Everything you never wanted to know about Woodbridge 2019

Today is a combined effort of a walk around my home town of Woodbridge, led by myself, and the end of year lunch before we all go our separate ways for Christmas.

As I live nearby, we're meeting at Silverwater Park for the start. This is also where we'll finish. My directions were to turn left at the church.

Church of St. Simon and St. Jude

Everyone managed to find their way to the starting point, so we set off heading north on the coastal track locally known as the Goat Track. This is a hangover from when it was a really rough track, so bad that Kingborough Council wanted to close it. This didn't go over too well with the locals so the Council dumped some gravel on it instead.

The Goat Track

Looking back

I believe that a long time local told my wife, Val, that this was actually a nice walk after WW1 and was called Bell's Parade.

The track leads us to Jetty Road which goes down to, you guessed it, the Woodbridge Jetty. This used to be an old wooden structure, but now is a very flash concrete one.

Woodbridge Jetty. The buildings are the Marine Discovery Centre which is associated with the local school

The brown buildings are the originals and were boat houses. We had boat houses because up to 1953 there was quite a large regatta held here every year.

In recent years the front extension was built and (I forgot to pass on this fact) the whole complex was raised up about a metre just this year.

Looking back at the park

We follow Jetty road back to the Channel Highway, passing below the Peppermint Bay Hotel Restaurant.

There have been several pubs here over the years, going back to the Sawyers Arms around 1850 and ending with the Orient Hotel. Most of the early ones burned down while the last was torn down to build the new one.

The first Europeans to see the area were a French party led by Admiral Antonie Raymond Joseph de Bruni Chevalier D'Entrecasteaux - try signing that on your cheque -  in 1792.

He did leave his last name, D'Entrecasteaux as the name of the Channel.

The British were next and convict parties were sent ashore to cut timber for the colony.

After the land was cleared, farming took over along with fishing.
Scallops were plentiful in the Channel, but the sputnik dredge and over fishing took care of that. Apples were still a mainstay of the economy until South Africa came on line. The Federal Government paid orchardists $300 an acre to grub out the apple trees and run cattle. That went well.

On we go, stopping at the ex petrol station to look at the next item of interest.

Garden shed? Look carefully at the window, can you see bars?

You can. The shed was moved from the Police station back in the 1970's. It's an early drunk tank and quite common on the mainland Peter tells me. If you gave the local policeman trouble after pub closing, you were tossed in here along with a straw palliasse, a blanket, the essential bucket and Bob's your uncle.

Particularly if your Uncle Bob is partial to 20-30 beers after work.

Next stop was the site of the first Post Office in 1845. You can still see daffodils in the spring. While here I explained I had to cut part of the walk leading from Martins Rd. to the S.S. Laura which is a hulk around the point. I had explored what used to be a rough track through the bush and it was too overgrown to do today. The Woodbridge Community Association have plans to do it up in the future.

However, I was encouraged to show the group the start of the track, which I did.

The track to the wreck of the S.S. Laura is somewhere in there

I did find a YouTube video of a drone flight over the hulk. It only runs about a minute and if you want to see the ship hulk and a bit of Woodbridge, CLICK HERE.

I also found a couple of photos I took a few years ago when I could get through the bush. She was steam powered and built in Brisbane in 1873. She served the area south of here and was towed here as a breakwater in 1929-30.

S.S. Laura in Little Peppermint Bay

The boiler is still visible

We walk back on Martins Road and start up Pullens Road.

Up Pullens Road...

...past newly shorn sheep

We'll soon turn left down Rowleys Road, stopping off in Pearsons Road for Morning Tea.

Morning Tea

Looking south

We're being watched

Morning Tea finished, we continue down Rowleys Road. Our next stop is at the building that used to be a blacksmith shop run by the Rowley Family.

Rowleys Blacksmith Shop

In earlier days there would have been no bridge over Schemers Creek, but a ford. This would have been an ideal location for the large shire horses, used instead of tractors, to be taken for new shoes.

