Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/142338
outtahere as far as remoteness goes," he says, going on to point out that it's no longer 'untouched' and as 'pristine' as many still describe it. "Mining's been in this place, on the West Coast, since the early 1820s … there used to be three saw mills here at Corinna, too." Fortunately, the area maintains its pristine ambience – with the bonus of a rich history, making this little patch of wilderness all the more special. This site is also the farthest north the rare huon pine grows. Its oily wood was popular for boat building back in the day, and was logged in the area until the 1970s. Unfortunately for the huon pine, it is an exceptionally slow-growing species, adding only between 0.3 and two millimetres in height per year. It's amazing to see these trees, some about 1,000 years old, standing so tall. Moored at Corinna is Arcadia II, a beautiful 53-foot boat that was built in 1939 in Hobart and is the only cruiser made of huon pine still in operation today. Arcadia II spent time serving in WWII, even making it up to Papua New Guinea. She's had scallops hauled onto her decks and was a cruise boat on the Gordon River before coming to Corinna in the '70s. Today, Arcadia II spends her time taking people down the Pieman River to Pieman Heads where the waterway spills out into the fierce Southern Ocean. Spending the day on the Pieman River's dark tannin waters – as deep as 45 metres in places – is something truly special. Arcadia II pushes through glossy water that seems thick, almost like syrup, yielding mirror-like reflections of the rising forest-covered hills. The boat docks at a small pier and we walk past the quirky fishing shacks at Pieman Heads and on to the remote white log-strewn beach to enjoy our packed lunch. The salty wind whips all around us and it's a bizarre sight to see all the logs thrown ashore here. It feels like we could be at the edge of the world. After our day cruising with the historic Arcadia II, the next morning we rise early for a trip down the Pieman River on the Sweetwater, a faster, more manoeuvrable boat. Low-lying fog hovers over the forest and morning mist sits on the cold water. Slowly we putt down the Savage River, a tributary of the Pieman, to see the wreck of the SS Croydon – the farthest-inland shipwreck in Australia. As we approach, a platypus appears at the wreck's bow and splashes about playfully before swimming back to shore. The rare encounter with this notoriously shy creature silences us, making us grateful we rose early. The story of the shipwreck, which ocurred in 1919, is shrouded in mystery. What was the vessel doing so far upriver and how did it sink in such protected waters? One possible explanation is that the seamen on board scuttled it as part of an insurance scam. Another was that they were smuggling blackwood timber. Or did they simply hit a log? It's one of many intrigues from the region's early days. Back on the Pieman we spot a waterfall dropping into the river; just past it, a set of wooden stairs invites 16 "Low-lying fog hovers over the forest and morning mist sits on the cold water." exploration. We venture up the staircase and into an enchanting gully, passing under a canopy of huge, prehistoric-looking man ferns – some 400 years old – to Lover's Falls, a breathtakingly beautiful spot. Later, we paddle canoes silently down the glassy river, spotting white and grey osprey in the trees. This part of the world is home to rare orange-bellied parrots and disease-free Tasmanian devils, and is where the nowextinct Tasmanian tiger was reportedly last seen. As I paddle close to the river's edge, I wonder what other secrets are in the forest. How many other remnants of the mining and logging days are there? How many other magical fern gullies are hidden beneath the forest canopy? Tying our canoes to a little jetty downstream on the Savage River, we take the one-and-a-half-hour walk back to Corinna to see for ourselves. Hiking up and over a ridge, past huon pine and myrtle beech and tiny towers in the mud built by endangered burrowing crayfish, I feel lucky to have seen such a special pocket of Tassie wilderness. Opening image and clockwise from top: Huge man ferns are in abundance in the Tarkine; morning mist on the Pieman River; walking the Whyte River Track; wilderness cabin at Corinna; bright coloured fungi; canoes tied on the Savage River; thick moss on a tree trunk; Arcadia II moored at Corinna.