Road testing the new Mazda CX-5 Apple orchards reimagined
Top 5 Hobart food trucks
38 Travel news Explore our state
The pit stop Dunalley 42 Chasing the light We speak to four local photographers about the perfect autumn shot
The orchard trail It’s harvest time in the Apple Isle
The latest RACT community news
take a day trip through Tasmania’s scenic north in the Mazda CX-5 GT
We acknowledge the ancient history of the traditional owners of Lutruwita, and their continuing connection to family, community, and the land, sea, and waterways. We pay our deepest respects to those who have passed before us and acknowledge today’s Tasmanian Aboriginal people, and their enduring connection to this island. We stand for a future that profoundly respects and acknowledges Aboriginal perspectives, culture, language and history.
Changing gears The big issues affecting RACT and our members
State growth Improving schoolzone safety
Member rewards Savings available now
Puzzles
and quiz
Rear view Snapshots of Tasmania
welcome.
A word from our GCEO
but also an opportunity to reflect on the year so far and look ahead to what’s next.
Earlier this year, we were proud to participate in the TasPride Parade for the third year running. Events like this reflect our values of fostering an inclusive community, both within our workplace and across Tasmania.
As we look ahead, road safety remains at the heart of what we do. With the end of daylight saving in April, we’re reminding all road users to stay vigilant as shorter daylight hours, wetter conditions and increased wildlife activity become more common.
We’re proud to be working with the Tasmanian Government on the development of a youth road safety program for students in Years 9 to 12. This comprehensive initiative takes a cultural approach to road safety education, aiming to equip young Tasmanians with the skills and mindset they need to become safer drivers.
In May, we’ll continue championing road safety during National Road Safety Week, engaging with the community to promote awareness and highlight the importance of keeping Tasmanian roads safe. Initiatives like the rollout of Pi-Lits across our roadside assistance network are another example of how we’re working to protect our members, RACT patrol team and all road users.
We’re also looking forward to being part of this year’s Agfest, Tasmania’s premier
agricultural event, and connecting with members and the broader community.
In other exciting news, Journeys is evolving. Our winter edition will be the final print edition of the magazine as we transition to an all-digital format. This change will allow us to deliver the same great stories, tips and updates you’ve come to love, but in a more timely, accessible, interactive and environmentally friendly way. To make sure you don’t miss out, please visit our website to update your communication preferences.
We’re also thrilled to announce the development of a new concept store at Eastlands Shopping Centre on Hobart’s Eastern Shore. This project will deliver a fresh, innovative space designed to strengthen our community presence and enhance the services we provide. This concept store will focus on delivering a welcoming, technologyenabled experience for members while fostering a sense of belonging.
At RACT, we remain dedicated to making a difference for our members and the broader Tasmanian community, whether it’s through providing cutting-edge safety technology, advocating for safer roads or celebrating what makes our island state so special.
Mark Mugnaioni // RACT Group CEO
Alison Flakemore
Pieter Kolkert
Tony Coleman, Mark Grey, Alex McKenzie, Keryn Nylander, Jenny Richardson, Ian Gillespie
Mark Mugnaioni
Leah Tierney
LETTERS
Are LED headlights too bright?
IDENTIFYING THE REAL TASMAN BRIDGE VEHICLE
As a former office holder of a club devoted to early-model Holdens, I noted with interest the claim that a vehicle on display at TMAG is the station wagon pictured on the edge of the Tasman Bridge gap in 1975.
The vehicle pictured in 1975 was clearly an EK model Special station sedan, manufactured from May 1961 to July 1962. However, the display vehicle appears to be an earlier FB model, built between January 1960 and May 1961.
Both models are similar, but features like the grille, bonnet chrome, badging, air scoop and indicator lights on the display vehicle are consistent with the FB, not the EK. Unless it was converted to the earlier model, it cannot be the vehicle from 50 years ago.
Richard Lennard, West Hobart
The new strong LED headlights (and aftermarket additions) may work well for those using them, but I question their safety for others. They dazzle and restrict vision when approaching from the front and are worse when behind, with light bouncing off mirrors and surfaces. In Tasmania, where rural driving is common, these lights are a bigger issue. What is the legal situation with LED headlights? Are they dangerous?
Victoria Wilkinson
Editor’s note: LED headlights, including aftermarket additions, are legal in Tasmania if they meet Australian Design Rules (ADRs) and are properly aligned to avoid dazzling other drivers. If you’re concerned about the brightness of headlights, it’s recommended to have your vehicle inspected to ensure compliance. Drivers are also encouraged to maintain safe following distances to minimise light glare for others on the road.
Parking on footpaths: why it happens
Your response to Sandra Hodge about parking on footpaths was correct under the law, but it didn’t address ‘why’.
Some people are selfish, but often the issue is councils’ anticar policies, leaving no reasonable options. Our trend for postagestamp building blocks and highdensity living also contributes. If councils want legal parking, they need to ensure it’s possible.
Keith Anderson, Kingston
Modern cars and visibility issues
In modern cars, visibility is dangerously decreasing. Snub-nosed bonnets, sloping pillars and upward-sloping side windows are the norm, with limited views through rear windows.
While my new car has cameras and mirrors, parking is a nightmare – and I’m not alone. Left-hand merges feel like an act of faith: I turn on the indicator and hope for the best.
Beth Rees
We’re keen to hear your thoughts on any motoring or travel-related topics, as well as auto questions. Please keep them brief – we reserve the right to edit.
Saving swans: a frustrating experience
Kathleen Miller’s letter in your summer edition about swans at Bridgewater struck a chord with me. Recently, I saw a swan attacked and killed by a dog – and another on the same day.
I contacted Brighton Council about putting up a breeding information sign, and they said they would pass my message on. However, it’s clear they have no intention of doing so. Watching the bird being killed really upset me.
Keith Goldsmith, Lutana
Dangerous turns at KFC Mowbray
A ‘No right turn’ sign is needed at the KFC exit in Mowbray. Drivers often make illegal right turns, crossing a continuous white line and cutting in front of traffic to access the traffic-light lane at Invermay and Vermont roads. The lawful option is to use the Coles traffic lights and make a legal turn.
Jill Breen, Newnham
journeys@ract.com.au
what’s on.
21-25 MAY 2025
SING IT LOUD
The stage is set in Launceston for five days and nights of festivities at the Australian Musical Theatre Festival. Expect singing, dancing and acting classes, cabaret shows and more. Events include Choir in the Pub at the Royal Oak Hotel and Sunday in the Park at Entally Estate. amtf.org.au
15 MARCH 2025
The Bream Creek Show
From lawnmower racing and wood chopping to lolly scrambles, ‘Blunnie’ tossing, food demos and pumpkin judging, the annual Bream Creek Show is an ode to oldfashioned fun. And at $10 for adults and $5 for kids, the entry prices are old-fashioned too! breamcreekshow.com.au
1-30 APRIL 2025
Tasmanian Autumn Festival
Celebrate the beauty and bounty in the Derwent Valley and Central Highlands at this program of guided tours, workshops, exhibitions and self-drive routes. Don’t miss the annual pie trail, with more than a dozen bakeries serving up treats. tasmanianautumnfestival.com.au
28-30 MARCH 2025
Kunanyi Mountain Run
Traverse the rugged trails of Kunanyi / Mount Wellington with three days of events ranging from the epic Ultra Solo to kidfriendly runs.
6 APRIL 2025
Hobart Airport Marathon
Dash through Constitution Dock, Derwent River and Salamanca Wharf (or cheer from the sidelines), with marathon, half marathon, fun run and walk options.
14-16 MARCH 2025
Devonport Triathlon
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Devonport Triathlon, which takes place at the Mersey Bluff. The combination of breathtaking views and high-level competition draws athletes from around the world.
