Launceston, historic city in Tasmania.

The Island of Tasmania was for centuries something of a southern Thule - a distant, low latitude, isolated island few people visited or knew about, and somehow shrouded in strange wilderness.

In fact, Tasmania, at just 41º S, is not that much southern, and its rich natural and historic heritage attracts presently a large number of visitors.

I've published here, not long ago, about Hobart, its main city and departure port to Antarctica ; Launceston is the second largest city, situated inland in northern Tasmania, 60 kms up the Tamar River estuary, at the juncture of the South and North Esk Rivers.

King's bridge, one of the city's landmarks.

The first European visitors did not arrive until 1798, when British navigators George Bass and Matthew Flinders were sent to explore the possibility that there was a strait between Australia and Tasmania.

King's bridge was built in 1884 over the mouth of South Esk River.

Launceston, Tasmania

Coordinates: 41° 26′ S, 147° 8′ E
Population : ~110 000

The magnificent Town Hall, built in 1884 in neo-Renaissance italianate style by Peter Mills.

Settled in March 1806, Launceston is one of Australia's three oldest cities.

View from the City Park gates through Cameron Street to the Post Office tower.

The Post Office, another landmark, was built in the 1880s, and the tower added in 1903.

Many of the buildings in the City's centre were constructed in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Some are well preserved Edwardian and Georgian houses.

Peter Mills, one of Tasmania’s most respected architects, designed and built a great number of Launceston's character buildings between 1864 and 1882.

Cameron Street has some of the best historic houses:

The Supreme Court (1870), on Cameron Street, designed by Peter Mills, was first built for a rich merchant.

The 'Batman Fawkner Inn' (originally The Cornwall Hotel) was built in 1824 and is the oldest brick building in town.

Art Nouveau decoration.

Façades along Cameron Street.

Esk Terrace, Cameron Street.

Former Peter Mills furnishing warehouse, on the corner of Cameron St. and George St., known as "Diana, Venus & Fortune" (1882). The architect lived here with his family.

The Quadrant Mall

The shopping and commercial area surrounded by York, George, St. John and Brisbane Streets is known as 'the Quadrant', a winding alley with cosy cafés and boutiques. It was made into a mall in the 1970's.

The old town's shopping center - 'Quadrant Mall'.

The 'Pasta', one of a few terraces on the mall.

The Old Umbrella Shop

Built in the 1860s, this unique shop is the last genuine period store in Tasmania and has been operated by the same family since the turn of the 20th century. The shop is listed by the National Trust.

Birchalls bookshop

The oldest bookshop in Australia, on Brisbane Street Mall since 1844.

The Edwardian 'Macquarie House', the oldest house in Launceston (1830).

Boag & Son brewery (Boag's), founded in 1883.

St. John's Church.

St. John's anglican church, founded in 1824 and completed in 1835.

Built in bricks, in Georgian style.

The rosewindow.

The City Park and the Jubilee Fountain

Queen Victoria's Jubilee Fountain was built in the City Park for the 1897 celebrations.

Cataract Gorge

On low South Esk river, this bridge across a gorge is within walking distance from Launceston. A pathway runs along the north bank.

William Collins found the gorge entrance in 1804.

Alexandra suspended bridge (1940), over Cataract Gorge. 

The views are more exciting when the South Esk is under flood - a chairlift has also been built across the gorge for the more adventurous.

Sortland, the lucky blue town of Norway

Surrounded by the astonishing landscape of Arctic Norway, Sortland is a northern entrance door to the Lofoten Islands; this previously rather ugly fishery town is changing colours for a new life.

Sortland is an arctic town located at the mouth of the Eidsfjorden, in the Nordland region of Norway.

An elegant bridge (Sortladsbrua) almost 1 km long connects since 1975 Sortland to Hinnøya, the main of the Lofoten Islands.

Cruise ships as well as the Hurtigruten daily express usually stop at Sortland's harbour.

Sortland is sometimes referred to as "the blue city", since some painted blue houses inspired a local artist to expand the colour to other buildings.

Blåbyen, the Blue City.

Coordinates:  68° 42′ N, 15° 16′ E

Population:   ~10 000 inhabitants.

Some people are less than thrilled by the idea of a blue town. Others are fascinated by the artist’s vision. The idea of having a full-on blue town evidently makes some people furious.

The man behind the idea is the artist Bjørn Elvenes, who envisaged the centre of Sortland as a three-dimensional painting.

At least, this is a project that stimulates lively debate.

Of course, Sortland's church was not one of the 'blue paint' victims.

The current church was built to replace a church from 1776. The present, white, wooden church was built in 1902 in the neo-gothic style.

In Spring and Summer, other colours embellish the possible blue monotony.

But the main attractive of this northern town is the Midnight Sun, occurring from May to July. The Sortland Bridge or the surrounding fjords are great places to observe the dim-light nights.

And of course Auroras are also frequently observed here:

A magnificent Aurora over Sortland's lights.

