RECONNECT with nature andlife’sGENTLEpleasures,findsGeorgina Safe.
A weekend antiquing,FLYFISHINGandHIKINGinTasmania’s
EVANDALE andLAKESTCLAIRistheidealwayto
AUSTRALIANTRAVELLER.COM 73
AWAY FROM IT ALL
THE ELEGANT ART OF FLY FISHINGismoredifficultthan
it looks. I’m standing on the edge of Tasmania’spristineLakeStClair,
Australia’s deepest lake that’s situated 180 kilometresfromHobartand
tucked into the Central Highlands of the TasmanianWildernessWorld
Heritage Area, with my rod in hand and a basketoffliesmadefromfur
and feathers at the ready to snare a wild brownorrainbowtrout.
It’s the golden hour of a magical late-afternoonlightandwithno
phone reception or internet access due to theremotegeography,
the only sounds are the waves gently lapping ontheshoreandthe
whir of my line as I cast it into the untrammelleddepths.
“Fly fishing takes you to the most beautifulplacesintheworld
because trout like living in beautiful places,” saysmycoachKaren
Brooks, a national fly-fishing champion. “It reallyisoneofthose
pastimes that forces you to be in the momentbecauseyouhave
to learn how to read the water, take note of yoursurroundings
and understand where a fish might be. It also takesyouthrough
a range of emotions from anticipation and elation to frustration
and everything in between.”
Despite Karen’s expert tutelage my end emotion is frustration, but
fortunately returning fishless to Pumphouse Point is not going to ruin
my dinner. Perched on Lake St Clair, Pumphouse Point is a converted
1940s hydroelectric pump station located a two-and-a-half-hour drive
from Launceston amidst the raw beauty of unspoilt mountains, ridges
and glacial valleys. Consisting of a Shorehouse and a private Retreat,
as well as the original Pumphouse at the end of a 250-metre-long pier,
the property sits on the body of water its traditional custodians, known
as the Big River Tribe, called Leeawuleena, meaning ‘Sleeping Water’.WEEKENDS | Tasmania
FROM TOP:
Pumphouse Point is a
converted 1940 s
hydroelectric pump
station; It’s based on
pristine Lake St Clair.
OPPOSITE (from
top): Pumphouse Point
and its pier are set within
a magnificent landscape;
The property’s Retreat
blends into the wilderness.1