Want to tell us about your event or product? Reach us on journeys@ract.com.au
Photos: Alice Bennet (Bream Creek); Mona: Jesse Hunniford
(Théo
Mercier: Dark Tourism)
UNTIL 16 FEBRUARY 2026
Théo Mercier: Dark Tourism
French artist and stage director Théo Mercier is spending a year constructing an immense sculpture in Mona’s former library space. The site-specific installation will be created in situ by Mercier over the course of 12 months, crafted entirely from Tasmanian sand. mona.net.au
5-9 MARCH 2025
Hobart Festival of Comedy
Have the last laugh when this laugh-a-minute showcase returns for a second year. Headliners include Danny Bhoy, He Huang, Nazeem Hussain, Sammy J, Zoë Coombs Marr and more, with performances at the Odeon, Hanging Garden and Altar Bar over five nights. festivalofcomedy.com.au
14-16 MARCH 2025
Echo Festival
This celebration of Tasmanian food, music and culture returns to Swansea with a theme of ‘Tides’ this year. The program features a coastal-inspired Native Bounty Feast, seaweed activations, woodwork and blacksmithing workshops, live music and wine masterclasses. echofestival.com.au
29 MARCH-5 APRIL 2025
Geeveston Art Show
This art show celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2025 with a weeklong showcase of works on canvas and paper, 3D designs, ceramics, textiles and more. This year sees the introduction of a photography division, plus an affordable art sale. geevestonartshow.com.au
Artwork by Jack Braudis
HOBART-BASED FOOD TRUCKS
A lower-cost alternative to bricks-and-mortar venues, food trucks offer an accessible entry point to the notoriously expensive restaurant game. That adds up to more delicious dinners for Tasmanians, writes Nola James.
1 Spice on Wheels
A roaming extension of the Spice on Wheels restaurant in New Town, this maroon-toned truck brings northern Indian classics to New Norfolk’s Tynwald Park, plus Taste of Summer and Dark Mofo’s Winter Feast. Think chicken korma, saag paneer, lamb rogan josh and goat curry, with cheesy, garlicky naan breads to go.
@spice_on_wheels_restaurant
2 Shari Sushi
The Shari Sushi truck, found at Rosny Park’s Tasmanian Produce Market on Saturdays, as well as the Twilight Market, specialises in sushi and sashimi boxes that hero local seafood. The chirashi don, which loosely translates to ‘scattered sushi’, is a single-serve box of vinegared sushi rice topped with thinly sliced raw fish, cucumber and carrot, and served with real wasabi.
@shari.hobart
3 Parthenon on Wheels
North Hobart’s favourite souvlaki joint also has mobile roaming, with its trailer usually parked at the TCM Car Park on South Arm Road, Lauderdale, on Friday and Saturday nights. Grab chicken or lamb gyros with salad in a pita wrap or loaded onto hot chips with
5 1 2 3
house-made tzatziki, barbecue and sweet chilli sauces.
@parthenononwheels
4 Queen Sheba Injera Catering
This Ethiopian food truck has a (somewhat) permanent parking spot at 29 Lefroy Street, North Hobart. You can also find it on Uber Eats and at the Twilight Market. The specialty here is injera – large, spongy pancakes made from teff (an ancient grain), topped with curries known as ‘wots’ plus stewed green lentils, yellow split peas and vibrant beetroot.
queenshebainjera.com.au
5 Bao Lady
4
Head to Hobart’s Farm Gate Market on Sundays for steamed bao buns filled to order with Korean-style fried chicken, crumbed eggplant (grown on the owners’ farm) or barbecued pork, plus pickles, coriander and hot sauce. A second truck, Seoul Sista, serves up hand-rolled kimbap at Salamanca every Saturday.
@baolady_koreanfusion
New to the mobile food scene? Our beginner’s guide to Tasmania’s food trucks has all the practical info you need.
Photos: Instagram
change makers
for fightingfreedom
Be Hers is a Tasmanian foundation dedicated to fighting human trafficking by helping vulnerable women and children. Sarah Aitken meets founding CEO Melody Towns and charts the continued evolution of the growing charity she built from the ground up. Photography Stu Gibson
MMelody Towns was a young mum when she had an epiphany at a conference: she heard about human trafficking for the first time. Coming home to her small children, she couldn’t stop thinking about the stories she’d heard and knew she had to act.
“The issue broke my heart,” she says. “I gathered some friends together and decided we needed to do something about it.”
She started Be Hers to raise awareness and funds by empowering everyday women to take a stand against slavery, violence and exploitation. Beginning with fundraising events, it gathered some serious coin and soon went beyond the Tasmanian border.
More than a decade later, Melody is as passionate as ever and Be Hers has grown exponentially.
Becoming a registered charity in 2017, Be Hers has expanded its focus to include social enterprise, online awareness, and providing safe community spaces, mentorship programs and school programs, with more to come. It now works locally, nationally and globally to support women and children vulnerable to exploitation and violence in many forms.
“We support women and children who have been rescued or who are at risk,” Melody adds.
Melody can’t share individual stories, out of respect for participants’ privacy, dignity and safety, but she can share examples of the bigger-picture work Be Hers is responsible for, including some recent projects in Asia that have the potential for real intergenerational impact.
“Our partnerships in 2024 included sponsoring a lawyer in the Philippines who puts perpetrators of cybersex trafficking in jail. We also support 12 girls in a shelter in Cambodia, and we have been long-term supporters of a child advocacy centre in Cambodia.”
Trafficking, slavery and exploitation are often seen as overseas issues, but Melody says it can happen to anyone in a vulnerable situation and that can include Tasmanians.
“Exploitation happens here through vulnerabilities such as homelessness, poverty and migration. It can look like labour or sex trafficking, or both,” she says.
“We want to eliminate the vulnerabilities by creating opportunities for women to be supported and thrive.
“We’re working with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) to help support survivors by offering long-term, wrap-around support where they feel safe to share their stories.”
At the time of print, Melody was excitedly preparing for the imminent opening of a new arm to the Be Hers hub in Hobart: a cafe.
The hub has already provided women with a safe space to access mentoring opportunities, skills development and counselling in the sewing centre. Located in the CBD, it’s an easy place to drop in to for services or just for a chat.
The new cafe, due to open this autumn, will offer takeaway drinks and pastries from around the world. It will help bring more people and funds through the doors while also providing new training and employment pathways like TAFE-certified barista accreditation.
“We are so excited to see our social enterprise cafe built,” says Melody enthusiastically.
“We are also launching a new hamper range made by the women in our programs called Dream Free and we are looking forward to continuing to work with the AFP and department of social services to expand these programs nationwide.”
The Be Hers Hub is at 101 Murray Street, Hobart. Visit behers.org.au
Clockwise from far left Melody Towns outside the Be Hers hub in Hobart’s CBD; the new hub includes a social enterprise cafe; the hub is a safe space for vulnerable women to access counselling and mentoring opportunities.
drive
18/ AUTO NEWS
22/ 0-100: TOYOTA LANDCRUISER PRADO
24/ IN REVERSE: NISSAN 240Z
26/ ROAD TEST: MAZDA CX-5 GT SP
32/ UNMISSABLE AUTUMN DRIVES
K-Pop battle
If a Kia EV9 is too big for your electric-vehicle needs and the EV6 is too rich for your budget, then Kia has a new all-electric SUV that might be a better fit for your garage and wallet.
The Kia EV5 is the smallest and latest electric SUV from the busy Korean car maker, although it won’t hold that title for long with the more compact and affordable EV3 due in April. Designed as a direct rival for the market-leading Tesla Model Y, the mid-sized EV5 is the first Kia sold here that’s sourced from the company’s Chinese factory, in a move designed to get the car to market sooner by avoiding competition from European markets for Korean-built versions.
The four-variant EV5 range encompasses two frontwheel-drive variants differentiated by standard and long-range batteries, and two dual-motor, all-wheeldrive variants in different trim levels.
Prices range from $56,770 (RRP) for the entrylevel EV5 Air 2WD Standard Range, rising to $71,770 (RRP) for the top-spec EV5 GT-Line AWD. We like the performance and grip of the mid-grade EV5 Earth AWD, which matches the 230kW/480Nm outputs and all-wheel-drive traction of the top-grade model but sacrifices a few niceties for its sharper $64,770 (RRP) price tag.
Both AWD models and the EV5 Air 2WD Long Range feature a larger 88.1 kWh battery versus the 64.2 kWh unit of the entry-level model, with the EV5 Earth AWD managing a competitive 500km (WLTP) on a single charge.
With its distinctive, angular styling and roomy, contemporary interior design, the Toyota RAV4-sized EV5 could be just the weapon Kia needs to take the fight to Tesla.
The introduction of the Commonwealth Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standards (NVES), which came into effect on 1 January, is already having an impact on the types of new vehicles being offered.
