Our connections on the ground
Our connections on the ground
In our forty plus years of flying to Australia’s most extraordinary places, we’ve befriended a wonderful assortment of hoteliers, restauranteurs, tour guides and other local characters in communities across the nation. We’d like to introduce you to just a handful of the people who make our tours so special for guests.
From a town of many eras
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Destination: Queenstown, Tasmania
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Operator: RoamWild (Visit their website)
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Who: Owners Joy Chappell and Anthony Coulson, a lifelong resident of Queenstown
With its rich history and stunning surrounds, Queenstown, Tasmania earns its spot on our list of destinations. Let us introduce you to Anthony, Joy and the team of RoamWild Tasmania, who give guests of AAS exclusive access to several impressive historic sites.
Co-owner Anthony says our guests are always thrilled by a private visit to the ghost town of the Lake Margaret Hydropower Station. “No one lives there but the whole town’s still there,” he says. Built circa 1914, the eight remaining cottages once housed workers of the newly constructed power station. You’ll stroll through the town, watch a video presentation in the town hall, and have morning (or afternoon) tea in this picturesque village.
The hydropower station itself, which you’ll also visit, contributes to the national grid while still operating the original 1914 turbines. Step inside the station and you’ll be greeted with the roar of the machinery. “We’ll supply you with earplugs, of course,” Anthony says. “It’s just a massive sound.”
In its heyday in the late 1890s/early 1900s, Queenstown was the central town for the Mt Lyell Mining and Railway Company, which also built the hydropower station. A copper boom meant the town was flooded with wealth, the cash making its way into the elegant architecture of its premier buildings such as the historic Empire Hotel or the imposing Queenstown Post Office. Later, the extensive tree clearing which fuelled the copper smelters resulted in large-scale erosion, leaving a lunar-like landscape across the mountains surrounding the community.
Co-owner Joy describes their work as trying to keep the history alive, "Queenstown was quite a rich town back in those early days, you can see the remnants of the wealth that was here.” Joy, Anthony and their guides have a deep knowledge of this history, mining industry, flora, fauna and fungi to share with our guests.
RoamWild also holds the lease to an 1890s abandoned mine which stretches several hundred metres into the mountain. Anthony and Joy have recently upgraded the walking paths inside the mine so it’s suited to most mobility levels with minimal stairs, and a flat, even surface with railings throughout.
“It’s all solid rock so it’s really safe but there’s the remnants of the little railway line in there, which the miners used to cart things in and out. We’ve got glow worms multiplying, all sorts of little footprints, and raw copper and azurite, which are bright greens and blues, just dripping down the wall. It’s fascinating in there.” Joy describes.
Finally, the Paragon Theatre is another historic asset we might visit. A trip highlight for enthusiasts of art deco design, this grand cinema was built in 1933 and at the time seated up to 1,150 people. “There was more money here in Queenstown than in the state government,” says Joy. “If someone from here went to the London or New York Stock Exchange, they’d throw money at them.”
After someone disastrously converted this beautiful venue into an indoor cricket stadium in the mid-eighties, it was later lovingly restored back to art deco. It’s now owned by RoamWild, so when the weather’s not nice enough for lunch inside the mine or up on scenic Mount Owen, our group will instead stop at the elegant Paragon.
Truly paddock to plate
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Destination: King Island, Tasmania
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Operator: Wild Harvest Restaurant (Visit their website)
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Who: Business partners Lucinda Dengerink and Ian Johnson
King Island is a treasured destination of AAS for its world-class gourmet scene. Our local friends, Lucinda, Ian, and their team run Wild Harvest, considered one of Australia’s top fine dining restaurants.
Chef Ian grew up on a farm near Orange, NSW, so as a restauranteur he’s particular about the provenance of every ingredient he uses. This means Wild Harvest dishes boast flavours of a greater intensity and freshness. But it's the story behind the food that really takes centre stage, with Ian sharing the interconnectedness of the people on King Island who have a part in your meal.
"Whether it's crayfish or another, someone gets out of bed very early in the morning, they go out and face the elements, sometimes it's in the dark, sometimes it's raining or darn hot, to deliver all that to the table," he says. "So guests not only fill their stomachs, so to speak, but they have the understanding of the nurture of it."
Any potatoes, carrots and beets in your meal are actually picked from Wild Harvest’s garden that morning. They source the abalone, beef, pork and lamb from King Island producers while the quail comes from Rannoch Farm in Tasmania. Even the jus and gravy are made onsite, with the jus coming straight from the cannon bones of local cattle.
Lucinda has been on the island for 20 years, initially drawn as a tourist before returning to found some of the island’s first tourism offerings. King Island is a tight community of roughly 1,600 people across several small townships. “We don’t lock our cars, we look out for everyone, we know everyone,” Lucinda describes. Our connection to Lucinda and Ian allows our guests access to local farms such as a sixth-generation farming family’s cattle property or the King Island Dairy. This experience is truly ‘paddock to plate’.
Exclusively for Australian Air Safaris guests, Lucinda and Ian are pleased to offer fresh crayfish year-round. Out of season, they keep plenty available in tanks for all our upcoming visits. On the day of a tour, Lucinda rises at 4am to begin cooking and cooling the crayfish ready for your 9am departure.
Lucinda’s favourite stop? “When we take your guests to walk through a 7000-year-old calcified forest, followed by a surprise for them at the end.”