Up we go to Llantwit Road in the distance. We turn right to start up the little hill I promised.

It's a beautiful day for walking and we see some of the remaining orchards in the area as we go.

Up Llantwit Road

Woodbridge Hill road is just up there

We came across some pigs beside the road

There were also some cute but shy piglets who wouldn't let their photo be taken. More pigs appeared in the paddock, running up in case we had food.

It was getting warm and a costume change was made by some.

The road loops to the right and starts a steeper climb. Shortly we pass a quarry and stop to have a look. I have no information as to the history of this quarry.

On we climb until we reach a point where going farther is not a option. Here we have views.

Woodbridge appears below as a few roofs

The road now is private and a new one leads off into the bush on our left

The small ferry is traveling to Bruny Island, passing the fish farms just off shore

North Bruny Island. One of our walks involves taking the ferry on foot and walking down that coast line

A few people live up here and a couple more homes are hidden in the bush at the top of the road

Heading down

A nice stand of young gums on our left

Someone having their lunch

Some orchards still exist

 I say that because the hills were covered with apple orchards when we moved here. Following slow apple trucks every morning in the season was a part of working in Hobart. Not many did, I can only think of three of us. Most worked locally and at the Carbide Works in Electrona.

Leaving the scenery behind, we start on our way down.

That little green patch on Woodbridge Hill is where we walked

We walk past Coonawarra, a weather board house that was one of two boarding houses in Woodbridge. Harold and Esther Wilkes lived there, Esther running the boarding house and Harold running his 14 acre dairy farm. They had sold it and retired just before we moved into the area and were the first people to befriend us. The house actually burned down a few years ago, but the owner was determined to rebuild it exactly as it was, and did so.

Turning into Perrys Road, we pass what is known as the oldest building in Woodbridge. Perry's cottage was built somewhere between 1860 and 1870. The Perrys ran a business showing films up and down the Channel at the various halls and other locations.

Perry's Pictures still show films in the Woodbridge Hall to this day, but with a different owner.

Perry's Cottage

Cars everywhere! A traffic jam in Perrys Road

Reaching Llantwit Road we turn left so I can take the group through the central business district of Woodbridge.

'Chandos' the other boarding house

 We pass the old Woodbridge School, a private residence now and the Police Station, just across from the Woodbridge Shop.

The shop is more of a cafe now, but still carries the essentials. I believe it's getting quite a good reputation for its meals. Certainly it was very busy when we passed it.

Woodbridge Hill

Woodbridge Bakery

The bakery ran from 1917 to 1970 when it closed. He did make excellent cakes. At its height three bakers produced 3500 loaves a week, but commercial operations such as Cripps put it out of business.

The Woodbridge Shop

Across the road from the shop is the Village Hall scene of markets, movies and mayhem.

Village Hall

Just past the hall is the library. Difficult to believe the Woodbridge Library takes up five buildings.

Woodbridge Library. These represent the Shop, Post Office, School, Hall and the Church

It's a busy day in town with cars parked everywhere.

We might have to knock down a few buildings to create a parking lot

Private house which used to be the Woodbridge Emporium back in the 1890's

Post Office

On we go, back to Silverwater Park and loads of food. Well, we can justify it as we put the work in.

Woodbridge Jetty with the boat that brings tourists down to the Peppermint Bay Hotel for a meal

Christmas Lunch. Thanks to Peggy for organizing enough food to fill two tables. I think we did it justice!

Why it's called Silverwater

Merry Christmas from a local. We'll all get together next year to walk off the effects of Christmas and New Year

We had 22 walkers and covered 9.19km in 3:14hrs.

There was actually more planned, but I'll save that walk for another time.

I would like to give credit to the book Peppermint Bay - a history of the Woodbridge area by Julie Gardam

Reading this fleshed out some of the stories I already knew and helped make me sound as if I really knew what I was talking about.

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