The NVES aims to lower the tailpipe emissions of Australia’s new vehicle fleet by imposing fees of $100 per gram over the vehicle’s CO2 target. Diesel-powered utes are among the vehicle types likely to be most adversely impacted by the new standard, with car makers scrambling
to add more low- and zero-emissions models to their fleets. Chinese car maker BYD is among the first movers, with the late 2024 introduction of its Shark 6 petrol-electric, plug-in hybrid (PHEV) dual-cab 4x4 ute. The Shark 6 promises up to 800km of combined-cycle driving courtesy of its twin electric motors, 29.58kWh LFP battery and 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine. Priced from $57,900 (RRP) the BYD will go head-to-head with the more expensive Ford Ranger PHEV, due in mid 2025, which boasts
a larger 2.3-litre turbocharged fourcylinder EcoBoost petrol engine and 10-speed automatic gearbox with a 75kW electric motor and 11.8kW battery. Expected to be priced from $70,000 (RRP) the Ford can’t match the BYD’s price but it will outperform it in the towing stakes, with the Blue Oval promising its new petrolelectric ute will maintain the full 3500kg braked towing capacity of ICE-powered Rangers. For more, visit bydautomotive.com.au
China plates
Australian drivers have become accustomed to the sight of new Chinese nameplates and vehicles on our roads, with the likes of BYD, Chery, GWM, LDV and MG now well established here. Last year, MG and GWM both made the list of our 10 best-selling new car brands, ranking seventh and 10th respectively, while the MG ZS small SUV was the country’s ninth best-selling vehicle.
China is already the third-most-popular country of origin for new vehicle imports behind Japan and Thailand, with several new Chinese brands including Smart and JAC launched in 2024, and a suite of others waiting in the wings for their expected 2025 debut. Included in the list of new Chinese brands expected to make landfall in Australia this year are Deepal, Denza, Foton, GAC Aion, Geely, Jaecoo, Leapmotor, Skywell, XPeng and Zeekr. While many of the offerings from these new nameplates will be EVs, the likes of Foton and JAC (which launched its T9 in December 2024) are targeting Australia’s booming dual-cab ute segment. For more, visit fcai.com.au
AUSSIE LOVE A UTE!
Utes remain a national obsession, with Australians purchasing 229,219 new utes last year. In the lead? The Ford Ranger, which again claimed top spot as Australia’s most popular new vehicle model with 62,593 sales, ahead of the third-placed Toyota HiLux (53,499) and fourthplaced Isuzu D-Max (30,194).
auto news.
INEOS SHOWS NO QUARTER
If ever there were an automotive origin story designed to be embraced by Australians, it’s that of the Ineos Grenadier, a European-built 4WD wagon conceived over pints of beer in the London pub after which it was named. Launched locally in late 2023, the Grenadier 4WD wagon now has a stablemate in the form of the Quartermaster dual-cab 4WD ute. The ute and wagon share the same mechanicals and strippedback, functional body styling, with the Quartermaster – which is also available as a cab chassis – targeting heavy-duty 4WD utes like the LandCruiser 79 Series. While Ineos has its work cut out convincing Aussies to switch allegiance from Australia’s most trusted 4WD brand, the Quartermaster has a clear edge in the under-bonnet department. Toyota has switched from V8 to fourcylinder turbodiesel power across the 70 Series range, where Ineos offers the choice of two BMW-sourced
inline six-cylinder turbo petrol and diesel engines. The Quartermaster diesel’s outputs of 183kW/550Nm are more than a match for the ’Cruiser’s 150kW/500Nm, while its eight-speed automatic transmission boasts two more cogs than the Toyota’s. Under the Quartermaster’s aluminium body panelling are a sturdy steel ladderframe chassis, beam axles and long-travel coil spring suspension, endowing the Quartermaster with a hefty 3500kg tow capacity, although payload capacity trails the Toyota. Off-road ability is assured via a full-time 4WD system with centre differential lock and a two-speed transfer case, with front and rear differential locks available. Prices start at $105,000 (RRP) for the base Quartermaster and rise to $118,000 (RRP) for the Fieldmaster and Trialmaster, with petrol and diesel engines priced identically.
For more, visit ineosgrenadier.com/ en/au/
Photos: supplied
0–100 review
Welcome to LandCruiser country
Toyota’s LandCruiser Prado 4WD wagon delivers true go-anywhere capability in a familyfriendly package that builds on the nameplate’s near-30-year history.
Story Harry Weller
The newly arrived fifth-generation Prado has been a long time coming and arrives with hefty price increases across the board, but the 250 Series Prado is roomier, better equipped, more refined and more capable than its predecessors.
Mention the words ‘Toyota LandCruiser’ and the image that likely springs to mind is the rugged 70 Series ute, or perhaps the burly 300 Series wagon. But there’s another LandCruiser that has established itself as a favourite with Aussie families over the course of its almost-30-year model run. That vehicle is the Toyota LandCruiser Prado, the latest fifth generation of which, the 250 Series, arrived in late 2024 as a direct replacement for the ageing 150 Series.
Boasting a bold new look characterised by chiselled, militaristic lines and retro styling cues borrowed from earlier LandCruisers, the new Prado is based on the same sturdy ladder-frame chassis as its big brother the 300 Series, while its four-cylinder turbodiesel powertrain is borrowed from the Toyota HiLux, albeit with additional refinements including a 48-volt mild-hybrid electrical system and more sophisticated eight-speed automatic transmission.
THE SPECS
MAKE/MODEL: Toyota LandCruiser 250 Series Prado GXL
Prado buyers can choose from five different trim grades: GX, GXL, VX, Altitude and Kakadu, in five- and seven-seat configurations, with prices ranging from $72,500 (RRP) for the five-seat Prado GX, to $99,990 (RRP) for the range-topping seven-seat Kakadu. That’s up to $10,000 more expensive than the equivalent 150 Series, but Toyota has countered by equipping all Prado grades more generously.
Priced at $79,990 (MRLP) the mid-grade GXL is the least expensive seven-seat variant and is forecast to be the best-selling Prado. It shares the GX’s 12.3-inch infotainment system, 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster and 10-speaker sound system, but adds heated and ventilated front seats, artificial leather seat trim, electric driver’s seat adjustment, leather steering wheel and shifter, rear privacy glass, a powered tailgate, three-zone climate control and wireless phone charging.
With overall dimensions that closely mirror the 300 Series, the new Prado’s interior is roomy and comfortable, with the main gripe being a rather inelegant design for the third row of seats, which eats into cargo capacity.
Like the GX and off-road-focused Altitude, the GXL rides on sensible 18-inch alloy wheels which don’t look as flash as the 20-inch units fitted to the VX and Kakadu but are less puncture prone when driving off-road.
Power and torque outputs are identical to the outgoing model but the new transmission and myriad other changes mean the engine feels entirely different, delivering smoother, quieter and more responsive performance across the board. There’s ample low-rev grunt to help deliver on the 250 Series’ expanded 3500kg towing capacity.
Over the course of 56 years and seven different model generations, the Nissan Z has established itself as one of the world’s great sports cars at an attainable price.
Billed as a luxuriously appointed high-performance sports car with a Gran Turismo feel, the original Datsun 240Z copied the long nose, raked windscreen and swooping profile of the Jaguar E-Type it emulated but at a fraction of the price, ushering in a new class of low-cost GT machinery.
The year 1969 will long be remembered as the year of the first moon landing, Jimi Hendrix shredding at Woodstock and the rise of the hippy counterculture. On the automotive front it was also the year that Japanese car maker Nissan signalled its ambition to go head-to-head with the best from Europe and the USA, releasing its dramatically styled Datsun 240Z sports car.
The former head of Nissan’s US division Yutaka Katayama is credited with having pushed his Japanese colleagues to develop the front-engine, rear-drive sports car as a halo product for the brand’s passenger-car line-up.
Billed as a “luxuriously appointed high-performance sports car with a Gran Turismo feel”, the eventual Datsun 240Z combined compact size, head-turning styling and great handling courtesy of a sophisticated all-independent suspension. It was also sharply priced, and delivered spirited performance courtesy of a single-overhead cam
2.4-litre in-line six-cylinder engine fed by twin Hitachi SU carburettors.
The engine’s outputs were a modest 112kW@5600rpm and 197Nm@4400rpm but with its relatively light weight and fourspeed manual gearbox the Datsun could cover the 0-100km/h dash in a respectable 7.8 seconds, on its way to a 200km/h top speed.
Featuring an aircraft-style cockpit, contoured sports seats, front disc brakes, excellent powerto-weight ratio, and such luxury features as an electric clock and autotune radio with power antenna, the 240Z became an instant hit in its home market and abroad.
It would take almost a year for the slinky coupe to reach our shores but by the time it did in September 1970 the 240Z had become the world’s best-selling sports car. Aussie enthusiasts warmly embraced the new player, and within a year of local launch, Australia had become
the third-largest export market behind the USA and Canada.
