Passata day

Autumn is tomato season in the valley and that means bottling time.  In early April we organise the annual passata day, where we buy in loads of tomatoes, squish them, bottle them and boil them, then store the preserves for the winter months.    Every year we get braver and braver and more organised, especially now that I've come to the sad realisation that I can't actually grow all the tomatoes myself, and that it's best to order most of them in from a grower 20 minutes away.

Next year, though, maybe I might invest in a proper tomato squisher, like this one,  to tackle the one hundred kilos I aim to squish, although giving the children the task of cranking the handle makes light work of the chore.  With bottles washed and sterilized, tomatoes chopped and cored, they are pushed through the mill before being filled into bottles and capped. Then we light a fire, fill an old drum with the bottles, cover with water and boil for an hour over the fire.

Two families feasted on a celebratory birthday lunch while the bottles boiled with home grown beef, (a steer called Bobby) grilled on above mentioned fire, salad and tomatoes from the garden all washed down with Aperol Spritz.   To keep to the Italian theme.

Although I truly love the idea of enjoying those bottles of sauce all winter, passata day achieves so much more than a full pantry.   To me it's an all too rare opportunity to spend a beautiful day with family and friends, actually making something delicious to share.  But passtata day also shows my children the importance of seasonality and waste reduction. And even though it's not necessarily our heritage, we're creating a family tradition that values the importance of preserving local, seasonal food.  

That's something worth bottling.

A quick trip to the wild west

Mission: Delivery Driver.   That was the task that sent me to the far north west corner of Tasmania.

Queenstown, Zeehan, Strahan.....these are the towns of Tasmania's wildwest, and while I've always wanted to visit, I had never actually made it because, well,  it's a bloody long way.   So when asked to drive a few peeps to Corinna, a remote wilderness lodge, then drive the hire car back the next day how could I say no?   I love a road trip.   Music blaring, beautiful scenery, good things to eat a brand new hire car to drive. Time alone to think about things, about words mostly, and fitting them together for that almost finished project.

It's no easy drive mind, windey roads, no over taking lanes, through breathtaking ancient wilderness and zig zagging across mountain ranges and moonscapes.  A good six hours of arm steering workouts.    On both legs of the journey I was on a tight schedule, trying to get to the Fatman Barge to cross the Pieman River by 5pm and the next day, get back to Hobart to return said hire car.   There was no time to dawdle, properly adjust camera settings or really explore, but here are a few of my favourite snaps quickly taken on my superfast road trip.  You get the general idea.

Although I did have time for an early morning kayak down the glassy Pieman River, (um, wow!), my favourite place was Queenstown, a crazy mining town filled with lovely old buildings needing some love. And I can't resist an old building needing some love...and spent the rest of the journey dreaming of Queenie's * hispter led recovery.

Peeps delivered, hire car returned on time, and a few towns ticked off my must see list.  Mission accomplished.

 *that's an actual economic thing now

 dear Queenie 

 Peeps delivered and waiting for the Fatman Barge on the Pieman River 

 lodgings at Corinna 

 A slight detour to check out Granville Harbour 

 Queenie 

More Queenie 

Friday night fishing

With the daylight hours growing shorter by the day, we've been making the most of these mild autumn evenings before the clocks turn back, in only a matter of days now.    Friday nights in winter are movie nights, but during summer, we ditch the sofa for the jetty and head off to the river for Friday Night Fishing.

We load up Percy with baskets filled with delicious things to eat, fishing gear and with our limited fishing skills, a fair amount of optimism and hit the highway south.  Other drivers along the way often wave to us when they see Percy, and at first we thought it was because they love old cars too, but now we wonder if they're trying to tell us that some part has fallen off, as we always seem to lose bits of our car when we take him out for a spin.

It takes double the amount of time to reach our destination, given Percy's top speed of 60km, and we shout over the roar and rattle of the engine if we have anything to say, and eventually we get there and really, isn't half the fun the actual journey?    Sometimes, we meet up with friends at our favourite spot on the jetty, and sometimes it's just us.

Mostly we don't catch anything other than little flathead that need to carefully be thrown back into the water, lest they spike you with their stingy spikes, but that doesn't really matter.  It's all about the beautiful setting, the fresh air, good food with friends and enjoying those last lingering light evenings.  Some nights are windy so we head home early, but last night, the air was still and warm and we watched the moon rise and its golden reflection shimmer on the surface of the deep blue water.

Which was the signal to pile back into Percy and head home.  Without any fish.   Again. 

Friday Night fishing, it's a thing.  You should come one day. 

 

big sky island

Once touted as the Riviera of Australia, Maria Island with its crumbling relics of penal colony, 19th century tourism venture and cement works has been on my must see list for some time.  Along with a rugged landscape that boasts beautiful beaches, various mountain hiking trails and indifferent wildlife roaming the brown hillsides, the island has always had an irresistible call. Perhaps it's also the fact that there are no cars allowed, just bicycles and that you can pitch a tent or stay in the old penitentiary but you have to cart everything there yourself, including water, that adds to its mystique and allure. It only attracts the most dedicated of campers. But still I never managed to get there. 

That is until this week, when I was lucky enough to be offered some work there, nothing too strenuous mind you, but interesting and delicious just the same. There was time to take in the big blue sky, watch the tall summer grasses blowing in the breeze and swim in the turquoise waters.  

Maybe you might see the results on television down the track.  But in the meantime, checkout these few snaps of the tiny part of Maria Island I visited, whilst I dream of a return visit soon.