Marta Dusseldorp is guest host this week on Back Roads filmed on the west coast of Tasmania.
Imagine a region that’s a treasure chest of natural wonders…and then wonder why you won’t find it named on many maps.
This week, one of Australia’s best loved actresses, Marta Dusseldorp from popular dramas such as Jack Irish, Janet King and most recently, Bay of Fires, which was almost entirely shot on the West Coast of Tasmania, joins Back Roads for a journey of discovery through one of the most magical places on earth…the Tarkine.
Marta explores an area that’s covered in ancient rainforest, plains of button grass, swathes of farmland, and includes part of the wild west coast. She’s captivated by Nature’s most glorious cathedrals, deep in rainforest that dates back 65 million years when Australia was part of the vast continent of Gondwanaland, and explores it with Rob Saltmarsh, a Tarkine guide for 27 years.
This magnificent forest thrives here because of the strong circumpolar winds that bring rain and are known as the Roaring Forties. It’s these winds that almost blow her off what was once known as Mt Cameron on the west coast. Now called Preminghana, this area belongs to the Tasmanian Aboriginal community and offers breathtaking 360-degree views of the Tarkine.
She also hitches a ride with local postie, Jocelyn Flint who once was a cowgirl mustering cattle right on the coast. Jocelyn regales Marta with entertaining and eyebrow raising yarns of the Tarkine’s farming community.
When Marta joins Dr Pat Harrisson and Dr Helen Robertson, she discovers to her delight that the forest offers visitors a cornucopia of micro-marvels, while also being the source of what long-time beekeeper, Robbie Charles, describes as the ‘best honey in the world’.
Further south, there’s an incredible natural wonder in the town of Waratah, and then a journey down the beautiful Pieman River on one of the oldest Huon Pine riverboats still operating in the world.
It truly is a journey that encompasses everything from the miniscule to the majestic.
8pm Tuesday on ABC.
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