The 240Z’s $4567 sticker price was more than you’d pay for contemporary local muscle cars like the Ford Falcon XW Phase I and Chrysler E38 Charger, but about the same as the British-built Triumph TR6 sports car, which the 240Z made seem instantly old hat.
Story Harry Weller
supplied
MODEL
Photos:
From left The romantic town of Stanley is loved for its history and geological beauty; the CX-5 navigates rural roads with ease and precision.
ROAD test
From Launceston to the towering majesty of The Nut in Stanley, we take a day trip through Tasmania’s scenic north. With the Mazda CX-5 GT SP as the ultimate road-trip companion, we discover winding backroads, coastal gems and breathtaking views.
Words Andrew Bain Photos Prime Perspectives
IIn the faint light of a Launceston dawn, Cataract Gorge’s dark walls are slowly brightening in my rear-view mirror. The city is almost empty and, in the near darkness, the heads-up display on the windscreen of the Mazda CX-5 GT SP is a bright tattoo of numbers. As I zigzag through the streets, the vehicle’s adaptive front headlights turn corners ahead of me like searchlights.
The day is young but has so much promise because I’m setting out on a drive between two of northern Tasmania’s signature natural features: the deep cleft of Cataract Gorge and the high volcanic plug of The Nut in Stanley. Getting me there is this CX-5 GT SP, the second-to-top model in the range of one of Australia’s biggest-selling medium SUVs.
As the city rubs the sleep from its eyes, I’m soon gone, swinging west onto the Bass Highway, though the highway is not my goal. When you drive to Tasmania’s northwest, the highway feels like the lowest of ways.
I stay with the highway only until Elizabeth Town, turning off onto the backroads that wriggle through fertile farmland towards Sheffield. As one of the smallest of the medium SUVs on the market, the CX-5 is a vehicle that feels in its happy place out
of the city and on these open roads. Its compact shape gives it a nimble nature, booting out of bends and corners like an escapee – even in this 2.5-litre non-turbo model, which has a soothing, throaty purr that’s not intrusive but just enough to remind me that I have power patiently waiting under my right foot. The GT SP also comes in a more powerful turbo version, which is akin to stowing a sports car under the bonnet of an SUV.
Fittingly, the GT SP’s trim profile is sporty enough to catch the eye with its 19-inch black alloy wheels and dark interior brightened by a power sliding and tilt-glass sunroof. The leather steering wheel is paired with heated black leather seats with sexy red stitching. Rear boot space – with the tailgate opening and closing by a hands-free remote sensor – is also slightly smaller than in some other medium SUVs, but it feels plentiful for most needs.
Beyond Elizabeth Town, the countryside comes in primary colours – vibrant red soils, lush green grasses and crops – but the most colourful thing here is Sheffield, the town that reinvented itself in the 1980s by turning its streetscape into a gallery of murals (there are now said to be more than 200 murals around the town and region).
I grab my first fortifying coffee of the day at Mountain Mumma and continue west, where the settlements surrounding Sheffield – Promised Land, Paradise – amply describe the joy of the drive. Watching over it all is the ever-present, craggy Mount Roland, its summit scraped by cloud this day, adding mood to the morning.
One of the north’s great joys is its backroads, which run like grey squiggles through some of Tasmania’s most productive farmland. By the time I approach Forth, I feel almost as though I’m driving
Tasmania’s town of murals; heading west on Claude Road with Mount Roland in the background; the CX-5 is packed full of features including a hands-free remote sensor for tailgate opening and closing, and a 5-star ANCAP rating; a caffeine stop at Sheffield cafe Mountain Mumma.
Clockwise from far left Sheffield,
through the vegetable aisle of a grocery store – quite appropriate since Wilmot, the town that was home to Australia’s first Coles store in 1910, is just down the road.
Briefly, north of Forth, I return to the Bass Highway, though there continues to be better ways west than the fast way. Out of Ulverstone, the coast-hugging Penguin Road rounds the rugged shores into the seaside town both named Penguin and with an obsession for penguins, from its snazzily dressed, three-metre-high Big Penguin to its penguin-adorned rubbish bins. To me, this road is one of the most fun short sections of coastal driving in the state, running for 10km like a balcony above beaches and volcanic shores, with Goat Island rearing out of the seas and low tide transforming the coast into a constellation of rock pools.
Past Wynyard, my hide-and-seek game with the Bass Highway ends, for the highway is pretty much the only way to Stanley. It’s a chance to ease the CX-5 into radar cruise control, which holds the vehicle in its lane as true as tracks, and let the 10 Bose speakers settle into a road soundtrack. The 10.25-inch dashboard infotainment screen is controlled by a dial beside the transmission – in easy reach from the driver’s seat – that feels a little like using a joystick and takes away the need and distraction of reaching for a touchscreen.
In an age of chatty vehicles, the CX-5 is decidedly quiet and companionable, with few beeps and bells, at least until it pings to tell me that, in its programmed opinion, I need to take another break from driving. Fortunately, the welcome stop of Boat
THE SPECS
PRICING $51,605
BODY STYLE SUV
SEATING 5 seats
FUEL CONSUMPTION 7.4L/100km
SAFETY 5-star ANCAP rating (rated in 2017)
ENGINE TYPE 4-cylinder 2.5L petrol
TRANSMISSION 6-speed automatic
DRIVE TYPE All-wheel drive
MAX POWER 140kW
MAX TORQUE 252Nm
COMPARABLES
Nissan X-Trail N-Trek Priced from $53,800
• Seven-seat option; fuel economy
• Boot seats create a small incline in the boot floor – not ideal for those grocery bags
Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed Priced from $57,360
• Plug-in hybrid option available; large boot space
• Dated infotainment graphics; not the smoothest of rides
Harbour Beach, one of my favourite Tasmanian strands, is just a few minutes ahead. With a second coffee in hand from beachside Seekers, I sit on a bench looking out over its brilliant white sands and glowing blue seas, where a couple of surfers are trying their luck in the choppy swell beneath Table Cape.
Continuing west, the road quickly climbs inland over the tail of the Rocky Cape hills and then edges back to the coast, crossing tannin-darkened estuaries, with The Nut (Munatrik) now rising ahead like an island out of Bass Strait.
Finally, late in the day, I turn off the highway and onto the finger-like peninsula that ends so dramatically and beautifully at Stanley and The Nut, the rugged and rocky remnant of an ancient volcano. The road is momentarily empty and I punt the CX-5 into sport mode, which takes hold with a decided kick. We are both eager, it seems, to be in Stanley.
Scan the QR code or visit ract.com.au/ membership/journeys to see this Road Test brought to life on video.
Clockwise from top left
A pitstop at Sulphur Creek, west of Penguin; Penguin Road’s volcanic shores; a welcome stop at Boat Harbour Beach, Sheffield.
Unmissable Tassie
autumn
drives
Autumn in Tasmania is road-trip heaven. Whether you’re chasing gourmet eats, Insta-worthy views or a bit of both, these drives have you covered. Pack the car, cue up the playlist and let Tassie’s autumn colours do the rest.
The great eastern drive
The East Coast always delivers, but autumn takes it to new heights. Begin in Orford and hug the coastline, soaking in views of turquoise waters contrasted by fiery autumn foliage. Stop at the convict-era Spiky Bridge near Swansea, sample fresh oysters at Freycinet Marine Farm, or simply pause to soak up the stunning scenery at Great Oyster Bay. Freycinet National Park awaits at the end of the drive, with its granite peaks and Wineglass Bay – a seasonal showstopper. For the best views, tackle the Wineglass Bay Lookout track, where autumn’s cooler temperatures make the climb all the more enjoyable.
West Coast wilderness
Feeling adventurous? The wild beauty of Tasmania’s West Coast is like nowhere else. The route from Queenstown to Strahan twists through rugged mountains and lush rainforests. Stop at Nelson Falls for a short walk surrounded by autumn brilliance, then roll into Strahan for dramatic coastal views that remind you why Tassie is untamed and unforgettable. Take a Gordon River Cruise for an even closer look at the wild landscapes, with autumn casting a golden glow over the dense greenery.
Clockwise from far left Anthony Road, West Coast Range; enjoy epic East Coast views on the Freycinet Experience Walk; Freycinet Marine Farm; driving the Western Explorer Highway.
