Dad's birthday

The only good thing about the first day of winter is that it is Dad's birthday. On Monday we set out for Yorktown for the afternoon. This is Dad's office. He erected it to fit in with the historic landscape.

The day was glum but the car was filled with the aroma of KFC original chicken. This was Dad's birthday lunch as he absolutely loves KFC and has been known to drive all the way into Launy just to grab some and then come all the way home again.

As usual the kids had a wow of a time in Dad's gravel yard, playing on the front loader and in all the different hills of dirt, rocks, sand etc.


This one is just for you Aaron. Hallie was at me and at me for a Hawks football from Chickenfeed. Since she got it, it has gone everywhere with us. She is actually a pretty good kicker and takes it to school to play with the boys in her class during lunch and after school. She gives them a run for their money.

While I fed Jonty, Simon and the kids went for a walk along the Yorktown Historic Site walking track. As I have mentioned before, Dad's land is on the site of the first permanent settlement in northern Tasmania, in 1804.

The expedition was led by Col. William Paterson under the direction of Lord Hobart amid fears of a French invasion on mainland Australia. The British wanted to set up a strategic outpost at Port Dalrymple.

Artefacts have been uncovered in the area which led to a monument being erected and it has since been developed as an historic attraction.


A model of what a soldier's cottage would have looked like.

At its peak, Yorktown had 40 buildings and up to 300 people. The settlement was later moved to Launceston by 1809, because it housed more suitable pasture for livestock.

There we go, a pice of history for you.