a modern Astroturf on which is also located the Roaring 40s hockey field catering for local, state and Wind Farm and Cape Grim Baseline Air national competition, along with quality Pollution Station. playing fields for football and other sports. Woolnorth is where four of the last known With more than twenty social and Wind Farm at Woolnorth Thylacines, or Tasmanian Tigers, were competitive sports on offer, the standard of captured in the early 1900s. The Tigers sport and recreation facilities is high. were later sent to the Domain Zoo in Hobart. Woolnorth’s oldest buildings date from the Continued on reverse… early 1830s and tours of the property are available.

DIP FALLS AND THE BIG TREE Dip River Forest Reserve is home to the Big Tree and the unusual, hexagonal basalt-columns of Dip Falls. There is a short Dip Falls but steep section of steps leading to the base of the falls which are picturesque year-round, but especially so after rain. A viewing platform provides a great outlook of the top of the falls. A short gravel path provides access to the moss-covered relic of an old boiler which provided steam for the Blackwood sawmill that operated here in the 1920s.

Arthur Pieman Conservation Area manian Devil s Ta OUR TOWNS AND TOURISM DESTINATIONS

STANLEY Established in the early 1800s, Stanley’s myrtle forest takes visitors to the flooded streetscape is lined with colonial buildings limestone sinkhole known as Lake and fine cafes. Stanley is Circular Head’s Chisholm. premier tourism town and a walk down the The Milkshakes Hills Forest Reserve has main street is akin to walking through living both eucalypt forest and rainforest and the history. energetic are rewarded with great views of The Stanley Nut Looming over the historic town is the the countryside from the top of one of the affectionately named ‘Nut’, the solidified ‘Milkshakes’. lava lake of a long extinct volcano. Visitors There are also great picnic areas at can walk up a steep, challenging path to Kanunnah Bridge and Tayatea Bridge. the summit or take a leisurely chairlift ride. Either way, 360-degree views await, as far Located nearby is the beautiful Balfour as the eye can see. Track Forest Reserve. The relatively flat walk is three hours return and was cut for From Stanley visitors can take a boat tour to packhorses and prospectors at the view up to 200 Australian Fur Seals which beginning of the century to access the congregate at Bull Rock. Little Penguins can largely abandoned mining town of Balfour. also be seen coming ashore at Stanley and Rocky Cape National Park The Balfour Track is renowned for its prolific, other coastal locations in Circular Head. colourful autumn fungi displays. Stanley was the base for Van Diemen’s Land Company operations in the region. ARTHUR RIVER The VDL Co. itself began in 1825 by Royal The town of Arthur River is located where Charter under King George IV, who granted the tannin-coloured river of the same name the company rights to a huge tract of opens into the tumultuous Southern Ocean. unsettled land in north-west Tasmania. Cruises on the Arthur River are available, Highfield Historic Site, developed from the with White-bellied Sea Eagles a common mid-1800s as part of the VDL Co. sight from the decks of the boats. settlement, is well-worth a visit. Arthur River is the last township before the

Stanley streetscape Western Explorer Road (C249), a mostly ROCKY CAPE NATIONAL PARK unsealed road which snakes its way south Rocky Cape was declared a National Park past some of Tasmania’s most beautiful, in 1967. The Park, which fronts Bass Strait, remote landscapes to Corinna on the has many rock pools which are lovely for Pieman River. swimming and snorkelling. Visitors can also A barge takes vehicles across the Pieman enjoy beautiful walks taking from as little as River, enabling visitors to continue their 20 minutes to a full day. Spring and summer journey south to Strahan, Zeehan and are the best seasons for viewing the Tasmania’s West Coast. colourful blooms of coastal heath and native banksias. Updated road condition information for the Western Explorer Road can be obtained by Australian Fur Seal SOUTH ARTHUR FOREST DRIVE contacting the Stanley Visitor Centre on (03) The South Arthur Forest Drive is a 60km 6458 1330. loop on the Sumac and Rapid River Roads. Visitors will need to put aside half a day to a full day to enjoy all the sights and sounds that our magnificent forest walks have to offer. Sumac Lookout has superb views of the Arthur River. Further on, the Julius River Forest Reserve has a half hour walk through delightful cool temperate rainforest. Balfour Track autumn fungi displays At Lake Chisholm Forest Reserve, a meandering path through majestic old

Images: Stanley Nut, Rocky Cape National Park, Stanley streetscape - Tony McKendrick; Australian Fur Seal and Arthur Pieman Conservation Area - Lisa Nelson; Balfour Track Autumn fungi and Dip Falls - Darryl Nelson; Dismal Swamp - Forestry Tasmania; Tasmanian Tiger - State Archives of Tasmania image AA193-1002; Wind Farm - Roaring 40’s; Arthur River - Bob Iddon Photography; Tasmanian Devil - Steve Parish Publishing. Published 2007.

Arthur River