Meander Valley
For countryside vibes, head west from Launceston. Winding through charming villages like Deloraine and Chudleigh, this drive showcases local produce and artisan goods. Drop by Ashgrove Cheese for a taste of the award-winning offerings or visit Melita Honey Farm for all things sweet. Make time for Liffey Falls – a picture-perfect waterfall cocooned in golden autumn leaves. Pack a picnic to enjoy by the water’s edge, where the sound of cascading falls provides the perfect soundtrack to your day.
The Derwent Valley
Just beyond Hobart, the Derwent Valley drive is a symphony of autumn hues. Golden poplars and oaks line the riverbanks as you cruise towards New Norfolk, a treasure trove for vintage finds. Stop by the Drill Hall Emporium for antiques or grab a coffee at The Agrarian Kitchen. Further up
the road, Mount Field National Park is a must-see. Don’t miss Russell Falls, framed by trees showing off their autumn wardrobe. It’s an easy walk with incredible views. If time allows, take the longer loop to Horseshoe Falls for even more autumnal splendour.
Midlands heritage
Step back in time as you take the Heritage Highway linking Hobart and Launceston. Towns like Oatlands and Ross bring heritage charm, with their convict-era architecture, cobblestone streets and cosy cafes. Wander along Ross Bridge, etched with carvings by convict stonemasons, or follow Campbell Town’s convict brick trail – where history meets the crunch of autumn leaves underfoot. Stop by Callington Mill, where you can learn about traditional flour milling while enjoying the golden autumn landscape.
Clockwise from left
The Agrarian Kitchen in the Derwent Valley; Meander Valley, Deloraine; Callington Mill Distillery in Oatlands; Cradle Mountain and Dove Lake; stop off in Cygnet in the Huon Valley.
Huon Valley loop
This drive has a bit of everything: orchard-lined roads, lush hills and the serene Huon River. From Hobart, wind your way through the valley, pausing in Franklin or Cygnet for cider tastings and apple-filled treats. If you’re up for a short detour, the Tahune Airwalk serves up sweeping views of the autumn-draped forest canopy. Feeling adventurous? Walk the swinging bridges over the Picton and Huon rivers for a thrill with a view.
Cradle to coast tasting trail
Food lovers, this one’s for you. Start in Devonport and follow the tasting trail to Cradle Mountain, indulging in everything from local cheeses to craft whiskies. Along the way, stop at Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm for a sweet treat or Hellyers Road Distillery for a whisky tasting. Once at Cradle Mountain, the Enchanted Walk is the perfect way to round off your trip. Expect moss-draped forests, trails kissed by autumn’s golden glow, and the occasional wombat sighting.
GET ROADTRIP READY
Prep your car to handle Tassie’s twisty, scenic roads:
Tyres
Check pressure and tread –Tasmania’s roads keep things interesting.
Fluids
Oil, coolant and windscreen washer fluid – top them all up.
Emergency kit
Include a first aid kit, torch, jumper cables and snacks.
Windscreen
Autumn’s low sun and a dirty windscreen? No thanks. Clean it before you go.
Fuel stops
Some routes are remote, so fill up whenever you can.
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travel news.
Explore our state with Nola James
FRESH BAKED
Creative director Kobi Ruzicka (Lucinda, DIER MAKR) and chefs Jye Ferguson and Julie Kettyle have opened Six Russell Bakes in the old Wing & Co site in Sandy Bay. The bakery-slash-bistro is home base for pastries, breads and sandwiches. Don’t miss the English-style muffins filled with a juicy pork patty, silky steamed eggs, melted cheese and a tangy caper sauce.
RAMEN YA
At the new Ranita Ramen Bar on Liverpool Street, there are just nine barstools from which to slurp ramen noodles handmade by Spanish-born chef Javier García-Tornel and Tasmanian partner Zoë Erskine. Arrive early or prepare to queue for their super short menu of pork shoyu ramen, vegetarian miso ramen and a snack-sized seasonal rice bowl. Ranita is only open for lunch (Tuesday to Friday, 11am–4pm), but it is licensed, with a choice of lager, pétnat or lemon soda.
HILTON
Tasmania has welcomed its first Hilton hotel, with DoubleTree by Hilton Hobart now open at 179 Macquarie Street. The nine-storey, 206-room property boasts an indoor lap pool, the high-end restaurant Leatherwood (with head chef Nathan Chilcott having moved over from Mures) and the chain’s signature warm cookies on arrival.
WINE AND DINE
Visitors to the Devil’s Corner cellar can now reserve a spot on the new Moulting Lagoon Adventure, a $195 luxury offering that includes a vineyard tour down to Moulting Lagoon, a large wetland and bird sanctuary that borders the vines, complete with a waterside wine tasting and oyster-shucking session. Afterwards, enjoy a gourmet lunch from Tombolo Freycinet (pizza) or The Fishers of Freycinet (seafood) followed by a premium wine tasting in the Devil’s Den.
25 YEARS OF STILLWATER
Iconic Tasmanian restaurant Stillwater is celebrating 25 years of exceptional hospitality by recreating 25 of the most-loved dishes that have graced its menu since opening in 2000. Stillwater’s wallaby wings, macadamia-crusted blue-eye trevalla, and bombe Alaska with brambleberry and spiced rum are just some of the iconic dishes that will make appearances throughout 2025. To find out more about Stillwater’s 25-year anniversary celebrations, visit stillwater.com.au.
TRYOMAKASE- STYLEEX
Freycinet Resort
At resort restaurant Mount Paul Lounge, the dailychanging seven-course sushi omakase experience features sashimi rock lobster, abalone and Robbins Island wagyu.
Cambridge House
Chef Kaz Yazawa and wife Thana run this ‘restaurant with rooms’ in Geeveston. Its signature 14-course SHIOmakase menu is served alongside an overnight stay.
Omotenashi
This exquisite dining experience sees chefs Lachlan Colwill and Sophie Pope carefully present sliced-toorder sashimi on antique Japanese crockery.
travel
Canal-side Dunalley has put the horrors of the 2013 bushfires behind it and is now firmly stamping itself as a gourmet stop on the drive to turrakana / Tasman Peninsula, writes Andrew Bain.
The PIT STOP
Dunalley
EAT
Dining at the newly renamed Dunalley Bay Distillery, Eat & Drink (formerly the Dunalley Seaside Market) is like casting back in time – think paper-wrapped fish and chips on wooden tables looking over the sea (and maybe seals) in a setting seemingly transplanted from the Canadian Maritimes. And now with attached distillery to boot.
SEE
In 1905, Australia’s only purposebuilt sea canal was cut through the isthmus connecting Dunalley to the Forestier Peninsula. A foreshore walkway, with two lookout platforms overhanging the canal, runs almost the length of the 895m Denison Canal. It begins near the swing bridge to the large Tasman Monument, erected in 1942 to commemorate 300 years since Abel Tasman’s nearby landing – the only place he set foot in Tasmania – in 1642.
DRINK
Cross the canal and turn into one of Tasmania’s most storied farms to find wine in place of wool at the Bangor Vineyard Shed. The cellar door sits to one side, or you can grab a glass of something red, white or pink and sit out at the railing for views over the vines to Blackman Bay and Dunalley.
SHOP
Tucked into a fold of Dunalley’s small shopping centre, The Lanterns is a breakfast cafe with a solid sideline as a providore. Among the wall of goods are foodstuffs as local as garlic honey roasted cashews from Koonya, along with the likes of pepperberry cheese popcorn, mushroom miso, McHenry Sloe Paste and locally made alpaca beanies and small-batch homewares.
STAY
Stained glass, sandstone, sauna… it’s the accommodation holy trinity at the renovated, heritage-listed St Martin’s of Tasmania. The large wooden deck provides an elevated view over Blackman Bay, and the garden sauna is glass-fronted for more views. Expect a log fire, galley kitchen and pews as dining chairs.
ESSENTIAL STOPS
• Dunalley Bay Distillery
• Denison Canal
• Bangor Vineyard Shed
• Lanterns
• St Martin’s of Tasmania
DUNALLEY
Photos:
From top
View of Dunalley; St Martin's of Tasmania; Bangor Vineyard Shed.
As shorter days bring dappled light and falling leaves in fiery reds and golden yellows, Tasmania transforms into a photographer’s dream. Nola James speaks to four local snappers about their top tips for capturing the season’s beauty and their favourite locations to frame the perfect autumn shot.
thechasing light
Photos: Adam Gibson
From left Granville Harbour, Central Highlands.
“I am drawn to the wild side. I feel that taps into the vibe of Tasmania.”
