Strahan and the Little Engine that Could

Many folks told us that Strahan was a "must see" in Tasmania.  This harbor town rests on the western edge of Tasmania's World Heritage Area and is home to the West Coast Wilderness Railway.  It is a lovely town, filled with rich history.

We found a well-equipped caravan park and strolled the nearby beach that evening.  Again, the rain followed us.

We decided to take the half-day train ride into the rainforest the following day.  It was wonderful to awake to sunny skies.  The train took us through dense rainforests while our guide told of the remarkable efforts it took to build the track from Strahan to the Queenstown copper mine.   Normally a steam engine pulled the cars, but both were in the shop for maintenance.  Instead, they hooked up the small, diesel switch engine to pull our three cars.

With the Tasmanian Tiger fresh on our minds, we were happy to see such a dense rainforest.  Many told us it was impenetrable in most parts.  This lower western section of Tasmania is the bulk of its World Heritage Area and takes up a fifth of the island's land mass.  Many of the most recent thylacine sightings had been in this area.  Surely this is a place where the Tasmanian Tiger could have survived... away from bounties... away from rumors... away from fears.

We had booked the four hour, return trip tour, which included three stops.  The train had a unique turn-around system.  Engineers drove the train onto a turntable that was precise enough that only two men were needed to push the train around until it faced the opposite direction.  Then they re-coupled the engine to the opposite end of the cars and headed back down the track.  Here's a short video of the process:

We took some photos of a collapsed bridge that had once supported the train and also a few shots of the Kings River along the edge of the rainforest.  The forest was so dense that often time the train scraped the edges of the foliage.  There was little opportunity for additional photos.

Kings River along West Coast Wilderness Railway

Train bridge collapse along West Coast Railway line

Once we arrived back at the station, we drove to the nearby Peoples Park to take the short hike to Hobart Falls.  It was a wonderful ending to a great day, stretching our legs after the long train ride.

Hobart Falls near Strahan

Tomorrow we leave for Cradle Mountain to see its notorious Tasmanian Devils... if only they cooperate.