Amazing Quest: Stories from Tasmania | Somewhere on Earth: Tasmania | Free Documentary

foreign [Music] thank you [Music] today somewhere on Earth invites you to Tasmania where the Pacific and Indian oceans meet in the Roaring 40s south of Australia Tasmania is a land inaccessible in places where the dense forests go right down to the Sea Richard Bennett lives on Bruni a little island off Hobart the largest town in Tasmania [Music] on this slip of land this photographer has found the light colors and the seascapes that never cease to Delight him Steve a former Ranger likes to explore the forest on the lookout for trees that could very well go unnoticed and yet they are nicknamed yellow gold Yuan pine trees can live as long as 10 000 years they are one of the oldest forms of life on our planet Steve is one of the rare people able to recognize them in this Forest Liam and James are two brothers wild about surfing and deserted beaches their passion leads them into the heart of the Bush Tasmania is their playground it's really empowering it it makes you feel like you're you're able to survive on your own there's there's nothing there's no houses there's no roads there's no cars there's no anything it's just us the ocean the bush [Music] it's geographical situation makes Tasmania and Ireland destined to remain in the shadow of the Australian giant foreign [Music] its isolation has ensured its protection it's land and vegetation are unspoiled Tasmania discovered in the 17th century became a Port of Call for famous Navigators [Music] its coasts have always been buffeted by the violence of ocean waves and wind [Music] for a long time the interior of the island remained inaccessible to the rare Sailors who landed here geographers and sailors gave it a concrete existence they charted its coastlines and made it known to the world from that point on those who chose to remain here were men in the image of the island genuine and solid [Music] little since the arrival of the Europeans Richard has lived here for some time now off the coast of tasmania's largest town Hobart I like space I like to be able to light a fire to to cook on a fire and I like to be able to go and anchor in a in a bay and be the only people there and not see other people getting up early and going out when the tides coming in in the morning the fish seem to like that particularly well but then given that we live in the Roaring 40s where the weather is often windy and wet we need to take the opportunity to fish when conditions are reasonable I think that's the secret and we seem to have a fish voila I made my living doing the things that I enjoy I I Bush walked and published books and I photographed the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race because it's photography that I love and I do it from aircraft that I find very exciting so I built my career around doing what I wanted to do I don't really do much that I don't want to do it is a Port Jackson shark we will let him go I don't need sharks Richard particularly enjoys these moments of peace and quiet when he returns home from his Expeditions through the Tasmanian bush the photographer frequently travels across these Wide Open Spaces Wilderness has the wonderful effect of giving your emotions a a workout you get cold you get hot you get tired you get hungry you get wet you get thirsty and sometimes you become afraid and you become excited and you come home with a feeling of I guess spiritual satisfaction in having spent some quiet times in the wilderness and and then you look back at your your busy life and you see it with a perspective because you've had the opportunity to get away from it for a little while something Bruni is a small Tasmanian Island Richard chose to live here for its light and its Landscapes he calls himself a painter of still images he has the soul of a vagabond and what he likes most is wandering for him every moment has its own emotional color wherever you go in the in the world there are very subtle differences in in the colors in the palette of the landscape and you get a different shade to the Sea here in the Southern Ocean to the colors a little bit further north and the beaches are different they're subtly different in softness or hardness to walk on and the color of the sand varies and also the interaction of of lagoons and creeks and water with the sand forms unique patterns that become like a signature to a particular place that is unique [Music] Crossing this little Island from north to south is like approaching the ends of the Earth this Lighthouse is a last Landmark a final reminder on this little island before miles and miles of ocean foreign they are no more than a handful the sailors who give this Lighthouse one last glance as they head south on their way towards higher latitudes towards the mythical land of ice well this is the southernmost part of Australia and Antarctica is due south that way there's no land apart from Macquarie Island between here and Antarctica [Music] Tasmania may be a slightly forgotten Island but its Port Hobart is known to scientists the world over this is where they Embark for 20 days at Sea