Adam
Gibson, architectural and lifestyle photographer
Commercial photographer Adam Gibson travels the world shooting award-winning houses, highend resorts and 24-hour mega cities for the likes of Gourmet Traveller, Qantas and Conde Nast.
While Adam works predominately within the architecture space, when he’s at home, the Tassiebased photographer can be found outdoors. “My passion for photography was born from the landscape,” says Adam, who never shoots personal work on a clear day. “The rain and storms, the brutal weather, that’s the most exciting time. Anyone can take a nice photo of a sunset, but I am drawn to the wild side. I feel that taps into the vibe of Tasmania.”
Cradle Mountain is one of his favourite spots; so too is Mount Field. If you’d like to follow his lead, prepare to get up early. “For me, the time to shoot is pre-dawn. It’s magic, that 15 to 20 minutes just before the sun rises. I do a lot of driving in the dark.”
Sometimes, the journey is the destination, Adam adds. “Often, I’ll be driving, and I’ll stop the car and shoot out the window.” If you keep your eyes open to the world around you, chances are you’ll see something great.
@adam.gibson.photo
Clockwise from above Bay of Fires; Bruny Island; the Ingles building in Launceston; King Island.
Dearna Bond, lifestyle photographer
Hobart-based stylist Dearna Bond, who grew up in Tassie’s northeast, fell into photography when she started a food blog in the early 2010s. “I’ve always been really interested in food, and I picked up photography to document what was I eating. It kind of just took off from there, and the blog fell by the wayside.”
Her work regularly takes her out into Tasmania’s vineyards, which she says are especially resplendent in autumn. “The Coal Valley sometimes gets fog in the morning,” she says, “which is beautiful with the turning colour of the leaves.”
Launceston is another favourite locale this time of year. With a mix of old colonial buildings, gothic churches and brutalist design, plus low buildings that don’t cast long shadows, she says it’s a great city for architectural photography.
Dearna prefers to shoot later in the day, when the light is softer. “I think in autumn, the light is still bright, but cloud cover can diffuse that.” She encourages aspiring snappers to get out in all weather conditions too. “Moodier weather is dynamic in autumn, and not as difficult to navigate as it is in winter.
“Any photographer will tell you that the most important thing is light, but when you’re learning it’s hard to understand what that means,” she adds. “The autumn light does an amazing job of making the ordinary extraordinary.”
@dearnabond_photography
Anna Critchley, content creator
It took Anna Critchley just one weekend to decide to relocate from the Hunter Valley to Hobart. “We came here on holiday in 2022 and loved it so much we moved here four months later,” Anna says. “This is an island of dreams, honestly.”
The move also gave Anna, who has a retailstyling background, the confidence to focus on photography full time. Her natural, ethereal aesthetic is a hit with the bed-and-breakfast set –she’s worked with Camp Nowhere in the Central Highlands, the Ship Inn Stanley and Flinders Island hospitality precinct On Island Time – and she shoots social media content for The Agrarian Kitchen. “It’s just me and my camera,” she says. “I like my photos to be authentic. I love it when people say, ‘I didn’t even know you were there.’”
One of the first things Anna noticed when she moved here is that the light was much softer than in NSW. “It’s a ‘dreamy’ quality of light,” she says. “That’s a word I use a lot since moving to Tasmania.”
To make the most of it, she says, move yourself, not the camera. “Move about. Get high. Get low. Move to the left. If you’re looking at a sunset, don’t just shoot that. Look at the way the light hits the world around you.” And don’t let bad weather stop you, either. “Tasmania looks the most beautiful when it’s wild.”
@love_annacritchley
Beach, Stanley.
HOW TO TAKE BETTER SMARTPHONE PHOTOS
Given that most of us leave the house armed with little more than a smartphone, our photographers share their advice for making the most of your device.
Keep your camera straight
“Because phones generally have quite wide-angle lenses, I keep the camera as perpendicular to the ground as possible,” Samuel Shelley says.
Download an app
“I use the Lightroom app to edit everything,” Anna Critchley says. “You can raise and lower brightness, and crop and straighten. There’s even an auto button.”
Open your eyes
“Look for different angles, something you haven’t seen before, and don’t be afraid to fail,” Adam Gibson says. “Remember the camera is just a tool. And phone photos are free!”
Enrol in a class
“Everything is easier when someone shows you how,” Dearna Bond says. This year, she’s hosting phonephotography classes around the state. See dearnabond. com for more information.
Clockwise from above The Ship Inn Stanley; hiking in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park with Miena Village Guiding; trout fishing in Arthurs Lake; Godfreys
Photos: Anna Critchley
Samuel Shelley, commercial photographer
Born and bred in Tassie, Taroona-based photographer Samuel Shelley is largely self-taught. He studied geomatics at uni, but a chance sharehouse encounter proved pivotal. “I’ve always been keen on art and whatnot. My flatmate had a camera, and I was using it more than him. Not long after that I went freelance.”
Every day looks different for Sam, who shoots lifestyle campaigns for clients such as Lark Distillery, Mures and Tourism Tasmania. “Tomorrow I am shooting some people in a vineyard, then I am doing headshots in the afternoon, and next week I’m shooting a chicken farm. And then probably at Banjo’s after that,” Sam says.
While autumn brings cloudy conditions, Sam says they’re perfect for portraits. “Diffused light means skin tones will be more even, with not as many harsh shadows on faces.”
A keen trout fisherman, Sam likes to head to the Central Highlands in autumn. “I’ll try and take a few photos in between fishing, which is hard because I love fishing. I’ll take photos of my friends, and little slices of the landscape there, which can have a barren or ‘harsh’ quality, so that makes for more points of interest.”
Sam says the autumn light is so good, he once moved a shoot for a walking company set in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park from mid-summer to March. “In autumn the sun is at a lower angle for most of the day; you’ve got a longer shooting window where the light is nicer.”
@samuelpshelley
Ready to explore Tasmania’s autumn beauty yourself? Scan here for our guide to the pictureperfect
Tassie towns to visit this season.
Theorchardtrail
From sprawling orchards to boutique farms, it’s harvest time in Tasmania. Ruth Dawkins discovers how innovation and sustainability are shaping the future –and honouring the history – of the Apple Isle.
AAn autumn drive through the Huon Valley is always a delight. Against a spectacular backdrop of mountain peaks and rolling orchards, roadside stalls overflow with apples – not just Granny Smiths and Pink Ladies but all kinds of varieties. Who could resist a ‘Smitten’ or a ‘Geeveston Fanny’?
At farmers’ markets across Tasmania, there are similar celebrations of colour and flavour. While the state’s apple output has fallen significantly since its 1960s peak, when 8.9 million boxes were produced annually, today’s orchardists are blending tradition with innovation to ensure a strong future for this iconic industry.
Organic growth
Everyone in Tasmania knows about Willie Smith’s. Even if you’ve never visited the Apple Shed for a slice of pie and a stroll around the small museum brimming with apple industry artefacts, its cider is a mainstay of every bar and bottleshop in the state.
Perhaps lesser known is the other side of the Smith family’s operations. With 46 hectares of orchards in the Huon Valley, R&R Smith is Australia’s largest producer of organic apples.
More than 25 years ago, fourth-generation orchardist and current manager Andrew Smith pushed to turn the business organic.
“I’d been disillusioned with conventional production for several years,” Andrew says. “I didn’t like thinking life came out of a 20-litre plastic drum, and I knew with the pressures of globalisation we needed a point of differentiation.”
In the early 1990s, Andrew visited organic orchards in Washington State with US apple industry visionary Doyle Fleming. He returned to Tasmania energised and excited, determined to convert the Smith family orchards to organic.
“I basically drove the business off a cliff,” he says with a laugh. “I didn’t do much learning ahead of time; I dived in and tried to make it work as I went along.”
Andrew’s bold decision has paid off. Starting with just three hectares and slowly scaling up, the orchard received full organic certification in 1998. Since then, the business has diversified into cider and spirits, renovated an old packing shed into a cellar door, and become Australia’s first organic company to use 100 per cent home-compostable packaging.
Clockwise from left Apple pie at Willie Smith’s; fine apple brandy, a Tassie take on a French tradition; Andrew Smith walks through his 46 hectares of apple orchards; the Mr Bridges range of ciders with its turbo chook design; Our Mates’ Farm boasts 10,000 apple trees.
