St. Columba Falls - near Pyengana - and substantially shortening the distance between Launceston and St. Helens.”
In 1979 the Ringarooma Progress Development League became determined to complete the link road and to construct a walking track to Ralphs Falls. Norm Brown spear-headed the campaign. Despite local bureaucratic opposition, in 1983 the Mt Victoria Reserve was gazetted. Over the next 20 years many local farming and business families chipped in to work on the road and walking track. Trees had to removed land-slips and large holes repaired on the original abandoned road. A local resident remembers this being rather scary, a narrow track with precipitous drops. A local mining contractor donated his time and heavy machinery on the proviso that the community supplied the diesel. A new road was pushed across the mountain to meet up with the rough track coming up from Pyengana. Other volunteers then worked on constructing a walking track out to Ralphs Falls and a stone shelter. It was hard going as all the cement, sand and stone had to be carried along the track using wheelbarrows and buckets. Volunteers included whole families - in some cases three generations of the same family - and one Victorian family of three generations.
In Norm’s words the group, “fought petty-minded professional bureaucratic obstructionists” to eventually achieve the State Government support needed to complete the project. The State Government provided grant funding and encouraged Forestry Tasmania (FT) to approve the project, which included Norms Lookout. FT provided picnic tables, a composting toilet and ongoing maintenance.
The track, which includes Norms Lookout over the spectacular falls, was officially opened by the Deputy Premier John Beswick in 1989. The Parks and Wildlife Service now maintains this asset. Wild storms in 2013 destroyed the track to the falls and destablilised the lookout. New track work has been completed and the Norms Lookout was reopened in late 2015.
Dr Christine Booth is a recently retired university biochemistry lecturer and is co-owner of Tin Dragon Trail Cottages in north-east Tasmania. She and partner Graham Cashion along with their son, James, are documenting and promoting the many interesting family-friendly short walks in north-east Tasmania. You can view their walks notes on Christine’s Blog and their website.
Picnic spot at Ralphs Falls