on their way to Antarctica [Music] the mission of the famous friendship the astrolab is to supply the research station of Dumont durville where hundreds of scientists are based foreign [Music] in the southern hemisphere the summer from October to March is when the ice flow breaks up at last the trip is possible [Music] scientists from the four corners of the Earth have managed to protect the antarctic's land of ice South Pole has become a global sanctuary tasmanians are very committed to keeping their lands unspoiled today entire regions of the island are world heritage sites and Richard is one of those with a deep respect for nature [Music] Richard likes these moments when time seems suspended holding its breath here two opposing influences sometimes give birth to impressive storms this strip of sand is a fragile border between two of the world's largest oceans on one side the Indian Ocean on the other the Pacific I think being close to the Southern Ocean always gives a unique atmosphere there's there's a wildness to the landscape and I seem to be happy when I'm in Wild places I like I like storms in particular I photograph storms and memorable times in the bush have been and enduring enduring storms I think we become very insignificant compared with the unpredictable power of nature the ocean is is very unforgiving and it it goes on unrelenting forever [Music] Richard's reputation as a photographer is due largely to his pictures of the annual Sydney Hobart race one of the world's most prestigious regattas each of his photos tells the story of the crews that come to take up the challenge Richard knows them all he's been photographing them for 40 years [Music] I'll be willing to be done a land sea and sky Richard has a passion for aerial photography there's nothing like the light of dawn to take the little island of Bruni by surprise [Music] seasons and being such a small island it's so compact so there's endless variety I just love aircraft and it's like a magic carpet and having a bird's eye view of the world and the wonderful thing about an aircraft is you can move quickly and you can change your position and you can see the change in light around the subject As you move then you can move in close and get high and low and it it aerial photographs have impact because not many people see the landscape from here [Music] foreign [Music] Richard has managed to create the life he dreamed of tasmanian-born he has never left this land Tasmania resembles those who live here it's people defend and protect it it lives within them all it is part of them [Music] foreign Steve is a former Ranger he has roamed this forest all his life this is where he saw his very first Yuan pine tree this tree might go unnoticed but for one particularity that makes it unique in the world the oldest of them can be ten thousand years old foreign exceptional trees grow only one or two millimeters a year this very slow growth allows them to survive for centuries and centuries reaching them is a real challenge oh it's good technical fun it gives you a good workout but when you're on a serious Expedition getting through that can slow your travel down to to less than a kilometer a day and therefore you've got a really plan for the trip [Music] starts his expedition with a visit to an old friend for Steve this tree is one of the most representative of its species you could pass right by it without noticing it the height of this Yuan Pine might not be impressive but its breath should command respect dozens of trunks feeding on one another ah this is a fascinating example of the way human pine can uh grow vegetatively what happens is the tree can fall down for whatever reason it can rot out at the base but it doesn't necessarily have to die what it can do is Sprout again from the Fallen trunk and it can do that over and over again and there's one example that we know of where the one single tree has been regenerating vegetative food like this for 10 000 years and that's one of the oldest living single organisms that we know about and that's exactly what fascinates Steve about the Yuan Pine nature seems to defy the passing of time oh to spend the night up here in the far Riches of the Gordon River where many miles From Any Road many miles many habitation and it's a truly awesome experience the forest comes alive at night the forest animals sleep in the daytime and uh I can line my tent and hear the forest live and it's just really wonderful to be out here yep um the adventure to the big tree is more philosophical in a way we don't need necessarily to go and inspect it personally but it means a lot to me personally to know that that tree that particular individual tree is still there and is standing and is healthy and it is an adventure Steve is so committed because these trees almost disappeared foreign took over Tasmania at the beginning of the 19th century they needed wood to repair and construct boats that was the beginning of an inexorable process of Destruction with its slow growth the Yuan Pine produces very dense robust wood rich in essential oil it became very sought after for its exceptional qualities above all