“You never reach a comfortable place in agriculture because you’re trying to control two uncontrollable things: Mother Nature and human nature,” says Andrew. “You’re only ever one weather event or geopolitical decision away from losing everything, so the only option is to keep moving.”
Cultivating connections
If a broad portfolio is key to orcharding success, then Matt Tack and Coreen Ung of Our Mates’ Farm near Geeveston are onto a winner.
With around 10,000 trees, they grow a dazzling array of heritage apple varieties such as ‘Cox’s Orange Pippin’, ‘Mutsu’ and ‘Spartan’, several different cider apples, and popular varieties such as Galas and Pink Ladies which are sold through an agent to a major supermarket.
“In the 10 years we’ve had the farm, Coreen and I have been on a massive journey,” says Matt. “What started as a neglected orchard is now totally diversified, certified organic, and home to some very spoiled sheep, pigs and cattle. All the juice pressings and apples that don’t make retail grade go to the pigs – unless the cows get there first.”
Matt and Coreen are renowned not just for their commitment to sustainability, but also for encouraging other small producers in Tasmania to adopt a similar approach. For Matt, it’s the best way to repay the kindness they received in their early days.
“It’s called Our Mates’ Farm because it’s not really just ours,” he says. “It’s a product of all the people who have helped and supported us along the way.”
Building Mr Bridges
Resilience is a common theme in agriculture, but few Tasmanian apple farmers have faced challenges as profound as the Groombridge family, owners
since 1953 of Trial Bay Orchards. In 2019, Peter and Linda Groombridge saw decades of work erased when a fire destroyed their extensive apple packing and storage facilities. Rather than rebuilding the original business from scratch, the family brought on board son Gavin and daughter-in-law Alex, and pivoted to cider production.
“We actually got married in the orchard,” says Alex. “Gavin and I are both pilots, but we decided it would be a nice lifestyle to live here, start a family and figure out what to do with the fruit. Those conversations led to Mr Bridges.”
Launched in 2023, the Mr Bridges range includes a pear cider and a cloudy apple cider, the latter earning a bronze medal at the Australian Cider Awards that same year. Both are sold in cans featuring artwork by local designer and street artist Jonny Scholes.
“We wanted a distinctive Tasmanian design, and I love that we ended up with a turbo chook (also known as a Tasmanian native hen) on there,” says Alex. “We’ve got them running all over the orchard, so it ties in beautifully.”
Reviving royal traditions
Turbo chooks may rule the roost at Mr Bridges, but at Brady’s Lookout Cider in West Tamar the orchard is abuzz with all kinds of native wildlife –encouraged by the nesting boxes and insect hotels installed by owners Caro and Chris Brown.
Since purchasing the property in 2015, the Browns have transformed this former pear and walnut orchard into a heritage apple orchard, growing more than 85 rare varieties. They’ve set aside a third of their land for conservation purposes, including an Eastern barred bandicoot program.
It’s not just a commitment to regenerative and closed-loop farming practices that sets Brady’s Lookout apart; Caro and Chris also adopt ‘méthode traditionelle’ (sparkling method) techniques.
“The ciders we produce are royal ciders, which is what was being drunk back in the 17th century in Charles I’s court,” explains Caro. “You need particular varieties to do that – to get the structure and flavour profile that you want – which is why we went down the pathway of purchasing the property and planting our own trees.”
Focusing on heritage apple varieties means that much of Chris and Caro’s time is dedicated to educating customers – whether they’re visiting
THE BEST ORCHARDS TO VISIT THIS AUTUMN
Mount Gnomon Farm, Penguin
Nestled against the Dial Range in northwest Tasmania, you’ll find beautiful gardens, a restaurant, glamping accommodation and a thousand-tree, heritage-variety apple orchard. At special events and regular Sunday lunches, sample its unique ciders. These blends evolve each year, based on the performance of the 30 varieties growing in the orchard.
Spreyton
Cider Co, Spreyton
Find the cellar door in the heart of its orchards near Devonport. Renowned for its fresh juices, the fourth-generation apple-grower owners began experimenting with cider ferments in 2011, opening a production facility just a year later. Describing itself as a true ‘treeto-bottle’ cider producer, it has won multiple medals at the Australian Cider Awards.
Farm gate retailers, statewide
From Lees Orchard at Dilston, to Windara Orchard at Sidmouth and BW Griggs and Sons near Huonville, many orchards welcome visitors to purchase the very freshest produce directly from roadside stalls or farm shops. Given the seasonal nature of farm work, it’s wise to check opening hours and availability online to avoid disappointment.
the cellar door or exploring the unique offerings at Launceston’s Harvest Market.
“We love talking to people,” says Caro. “It’s a really important part of our job to help grow awareness that there’s more choice than just a red or a green apple – there’s a really amazing array of big ones, small ones and ugly ones that we would encourage people to look out for and perhaps even start to grow themselves.”
From waste to wonder
Despite generations of experience in Tasmania’s apple industry – and ongoing research into pest control and crop improvement – there are still years when weather events, bushfires or market forces can send orchardists’ plans awry.
When that happens, Stuart Addison is the man you want on speed dial. At his Chigwell distillery, the former sommelier and founder of Salvage Drink Co transforms fruit waste and other by-products into unique white spirits – as well as an ever-evolving range of batch cocktails.
“We don’t want the nice apples,” Stuart says. “We want the ones that have fallen off the trees or been storm affected.”
Rather than a traditional Scottish whisky still, Stuart uses a column still which slows the distillation process to create a unique and highly concentrated product. The cider he makes, which is distilled into the base spirits, uses the whole apple – not just the juice. While Stuart is proud that sustainability is at the heart of Salvage Drink Co, this approach also enhances the depth and complexity of the final gin and vodka product.
“There are skins and solids in there, so you’re getting all the oils and the flavour,” explains Stuart. “It’s an utterly undrinkable cider that creates an absolutely magical spirit.”
It’s harvest time! Scan the QR code for our guide to eating your way through the Tassie seasons.
Clockwise from above Brady’s Lookout Cider grows 85 rare varieties of heritage apples; Brady’s produces royal ciders; Willie Smith’s Apple Shed; hand-picked apples at Willie Smith’s.
Dive into even more stories and inspiration online. Whether you’re planning your next getaway, curious about Tasmania’s food scene or looking for ways to explore the island in every season, we’ve got fresh content waiting for you.
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More services, more convenience: RACT at Eastlands
We’re excited to announce the development of a brandnew concept store at Eastlands Shopping Centre, designed to bring even more convenience and support to our members on Hobart’s eastern shore.
This innovative space will act as a connected community hub where members can access trusted services, receive personalised advice and explore valuable resources in a welcoming environment. Whether you’re updating your insurance, joining Roadside Assistance or taking a driving lesson, the Eastlands concept store has been created with your needs in mind.
With design work currently underway, we’re working on a fresh, modern layout that blends technology with a personal touch. The store will feature private spaces for one-on-one support, self-help technology for quick
and easy transactions, and high-quality displays to share educational and promotional information. By combining these elements, we aim to create a space that’s not only functional but makes every visit enjoyable and stress-free.
The concept store will be located on the ground floor of the shopping centre, opposite Kmart. It’s part of our commitment to enhancing accessibility and delivering the outstanding service you expect from RACT.
We can’t wait to welcome you to this exciting new space. Keep an eye on our website for updates.
the latest .
RACT shines at TasPride 2025
Vibrant colours and joyful energy filled the streets at the 2025 TasPride Parade, where 70 RACT team members, along with their families and friends, joined in celebrating and promoting awareness for the LGBTIQ+ community.
A special thank you goes to RACT staff who travelled from across Tasmania to be part of this event, demonstrating our organisation’s commitment to diversity and inclusivity. Grace Ring,
RACT’s events manager, shared her thoughts on the day: “The parade creates a really happy and effervescent environment, focused purely on bringing people together. You can’t help but feel like sunshine for the rest of your weekend.”
RACT’s participation in TasPride reflects our values of fostering a welcoming, inclusive community both within our workplaces and across Tasmania. Events like these remind us of the importance of celebrating diversity and standing together in support of equality.
Giving back at Bonorong
The animal lovers in the RACT team recently rolled up their sleeves at Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, volunteering their time to support Tasmania’s unique wildlife. Across two days in January and February, staff spent time weeding the grounds and cleaning out the enclosures of the sanctuary’s resident animals.
Providing our support to ensure the animals continue to live in a clean, safe and enriching habitat reflects our commitment to caring for Tasmania’s natural environment.
Bonorong, known for its incredible work in wildlife rehabilitation and conservation, relies on community support to keep its operations running smoothly.
