On many trips to Hobart we have looked at real estate with the eventual plan of retirement.
The Hobart area does not have a lot of flat land (certainly very little with views) so deciding on areas has been interesting.
On one trip I saw an ad for “Derwent Shores” estate on the eastern shore. We went for a drive and saw that although the land was hilly, it was not a steep as many of the other estates we had looked at. The position of the estate means that the views are spectacular. Looking over the Derwent River toward Hobart city itself. We quickly decided that THIS was the place we wanted to be.
On contacting David from Derwent Shores, I was told that there were no blocks available 🙁 but he would put us on the list for the next stage of development.
FINALLY in February of 2020 I received an email announcing that the Clarence City Council had approved the next subdivision and that the land should be passed through the Titles office later in the year.
Well…COVID 🙁 as the world ground to a halt in 2020, so did the work on the subdivision. We were unable to go and see the land and it was just a case of waiting.
In December of 2020 the developer was given final approval of the subdivision and we were able to place a contract on a block. While still being unable to travel to Hobart for viewing, we were confident enough in the area to feel comfortable in signing a contract.
The contract was subject to the land passing through the Titles Office, which the developer was told should be a matter of weeks.
Weeks turned into months and the Titles were finally issued in mid October 2021. It had been nearly 11months and by the time we settle in January 2022, this part of the journey has been nearly 2 years coming.
In this section of the blog , I will document the process of our upcoming house build…
Stay Tuned 🙂
DayTime View
Night Time View
Views across the Derwent
Views over the Derwent
The hill in the foreground here is were our block is.
Today we had the return 600 odd kilometer journey back to the Sunshine Coast and home.
We packed the car with the majority of our luggage last night so only had a small bag to go this morning. After showers and a cuppa, we thought we would get pastries at Baked on 44 again.
Then we topped up the fuel tank and drove through Rockhampton and onto the A1 heading south.
We had a bathroom break at Bororen before travelling onto Miriamvale for morning tea/brunch at the “Big Crab”. M almost got a crab pie but was a little dubious of how fresh (or not) the crab might be and decided not to risk it. He finally settled on a Corned Beef and White Sauce and I had the bacon and egg pie. Back on the road, we drove further south to Childers for sandwiches at the bakery. We got home around 3:30, unpacked our bags, put a load of washing on and had a light dinner.
Tomorrow is back to work and start dreaming of when we might be able to go away again.
Today is our last day of this break before we head home tomorrow. It has been raining most of the day, so our plan of having a lazy day of food,TV, reading and relaxing.
After a sleep in and a slow start, we walked up the road a bit to the Lure Living Cafe for a late breakfast. I had the Smashed Avo and M had the Big Breakfast. together with a pot of tea, it was a great start to the day.
After breakfast, we returned to the apartment and spent most of the day relaxing, watching TV and reading. lunch was a simple sandwich as we planned a dinner for our final night.
In the afternoon, we repacked and loaded the car ready for an early start in the morning.
Ready for dinner, we walked up the road to the Strand Hotel. I chose the Buttermilk Chicken and M had the Lamb Rack. Back to the apartment we went to bed fairly early knowing we want to leave early in the morning.
Lamb Rack
Buttermilk Chicken
We have enjoyed our time here and will certainly be back to look around further.
Awoke today to another gloomy day 🙁 We thought we would go to into Rockhampton and have a look along the River Precinct and look at the heritage buildings, have lunch somewhere and go to the Zoo in the afternoon.
That plan got quashed when we got to Rockhampton to find out that the Rocky Nats had taken over and the streets were closed. I knew they were closing on Saturday with a parade through the city, but I did not research enough to find out that the Sunday events meant the Riverfront Precint was closed on Sunday as well.
Deciding on just driving around a “getting lost” before going to the Zoo, we drove around Rockhampton “looking” I must admit I had no idea the Rockhampton, and Yeppoon were so hilly. Lots of hilltops with nice views over the city.
Finally, we made our way to the Zoo. It was threateing to rain so we made sure we took our umbrella with us. We only needed it for a couple of minutes – but for sure if we didn’t take it we would have got wet!
Zoos are always fun and this little Zoo is no exception. Their main draw-cards are Meerkats and a Chimpanzee troupe – 2 of my personal favourites.
The small group of 4 Meerkat were fun to watch as they dug their way into various holes and hollows in their enclosure. It was certainly a difference to these ones in the cool than the last Meerkats we saw at Dubbo Zoo. Those poor little things were SO hot they were splayed out in the sand trying to keep cool
The next exhibit was the Chimpanzee. We spent a while watching their antics and listening children laughing at the baby and its Mother.
At one stage one of the “boys” decided to wrap himself up in a blue blanket and go for a walk. He wandered around the enclosure for a while before climbing up to a “hammock”, spreading his blanket out ever so carefully and lay down for a rest.
We wandered around the rest of the zoo for a while before leaving and wondering what to do. We notice a big shopping centre and decided to find the Food Court and get something to eat. M found a carvery and had Rissoles with Gravy and Potato Bake while I had Chinese.
Back at the apartment we did “nothing” for the rest of the afternoon.