its resistance to seawater it is the perfect wood for boat building this sailboat the Gypsy was built in 1914 out of Yuan Pine Steve is often on board and this boat is a reminder he and Chris head of the Strahan Rangers are trying to protect these trees so Steve you'll be leaving safe by sea plane from from strong yes and you'll be flying through to the mouth of Gordon right coming up to the Gordon here capture these trees yes in in here the Rangers know full well that this vulnerable Forest needs to be protected Chris also likes this otherworldly place he and Steve organize reconnaissance missions together not a worry the thing to be really careful with the river as you know Steve is that if we get rain the river can rise really fast navigating in this country is really dangerous and we just evacuated a guy the other night from here for snake bite oh right yes snakes are interesting problem right now they're they're moving they're very active yes and they're even in their Forest these are they're active [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] how large the Earth actually is and uh it's really interesting to be on a part of the Earth where the impact of man is so limited brings back to the reality of the real world the way it was [Music] [Music] the only way to get deeper into the forest is by seaplane [Music] flying is not always possible violent winds and even snowstorms sometimes blow up in this region of Western Tasmania even in summer not to mention the ever-present Mist [Music] is very atmospheric but if the aircraft gets lost in that fog it can be extremely dangerous because the mountains are much higher than we're flying and if we're and we're flying visual we hold our breath that we don't get too clouded down very dramatic Landing yeah it's very cool yeah it's a great spot [Music] [Music] foreign [Applause] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] in order to carry out his mission Steve heads up the Gordon River apart from seaplane the river is the only possible way for him to get into the heart of the forest along these Banks is the site of unbridled nature the Yuan Pines used to grow thick along these Banks like a lost tribe raining over the river long before man did highly prized for its golden yellow wood the Yuan Pine was over exploited today there's nothing left of those landscapes except here this Yuan Pine is a Vestige of the past a survivor of a very somber chapter of tasmania's History [Music] as he goes up the Gordon River Steve travels back in time in the 19th century all the Yuan Pines growing along these Banks were systematically cut down for boat building all those accessible from the water met the same fate which makes the tree even more precious today Steve has always fought for this Forest to keep its Soul by protesting Dam projects then later by fighting against erosion by coming back here to the banks of the Gordon River he's making sure that his commitment is still bearing fruit we will attempt to relocate them but it is a surreal Expedition because it was decided that we wouldn't Mark the site with a track or tapes so that the site would be truly protected and the best way it could be protected is for people not to know where it is um if people knew where it is then um uh then it then the site might be abused so our philosophy has been that if people want to try hard enough to go and find the the sites they're welcome to it's a public National Park but we won't go to any length effort to assist them [Music] wow [Music] [Music] Steve always thinks of his ancestors when he comes here because the Gordon River was also the scene of a human tragedy Tasmania a far-off land for the English was first used by them as a penal colony [Music] foreign sentenced to hard labor we're forced to cut down Yuan Pines many of them died of exhaustion or disease [Music] the Gordon River would be their final resting place it's very easy to get lost in the forest the forest is has no particular features anywhere it's a big lowland with very thick forest so you'll have to be careful with the use of a compass to make sure you can get back to the river which is where you can locate your position again with the GPS our people have been lost people highly experienced people have wandered off into the bush thinking that they knew their way around not not even particularly thinking of going far and then discovered that they couldn't tell which way the river was because the cloud covered the Sun the forest the forest didn't have any particular features so it's impossible to tell which way the river was and they would wander around in circles for quite a while and in the case I'm thinking about they were very lucky to stumble back to the river before dark Steve is well aware of these dangers but still he always goes that little bit further because he knows that somewhere in this Forest other specimens might be hiding that's what pushes him discovering you on Pines listing them and especially noting their location for the last few years there has been strict protection for the Yuan Pine their exploitation is totally prohibited only the old stumps left by