For the RACT team, it was an opportunity to make a meaningful difference, connect with Tasmania’s wildlife and contribute to the sanctuary’s vital work.
Through partnerships like this, we continue to invest in the wellbeing of our local environment and communities – a mission that’s as rewarding as it is important.
Pi-Lits: bringing new safety technology to Tasmania’s roads
At RACT, keeping our members and staff safe is always our top priority. That’s why we’ve recently rolled out Pi-Lits across our patrol and contractor network – an innovative safety technology that’s already making a big difference on Tasmania’s roads.
Pi-Lits are portable, bright safety lights designed to improve visibility and alertness at roadside incidents. When one of our Roadside Assistance teams stops to help a member, these lights are placed around the vehicle to create a clear, highly visible barrier. This encourages drivers to slow down, give space and stay alert – helping to protect everyone involved.
After a successful trial earlier this year, Pi-Lits are now being used by patrol teams across the state. Patrol members have shared how this technology has made them feel safer on the job, while members have expressed relief at seeing extra precautions in place when assistance is needed.
For us, road safety is more than a goal – it’s a responsibility. The rollout of Pi-Lits is just one way we’re working to enhance safety and create a stronger, safer community for everyone who shares Tasmania’s roads.
Changing gears
Building road safety skills for life
Developing road safety habits starts early and evolves over a lifetime, writes Mel Percival, RACT GM Advocacy and Government Relations.
Staying safe on the road is more than just following rules, it’s a life skill developed and refined from an early age.
The foundation for lifelong road safety is laid in childhood. Early lessons teach the essential skills children need before becoming independent road users. This process works best when reinforced by parents, schools and the broader community. Together, we not only share knowledge but also model safe behaviours for children to follow.
For parents and carers of preschoolers, small actions can have a big impact. Holding hands while crossing the road provides physical safety and an opportunity to talk about choosing safe crossing points. Introducing the “stop, look, listen and think” routine turns a simple action into a valuable learning experience.
As children grow and gain independence in primary school, parents
become role models. Demonstrating safe behaviours – such as using crossings, obeying traffic signs and respecting school zones – leaves lasting impressions on young minds and instils good habits early.
For young adults learning to drive, parents and carers remain key influencers. Functional skills like understanding road rules and vehicle operation are vital, but equally important are soft skills like assessing risks, making decisions and recognising the responsibility that comes with driving. Teaching these skills equips young drivers to protect themselves, their passengers and other road users.
The statistics on road trauma in Tasmania are sobering. Every serious injury or fatality represents a life forever changed, a family grieving and a community affected. Yet by instilling road safety habits early and reinforcing them throughout life, we can change this narrative.
Programs like RACT’s Yippee and RoadSafe play a key role in educating young Tasmanians. In 2024 alone, more than 7800 children learned how to be safe passengers, pedestrians and cyclists. These initiatives also teach critical thinking and decision-making skills essential for lifelong safety.
Looking ahead, RACT is proud to work with the Tasmanian Government to develop a youth road safety program for students in Years 9 to 12. This comprehensive initiative aims to create a cultural shift in how young Tasmanians approach getting behind the wheel, building a foundation for safer driving habits that last a lifetime.
Reducing road trauma is a collective challenge. By prioritising education, fostering collaboration and reinforcing road safety skills at every stage of life, we can not only protect young drivers but create a safer future for everyone.
A new Love 40 campaign urges Tasmanian drivers to ditch excuses and make school-zone safety their top priority.
Arefreshed Love 40 road-safety campaign is driving a powerful message to make safe driving around schools a top priority for Tasmanian drivers.
The new campaign titled Grow Up, There’s No Excuse in a School Zone debuted recently across TV, radio and digital media platforms just ahead of the new school year.
Each day in Tasmania, approximately 85,000 primary and secondary students travel to school using a mix of transport – from buses and cars to walking and cycling.
It’s estimated around a third of those students travel to school by bus, a mode of transport that is statistically one of the safest when children are with an accredited driver. However, the risk of injury or death increases three to four times as children embark or disembark the school bus.
Between 2020 and 2024, 13 young pedestrians and cyclists, aged four to 17, were involved in accidents in school zones, including, tragically, one fatality.
To help keep students safe around schools, a 40km/h speed limit is in place
during busy pick-up and drop-off times. Schools located on busier roads also have a school crossing patrol officer (SCPO), employed by the Department of State Growth, to guide children safely across the road.
The new Love 40 campaign cleverly features children dressed and acting like adults, delivering familiar excuses drivers often give for not following the rules in school zones. They include:
“Ah, c’mon, it was 9.29am, there were no kids around.”
“I was only a bit over and had a Pilates class to get to.”
“I needed to get on site, got a big job on.”
“I got a message, I only looked at my phone for a second.”
“I was only going 42km, what’s the problem?”
“Oops, I wasn’t concentrating.”
As we move into another school year, it’s vital for all drivers to remember that road safety doesn’t just apply during the first week of school – it’s an ongoing, year-round commitment.
Drivers also need to be mindful of speed limits around school buses. Slowing down near school buses is the law. When approaching a school bus with its lights activated, drivers must reduce their speed to no more than 40km/h within 50m of the bus.
The Love 40 campaign serves as a timely reminder that every school day, whether it’s the start of the year or the middle of the term, students’ lives are at risk.
Each morning, children step out into busy school zones and rely on drivers to follow the speed limits, stop for schoolcrossing patrol officers and be vigilant.
It’s also important to remember that children can sometimes be unpredictable when crossing roads and streets. They might not always pay attention to traffic or follow the usual rules, so it’s important for everyone to stay alert.
For more information on our road safety campaigns, visit rsac.tas.gov.au or head to the RSAC Facebook page
To view the video, scan the QR code.
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the rooms on the same level (6) Down
1 Someone skilled in typing (6)
4 Superficially plausible, but actually wrong (8)
26 Fermented apple juice (5)
6 Culmination or resolution to a series of events (9)
27 Having no predetermined limit or boundary (4-5)
28 Level the score in a match by scoring a goal (8)
29 Part of a building comprising all the rooms on the same level (6)
7 Point or place where something begins (6)
1 During the yacht race which occurs on Easter weekend, which mountains do the participating runners have to run up?
2 Who won consecutive Gold Logies from 1997 to 2000?
3 What animal is on the Western Australian flag?
4 What was Henry Ford most famous for?
5 What is the most famous Tasmanian animal that is now believed extinct?
1 Event that may serve as a guide to the likely outcome of similar situations (4,4)
10 Captain’s room on a ship (9)
11 Frosting (5)
12 Cool, fresh and invigorating weather (5)
13 Get lost! (colloq.) (4,1,4)
14 Similar group of living organisms (7)
16 Edible kernels (4)
2 Biblical selfrighteous or hypocritical person (8)
19 Tall deciduous trees (4)
21 Politely refuse (7)
24 Small red acid berry used in cooking (9)
25 Person who can endure pain without complaining (5)
3 Clean by brushing away dirt or litter (5)
5 Large rounded orange-yellow fruit with a thick rind (7)
Down
7 Point or place where something begins (6)
1 Event that may serve as a guide to the likely outcome of similar situations (4,4)
8 Small seal, especially one set in a ring (6)
2 Biblical self-righteous or hypocritical person (8)
3 Clean by brushing away dirt or litter (5)
9 Mammal in the stages of prenatal development (6)
6 Culmination or resolution to a series of events (9)
15 Narrow minded; bigoted (9)
17 A state of confusion (8)
18 Small container in which tea is kept (3,5) speaking sincerely and in earnest (7)
8 Small seal, especially one set in a ring (6)
9 Mammal in the stages of prenatal development (6)
21 Bed inside or outside the house for lying or resting on during the day (3,3)
15 Narrow minded; bigoted (9)
17 A state of confusion (8)
18 Small container in which tea is kept (3,5)
20 Acting or speaking sincerely and in earnest (7)
22 A spike of ice formed by dripping water (6)
5 Large rounded orange-yellow fruit with a thick rind (7)
21 Bed inside or outside the house for lying or resting on during the day (3,3)
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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP // Vince Taskunas’ shot of Pumphouse Point from the shores of Lake St Clair; a gorgeous Crescent honeyeater on Cape Barren Island, captured by Melissa Thompson; Graham Ellis snapped his 11-year-old grandson Fletcher Ellis on the Burnie waterfront boardwalk; Donna Jacobs with an echidna on Bruny Island.