We awoke to find a grey and drizzly day looming. The weather reports had shown we were in for a wet Easter, so we felt lucky to have dodged rain for the last couple of days.
After breakfast in the apartment we decided to head into Rockhampton to have a look around and find “something” to do. Before that though we knew we wanted to visit a French Patisserie/Providore for morning tea. Baked on 44 did not disappoint. I chose an Apricot Danish and M had a Vanilla Cannoli. I forgot to take pictures but you can be assured they were both perfect. The range of goods in the shop was extensive with something for everybody.
We decided to go to the Rockhampton visitor information centre to get some inspiration for the days activity. The information centre is location ON the tropic of Capricorn and its Spire acts as a sundial to show Earth’s movement around the Sun.
With the main street of Rockhampton being closed today due to the Rocky Nats car festival, we decided to take a drive out to Mount Morgan. It is a fairly short 35-40 min trip. About half way the road climbs up the range with a stretch of highway that is very steep and windy. Luckily the speed limit is only 40km/h and it was not too scary 🙂 We stopped at the Mt Morgan Lookout at the top of the range. This lookout was designed to replicate a mineshaft and provides a great view over the valley toward Rockhampton. I am sure on a fine, sunny day we would have a much better view.
Somewhat grey view from the Mount Morgan Lookout.
We arrived in Mount Morgan shortly after and found the bakery for lunch. Mount Morgan is a typical Aussie country town, with a number of historic buildings. Sadly (as is often the case when we travel at Easter) many of the attractions and museums were closed for the holiday. We sat at a picnic table to have our pies before heading back toward Rockhampton and home.
The trip back toward the coast was a bit slower as it was raining most of the way. We got back to the apartment shortly before 4:00, did a load of washing, prepared dinner and had a quiet night watching TV.
We were just about ready to turn in when we heard “boom boom boom” I realised it was 9:00 and the noise would be fireworks from the “Easter Extravaganza” at Emu Park. We opened the front door of the apartment and sure enough the sky was filled with colour. Just about everybody from the resort was out watching – most in our pj’s. We enjoyed the show for about half an hour before finally going to bed.
Whenever we travel over the Easter break, we make sure we have self catered for Good Friday knowing that not much is open.
We had a nice sleep in and had a leisurely start to the day. The shower in the apartment was really nice and I had a lovely long shower before making a breakfast of bacon and eggs.
After breakfast we headed downstairs for a walk around the block and to have a look at the waterfront. Luckily the weather was nice, just very windy with a few clouds but it did not look like we were going to get rain at all.
Our resort is in the middle of the main waterfront strip. We walked a few hundred meters south the the Keppel Bay Sailing Club before crossing the road and walking along Anzac Ave looking at the shops and cafes. Surprisingly, many were open and were able to book dinner at the restaurant below our resort.
The council has spent a lot of money on the foreshore and it has many areas for families to have picnics and fun.
We bought an ice-cream and headed back to the resort to collect the car and go for a scenic drive.
A short way south of the resort is the Yeppoon Lagoon, from there we travelled further south to Emu Park. It had been many years since either of us had been here, but we knew that due to the gusty conditions today the “Singing Ship” monument would be singling loudly today. We were not disappointed. Click on the video below to hear the ship “singing”
From Emu Park we headed back toward Yeppoon, via the Rosslyn Bay Harbour. The Great Keppel Island ferries leave from here and we may do a day trip over there to have a look around. While at the harbour, we drove around to look at the marina and noticed the biggest Water Police boat we have ever seen. A bit of Google research and we found out that this large “floating police station” is one of 5 such vessels in service.
Back on the road and we saw a sign for “Wreck Point Scenic Lookout” Well.. we nearly got blown back to Yeppoon!! Reading the story of the ship that was washed up here is incredible. The Pine River where the ship departed from is over 630kms south!!
Looking South
Looking North
Driving back through Yeppoon we headed north along the waterfront. Not far outside of Yeppoon we saw signs for Capricorn Resort. We were aware of this resort as being a controversial development in the late 1980″s so we thought we would go and have a look. Neither of us were expecting to find it totally abandoned. It looked really eerie with overgrown gardens, security fences and locked gates everywhere. It looked like it had been just locked up and left in a hurry. We could see curtains hanging in the windows and outdoor furniture in the gardens and on some balconies.
When we got back to the unit, I googled it and found this story from 2019. The Iwasaki Group have plans to refurbish it, but it will certainly take a LOT of money to bring it back to its former glory.
We got back to our apartment at around 2:30 for a cuppa and a relaxing afternoon before going downstairs for a beautiful dinner at Vue
We chose an entree to share then both ordered different steak dishes which we also shared. We did not need dessert!! It was a lovely meal.
Seared Scallops On Pork Belly With Truffle Cauliflower Puree
Tender Eye Fillet Wrapped In Bacon Served With Creamy Garlic Mash, King Brown Mushroom, Wilted Spinach & Mushroom Jus
Darling Downs Wagyu Sirloin, Marble Score 8, Served With Creamy Garlic Mash, Green Beans, Pedro Tomato with Red Wine Jus