Livingston Island, South Shetlands: Spain and Bulgaria in close neighbourhood

The islands and islets along the west coast of Antarctic Peninsula, on the tumultuous waters of the Drake Passage, are home to a number of stations from several countries, making this the most densely populated part of the continent, despite being still an immense desert of ice and rock.

One of the South Shetland islands has been chosen by two nations - Spain and Bulgaria, two distant European countries - to build their stations in close vicinity: Livingston Island.

Livingston Island is the second largest island in the South Shetland archipelago. Its irregular shape is 73 km long for 5 km (min.) to 34 km (max.) wide.

Coordinates: 62° 36′ S, 60° 30′ W

Hannah Point, the west point of South Bay.

Ice cliffs, sharp rocky peninsulas, beaches, coves and bays form most of the coastline. Except for isolated patches by the shoore, the land surface is covered by an ice cap, highly crevassed in some areas, with ice domes and plateaus and a number of valley glaciers.

In winter, temperatures drop to around -25º C, and in summer they rise to an average 2º C, when the majority of snow on site melts. Strong winds buffet the stations, often exceeding 160 Km/h.

The two stations, just 2.7 km apart (5.5 km route),  are located in Hurd Peninsula, facing South Bay and Hannah Point, in small ice-free strips by the shore framed by several glacier mouths. South Bay is a 12 km wide bay in the south coast of the island. The area was known before by whalers which used it as a safe haven.

Spanish Antarctic Base 'Juan Carlos I' sits in Hurd Peninsula, 40 m from the shore.

Coordinates: 62°39′ S, 60°23′ W
Occupation: up to 24 places,
                      from November to Mars
                      (austral summer)

Inaugurated in 1988, the base was built using container modules and igloo-tent accommodation.

The recently renovated base comprises habitation and science units and a series of support modules for services and storage. The main building comprises three wings of accommodation arranged around a central core while the science building is a separate structure far enough away to provide a refuge in case of a major fire.

The main building provides accommodation for 24 people, with the option to increase the population to 48 in the future. The orientation of the buildings makes best use of the site topography, with windows framing wonderful views of the surrounding land and seascapes.

'Española cove', seen from up the hills behind - the station his hidden by the rock, where the arrow points.


Byers Camp (acampamento)
an extension of Base Juan Carlos I.

A mainly ice-free ground, Byers Peninsula forms the west end of the Island. On the south of the Peninsula, a large bay called 'South Beach' is the location of the camp.

It consists of two igloo-type shelters, one for eating and cooking, the other working as a scientific lab open to international crews.

- Spanish Antarctic supporting ships -      (buques).

The 'Las Palmas' under bad weather in Drake Passage.

Buque Las Palmas was launched in 1978, the first ship to participate in the Spanish Antarctic campaigns. She has been later reinforced to navigate in iced waters.

The 'Las Palmas' is mainly as a logistic support vessel, while the more recent and strong BIO Hespérides (A33), prepared for ice-breaking, is dedicated to scientific work.

The Spanish Navy 'Hespérides' (1991), 2.830 tons, 82,5 meters .

Antarctic mail from 'Juan Carlos I ' base.

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The 'Johnson Glacier' flows between the two stations, and slides into 'Johnsons Dock', a kind of wide fiord.

The Bulgarian Antarctic Base “St. Kliment Ohridski” (BAB) is less than 6 km North of the Spanish station.

Coordinates:  62º 38' S, 60º 21' W, at the Eastern Coast of South Bay.
Occupation:  ~ 25 people during the austral summer (November to March)

St. Kliment Ohridski Base (Bulgarian: База св. Климент Охридски) was named in 1993 for St. Clement of Ohrid (840-916), a medieval scholar, writer, priest and saint.

The main building was built in 1998 and is made of wooden panels; it includes living room, kitchen, doctor's office, storage room and two bedrooms. 

Under a snow storm.

Snow mobiles are welcome equipment for the scientific crew.

300 meters from the main unit is a metal sheet structure, which in summer is used for Orthodox chapel, and in winter for sled stocking.

St. Ivan Rilski chapel (interior), built in 2012.

The supplies and the transport of the Bulgarian crew are provided by the Spanish Navy ships.

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There are plenty of nunataks in Livingston Island. A nunatak is an exposed rocky peak of a ridge or mountain, not covered with ice, within an ice cap.

Helis Nunatak (Nunatak Helis) is a crown-shaped rocky peak located at 62° 32′ S, 60° 04′ W, in the eastern side of the island.

The peak is named after the ancient Thracian capital town of Helis, whose remains can be found at Sveshtari, Bulgaria.

Aheloy Nunatak

A rocky 390 m peak in central Livingston, right on the ice cap's Huron Glacier

Edinburgh Hill

Edinburgh Hill is a rocky hill of elevation 180 m on the east coast of Livingston, at Varna Peninsula by McFarlane Strait.

The area was known by early 19th century sealers and whalers.

An Antarctic sunset
viewed from the Bulgarian station.