Margate is a town on North West Bay, around a 20 minute drive south of Hobart via Kingston. Formerly a fishing and agricultural economy, the area is now outer-suburban, although fishing and agriculture are still much in evidence.
Kingborough Council has a range of short walks listed on its website in easily-downloadable pdf format suitable for viewing on a mobile device. The walks around the Margate area tend to be quite short, and individually don’t really justify the journey.
I combined three short walks around the town to make a very pleasant afternoon stroll of around 2 1/2 hours and about 8km. Two of the tracks were previously unknown to me. I parked near the Oval, just to the south of the town centre.
Margate Tramway Track
This track was a new one on me, and appears to be a new addition. The start of the Margate Tramway Track is a bit hidden down behind the Mens Shed adjacent to the Margate Oval. Once found it’s easy to follow, consisting of a mown grass trail that skirts farmland and suburban back yards, with views over the southern side of Margate and North West Bay.
The route in part follows the path of a tramline that used to bring coal from the mine at Kaoota in the hills above Margate down to the port – see my post on the Kaoota Tramway Track for more.
The track ends at a road that joins the Channel Highway. Take care walking south along the verge for around 200 metres and crossing the highway into Derwent Avenue, turning left to reach the next walking trail.
Note: It is possible to commence the Dave Burrows Walk a little further along the Channel Highway (see map), but I found accessing it via Derwent Avenue much more pleasant, although it means doubling back along the first section of the walk. But it is only short.
Dave Burrows Walk
This little trail along the foreshore on the southern fringes of the town was the day’s real discovery. It leads through light forest to a private beach, then around the foreshore past a couple of peaceful little bays before depositing walkers in Margate’s industrial waterfront area near the jetty in Gemalla Road.
It’s then a bit of a walk through back streets of the industrial area to reach the Esplanade. Fortunately there is a right of way that gets there pretty quickly, although it’s not possible to proceed along the waterfront from the jetty.
Dru Point Track
Dru Point is an extensive public space with playing fields, picnic and barbecue facilities, kiddies playgrounds, gardens, memorials, a boat ramp, dog walking area and a track leading around the foreshore and up towards the mouth of the North West Bay River. It was busy with families enjoying the sunny Easter weekend, although past the formal playgrounds, there were few people to interrupt the views of the Wellington Range.
The track emerges adjacent to the Channel Christian School, from where it’s an easy stroll through very suburban streets up Beach Road to the the centre of town.
Channel Heritage Centre
Those wishing to discovder a little more of the history of the region, the Channel Heritage Centre is one of the better community museums around, with a focus on stories and thematic interpretation and not just on displaying items that have been donated by all and sundry. It also has an interesting collection of cameras, which I always find interesting.