the convicts can still be used its wood has become so precious it's been named yellow gold there's only three areas left into in Southwest Tasmania where these big old fellas still live this is one of them and we're in a in a little Forest here and I can look around and I can see another tree over there that would be 2 000 years old and I've passed one a little further back there that would be similar and we have a a um a beautiful little cup of trees here that are all truly ancient thousands of years old literally um well the Southwest Wilderness is huge it covers 20 of Tasmania and we only found this by accident so sure there may be other coops of trees maybe some even more old more ancient it'd be great fun to go and find them yeah we had an idea it was here we heard a report that it was here but we hadn't come and found out and recorded it and now we know about it and we can take special care to make sure that these trees continue to do their thing yeah [Music] back from his expedition Steve keeps quiet about his discoveries except to Chris [Music] protecting you on Pines requires discretion this is a way of paying homage to these venerable trees in Steve's eyes these amazing trees capable of being born again from their own remains seemed like the last masters of Time [Music] [Music] um foreign [Music] [Music] I really like the energy of the sea and it's a really good source of handle material quite often there's some really nice bits of Driftwood or bone now I get in there and then I get some whale bone or you know there's all sorts of things wash up on the seashores [Music] precisely this ordinary piece of wood that looks quite dull is actually a whale bomb washed up onto the sand one stormy day foreign [Music] foreign came here 20 years ago he discovered a passion for a trade that had almost disappeared John is one of the last blacksmiths in Tasmania [Music] I think anything that's been made with passion absorbs the energy of the maker because you're handling it you're touching it and I don't think it's such a big deal you know it doesn't mean to have to make a religion out of it it's just energy and the and the and the um the actual um elements that are in the knife absorbed the energy of the maker and uh people can pick that uh knife up or whatever that's been made by hand and they can feel that energy in it yeah but ducky you're the one you make me feel like so much fun this is great just lying back looking at the clouds and listening to the birds and watching the trees just relaxing you couldn't do this in the city could you yeah this is purely Tasmania in this one yeah 100 that's a good idea to sit in amongst the bush that's great relax stress relief it's good roof hey John hey Lane how you going dude John is known in the region for making solid knives that are perfect for the bush he says that his reputation has traveled well beyond Tasmania he has he says even forged blades for samurai swords it's got to be solid yeah oh yeah um um um a high crime yeah stainless steel we could use a bit of red gum that's pretty solid wood they make Railway sleepers out of that yeah or actually something you can grab onto a bit of antler all right yeah yeah Toby uses that and it seem for angle filtering fish because you know you get in rough weather and that you know you've got something to grip yeah yeah yeah yeah [Music] John knows the two Corey Brothers well Liam and James are Surfers what they like is going off together on Expeditions lasting days and days far away from Hobart the city where they live [Music] Liam the elder brother is a nurse James the younger brother is a medical student both brothers love this Maverick life thanks to their father they both learned very young how to make do with nothing or next to nothing look that's the plan this morning the swell looks promising they're in luck as they spend all their free time in search of waves they always leave at the drop of a hat basically looking at riding our bikes with all our equipment into the Southwest world heritage area which takes up sort of one third of Tasmania and we will ride our bikes for some time into where the road finishes and then we will take our backpacks and um our surfboard and I walk down to the South Southwest coast um people call you crazy but when you do it very regularly it's it's not it's not to us it's not it's not crazy it's normal and it's perfect and it's really good so these are my four little beautiful chooks a couple of ducks ducks are called Darth Invader trucks don't have names they like lots of really good eggs and over here we've got big crop corn up there Tomatoes peas most of the veggies we need at the moment out in the yard there are hundreds of bicycles from old models to recent ones Liam is known far and wide for his passion for two wheelers little by little he has become the local bike repairman at his home there are bicycles everywhere and sometimes even where you at least expect them foreign the bicycle gives the two brothers a chance to take advantage of the country they like open space having the Horizon for themselves and feeling alone in the world [Music] like here at Pedder