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Tasmania (Northern Region) |
| Burnie | |
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Located 150km west of Devonport and 15km west
of Penguin, Burnie is a busy port which handles more
than 2 million tonnes of cargo a year and has the states only regular
shipping service. The town is in a key position, being the gateway of the
scenic and historic area of the Far North West including the rich mining
area of the West Coast.
Burnie sits on the shores of Emu Bay and has some fine gardens and natural beauty including :- Burnie Park, Fern Glade, Guide Falls, and Emu Valley Rhododendron Gardens. Six kilometres west is the town of Somerset on the Cam River, an industrial town with timber and plywood mills. |
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| BURNIE
is an ugly industrial and paper-manufacturing centre, situated amid
contrastingly rich farmland and beautiful rocky coves. Luckily, there’s
no real need to stay here, especially since the airport is 19km away in
more salubrious Wynyard. As you’re passing, it’s worth stopping to
visit Lactos, a prize-winning speciality cheese factory 3km from
Burnie on the Old Surry Road. Here you can sample (and buy) blends and
variations of European cheeses – “red square” is one of the best
(tastings Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat & Sun 10am–4pm; free).
Back in town, the Tasmanian Travel and Information Centre at the Civic Square precinct, off Little Alexander Street (Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat 10am–1pm, Sun 1.30–4.30pm; tel 03/6434 6111), can direct you towards Burnie’s few other points of interest. The Civic Centre on Wilmot Street is home to both the Pioneer Village Museum, with its reconstructed turn-of-the-century street (Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat & Sun 1.30–4.30pm; $4.50), and the Burnie Regional Art Gallery (Tues–Fri 10.30am–5pm, Sat & Sun 1.30–4.30pm; free). To get an idea of the region’s industrial base, you could visit the AMCOR paper mill (tours Mon–Fri 2pm; free; call 03/6430 7777 for bookings and directions). There’s plenty of accommodation, should you have to stay in Burnie. The least expensive motel is the Ocean View Motel, 253 Bass Highway, at Cooee on the pleasant, non-industrial side of town towards Wynyard, with an attached campground and caravan park. The Glen Osborne House, at 9 Aileen Crescent, is a stylish Victorian-era B&B with en-suite rooms and a lovely garden of lawns, roses and fruit trees. As well as a McDonald’s on Mount Street and a Pizza Hut nearby, there’s the Rialto Gallery, a popular and affordable Italian restaurant at 46 Wilmot St (tel 03/6431 7718; BYO). The Tasmanian Redline Coaches depot is at 117 Wilson St (tel 03/6431 3233). |
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