Florentine River picnic ground - Royal visit ???

[msw]

There is a small, cleared picnic area just over the closed bridge over the Florentine River - near the start of the walk to Wylds Craig - I think it is Tiger Rd. In the last week I've heard 2 similar stories - that it was constructed for a royal visit. One mentioned a visit by a Queen of Thailand. The other person thought it was the Queen of England.

Does anyone know the real story of this picnic area - where there must have been a hut - as there is a large stone fireplace and chimney remaining and a picnic table mounted on top of a large tree stump. When it was all constructed & why etc.

There are a couple of tracks leading away from the cleared area - one from behind the fireplace and one along the river - upstream. Were these just short walks from the picnic area?

Just curious...

from matt.

[tastrax]

Here might be a good place to start - http://search.archives.tas.gov.au/defau ... S&id=AE716

You may find something amongst the programs of royal visits

[tastrax]

September 1962 visit of King and Queen of Thailand (Sirikit, Queen, consort of Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand) - bound to find something in the archives/newspapers of the time. My father also remembers a pagoda in the area (possibly at that site)

https://cdn.forestrytasmania.com.au/upl ... on_web.pdf - search for pagoda in this document.....not much but another royal link

[CasualNerd]

I was there this morning, It's mentioned in the Abels book as a picnic ground, formerly maintained by Norske Skog but gives no other details.

[Snowybob]

I have some old slides from the 1970s of a pagoda that was erected on the bank of the Styx River where the king and queen of Thailand was entertained in the 1960s. In later years it had disappeared. A very similar structure was erected beside the Florentine River as a shelter near the start of the track to Wylds Craig but I think that has since been burnt down. I will see if I can find the old slides and submit them to this site.

[msw]

Thanks for all the info. It seems like a very 'out of the way' place for a royal visit - even though it is a lovely spot.

[Snowybob]

here is a couple of photos of the pagoda on the Styx River taken in 1974

Pagoda Styx River

[CasualNerd]

@Snowybob, awesome pictures, thanks for sharing !

That footbridge looks like the one at the Florentine river site, made of man ferns, which are now all growing sideways from the ends.

[msw]

Incredible to see the way it was. Thanks

from matt.