Maria Island
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maria Island () is a mountainous island off the east coast of Tasmania. The entire island is a National Park. Maria Island National Park has a total area of 115.50 km² which includes a marine area of 18.78 km², off the island's north-west coast. The island is about 20 km in length from north to south and, at its widest, is about 13 km west to east. At its closest point (Point Lesueur), the island lies four kilometres off the east coast of Tasmania. Tasmanians pronounce the name "MA-RYE-UH" (məˈraɪə), as did the early British settlers, but the original pronunciation was "MA-REE-UH" (məˌriːə). The island was named in 1642 by Dutch explorer Abel Tasman after Maria van Diemen (nee van Aelst), wife of Anthony van Diemen, the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies in Batavia. The original, Aboriginal name for the island was Toarra-Marra-Monah.
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[edit] Local community and economy
The strait between Maria Island and the east coast of mainland Tasmania is called Mercury Passage. There are two towns of size in this part of the East Coast: Orford at the mouth of the Prosser River and Triabunna, some eight kilometres further north at the head of Spring Bay.
There is but one "town" on Maria Island and a peculiar one it is by any standards! It is called Darlington and it lies near the northern tip of the island. Darlington is beautiful and historic and has many wonderful old buildings, but it has no permanent inhabitants other than a few park rangers. All the rest - up to several hundred during the summer holidays - are tourists who come and go.
Tourism is important to the local economy. In nearby Triabunna the main industries are fishing, forestry and farming. An export woodchip mill is located at Freestone Point 5 km south of Triabunna. Rock lobster (known locally as crayfish), scalefish, scallops and abalone are taken near the island by both commercial and recreational fishermen, and mussels are farmed in Mercury Passage.
[edit] History
Maria Island has a rich history. Before the colonial era, Aboriginal people journeyed regularly to the island and much evidence of their presence remains. In 1802 the French expedition led by Nicolas Baudin encountered the Aboriginal people of Maria Island, as did the whalers of the early 1800s. For two periods during the first half of the 1800s, the island hosted convict settlements, established in the mid-1820s and mid-1840s. Among those held during the later convict period was the Irish nationalist leader William Smith O'Brien, exiled for his part in the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848. His cottage still exists in the former penal colony. He was later transferred to New Norfolk on the Derwent River upstream of Hobart.
Later, the Italian entrepreneur Diego Bernacchi set up other enterprises including silk and wine production and a cement factory, quarrying limestone deposits at the Fossil Cliffs for the raw material. At the height of its fortunes in the early 20th century, Darlington had hundreds of residents and several hotels. By 1929 all of these ventures had failed for a number of reasons including the Great Depression, poor quality limestone and competition from mainland producers, who were not burdened with high costs of transportation. For a period of 40 years until the late 1960s the island was dominated by farming. Eventually the State resumed all of the island's freehold land and established Maria Island National Park, which was proclaimed in 1972 and extended in 1991 to include a portion of the surrounding sea.
[edit] Geography and natural history
Maria Island takes the form of a figure-eight, with the northern section of the island significantly larger than the southern. Both parts of the island have quite rugged relief and they are joined by a tombolo about 3 km long known as McRaes Isthmus. The highest point, Mt Maria, is in the northern part of the island and stands 711 m above sea level.
Fourteen distinct terrestrial plant communities occur on the island, which is mostly clothed in various forms of eucalyptus forest. Natural and historical clearings provide grazing for many animal species, such as wombats and Tasmanian pademelons. Nearly all of the island's animals are native to Tasmania but some of these, such as Forester kangaroos, Bennetts wallabies and Cape Barren geese, were introduced to this island refuge from the Tasmanian mainland during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Feral cats on the island are descendants of cats brought to the island by Europeans since the 1800s. Other species include brush-tailed and ring-tailed possums, echidnas, three species of snake and many birds, both terrestrial and marine.
Maria Island is perhaps the best place in Tasmania for observing forest birds, and is home to 11 of the 12 bird species that are endemic to Tasmania. It is the stronghold for the endangered forty-spotted pardalote, one of the 12 endemics.
In early 2005, captive Tasmanian devils were introduced to the island and are cared for by the Parks and Wildlife Service staff who live on the island. These devils form part of the "insurance population" of devils unaffected by the devil facial tumour disease that is sweeping through mainland Tasmania's devil population. Because Maria Island's devils are subject to strict quarantine, visitors to the island are not able to see or interact with them.
The marine section of the national park protects a representative area of Tasmanian East Coast marine habitat, and has significantly larger individuals and populations of key marine species than surrounding waters. This area is one of the most intensively studied marine protected areas in Australia and is popular amongst divers.
[edit] Transportation and accommodation
A ferry provides a daily service from the town of Triabunna to the jetty in Darlington Bay at the northern end of Maria Island, a distance by sea of 16 km or nearly nine nautical miles. In summer the service is twice daily. A previous ferry operation out of Louisville (near Orford) is now defunct. Common dolphins and fur seals and seabirds such as Australasian gannet and shy albatross are often seen on the voyage.
Very basic accommodation is available in Darlington in "the Penitentiary", a former place of internment, built during the first convict era in 1825. Bookings can be made with the Parks and Wildlife Service. There are ten rooms that have bunk beds with vinyl mattresses, a table and chairs and a wood heater. Nine of the rooms sleep 6 people each and the tenth sleeps 14. All cooking gear, lighting, bedding and food must be brought to the island. There is no electricity or running water in the rooms, but toilets, hot showers and barbecues are nearby. Many visitors also choose to camp in the camping area in Darlington - a booking is not necessary for this. The visitor will look in vain for a shop, hotel or restaurant, and anyone who travels to the island must be self-sufficient.
[edit] Activities
Walking, bicycling, swimming, snorkelling, diving, bird watching, wildlife observation and relaxation are the main activities undertaken by visitors. Many people take interest in Maria Island's history, and most of the island's walks include sites of historic interest. The Painted Cliffs and the Fossil Cliffs are two popular walking destinations for day visitors, both on the island's coastline. The Painted Cliffs are sandstone with beautiful patterns formed through staining by iron oxide. The Fossil Cliffs are tall limestone cliffs containing prolific ancient fossils. Longer day walks include tracks that ascend Bishop & Clerk (620 m) and Mt Maria (711 m).
Apart from the two mountain tracks mentioned above, all roads and tracks on the island are suitable for bicycling. Bicycles and helmets can be rented in Hobart and brought over on the ferry. A bicycle is a must for those who want to see as much of the island as possible on a day trip. Bicycle-riding is not permitted on beaches or on the two mountain tracks.
A vehicular track extends from Darlington twenty kilometres south to Haunted Bay on south Maria Island, with a number of side-tracks and points of interest along the way. This is the usual route for people doing multi-day walks or bike rides. The major campsites outside Darlington are at Frenchs Farm and Encampment Cove, which is also used by boating visitors. Both these sites have rainwater tanks. The Frenchs Farm tank is less likely to run out during summer. Water can be hard to find elsewhere. Shoal Bay and Riedle Bay, the beaches either side of McRaes Isthmus, are well worth the effort that it takes to reach them, as are Soldiers Beach and Bloodstone Beach on the western side of the island.