Lake situated in the very heart of Tasmania Petter lake is the largest body of fresh water in Australia in the 1970s several large dams were built here causing vast stretches of sandy beaches to disappear the tasmanians were scandalized and became Ardent Defenders of their Island today this spot symbolizes the fight to safeguard Tasmania Liam and James have to travel several hundred kilometers they both take part from time to time in triathlons they both share the pleasure of pushing themselves to their limits bike touring is just awesome and doing it in Tassie to go surfing is just the ultimate combination basically like going on a surf trip is fun going for a ride is fun you put them together and you've got a lethal mix yeah for me I think it's a real it's a pride like a pride thing you feel really proud that you've you've walked out your front door you've got on your bike with all your gear and you've ridden to wherever you're going you've walked surf whatever come back all all in the all by yourself the waves of tasmania's deserted beaches aren't easy to approach you have to work for them after cycling comes walking from now on our two Surfers will carry only the Bare Essentials six foot six baby she's long and she's slender can you hear yourself [Music] well the sun's just risen that's nice it's pretty early in the morning it's about 6 30. and we've got about another 10 kilometers to go to where we're hoping to Surf this morning so it's kind of cruising along our two wave Hunters are well aware that as far as the weather is concerned nothing is certain and the ocean has a mind of its own a year ago they spent several weeks roaming the wild coasts of Tasmania alone with just their backpacks and their boards they hiked along beaches and Riverbanks where few people had walked before them as there were neither paths nor posted trails this is why there's a wise [Music] so looks like there might be might be a possibility that James will get a little ride out there so if I try and get some dinner and he tries to get some waves we should come up with with the goods hopefully sounds right [Music] [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] [Music] that's it eating shellfish like Abalone living simply this is the brother's lifestyle one of the bases of their complicity by becoming one with these places they're letting nature guide them in their apprenticeship of life fantastic nothing better than paddling around out there with my brother watching him catch some waves finding a bit of dinner seeing the sun come out every now and again it's beautiful love this kind of life wandering in this environment has always brought the two brothers closer together on each stage of the journey they learn something on every Beach the currents and the winds are different they have to know how to observe to foresee the dangers so as to avoid traps it's really empowering it it makes you feel like you're you're able to survive on your own there's there's nothing there's no houses there's no roads there's no cars there's no anything it's just us the ocean the bush in Tasmania at least like I just always have days like this and like when it usually comes home about when you're eating the Abalone and the light gets good the sun setting you've had a nice Surf and a big walk and you just go [ __ ] I could die well I think I'm it's we've sort of achieved Perfection you know like that's a little bit how it feels just when everything's so so beautiful the two brothers never know in advance where their wanderings will lead them if it's not to a beach however they have gained an intuitive knowledge of their Island it's ingrained in them I think it's really just the search for new new places and new waves that sort of driven us like um it's awesome to be out here it's fun to Camp it's fun to fish and it's um the waves are really good so the whole Adventure is always worth it but it's that sort of search for something new and something different and something that's a little bit off the Beaten Track that has has driven us to have a look we're working on that when you're spending days and days and days alone with your brother in the bush if you're fighting then it's not that fun so good opportunities for conflict resolution yeah good opportunities to be nice to each other yeah yeah which is a good thing one of the best things about being out out here is that it makes makes all it puts all the rest of your experiences in life into perspective and makes you enjoy everything a bit more I think [Music] the Quest for the perfect wave leads Liam and James to face many challenges [Music] foreign [Music] after days spent trekking through the bush they give themselves up completely to the pleasures of surfing have the feeling that they finally arrived somewhere [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music]

Channel: Free Documentary

Views: 189,883

Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), somewhere on earth, amazing stories, amazing stories from Tasmania, amazing quest, Tasmania

Id: Mz4vwjOFuBc

Length: 52min 6sec (3126 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 24 2023