By Lyn McGaurr

In a little town south of Hobart famous for its annual folk festival is a funky eatery called the Red Velvet Lounge. It’s a great place to relax in an armchair with a magazine or enjoy an entire meal. Spacious and airy, with a high, pressed-tin ceiling and a range of modern art and sculpture, it exudes the new atmosphere of the Huon Valley and D’Entrecasteaux Channel. It’s confident and classy but retains a closeness to the people, soils, forests and waterways that are the heart of this complex region.

Cygnet is just one of many communities down this way that are finding they have something that visitors want. They are not so much remaking themselves as evolving – using that very visitor appeal to preserve what is most precious about their lifestyles. Woodbridge, Geeveston, Dover…even Huonville is starting to spruce itself up. It knows it has a job to do, greeting visitors and playing host before ushering them on to a rich diversity of adventure, heritage and natural attractions.

You can drive straight to Huonville from Hobart, or loop down along the edge of the Channel, perhaps stopping at a Kettering vineyard along the way, or taking the ferry from there to Bruny Island.

If you’re feeling peckish by the time you get to Woodbridge, you’ll be spoilt for choice. Wherever you go, you’ll be dining on the freshest local produce, so take your pick from the stylish Peppermint Bay right on the water, the Grandvewe Cheesery, or the delightful Fleurty’s Bush Café.

Continuing on through Cygnet to Huonville, turn left at the bridge and head for the deep south. If you love the feel and smell of wood, you’ll want to spend days in this region. Pick up a few hints from Australian and overseas students building traditional craft at the Franklin Wooden Boat Centre or watch a woodturner at work in the Forest and Heritage Centre at Geeveston. Here you can also buy tickets for the Tahune Forest AirWalk, a stroll through the canopy of a mature forest at the confluence of the Picton and Huon rivers.

Further down the road are dolomite caves and thermal pools, bays of white sand and turquoise ocean, and a vast national park just waiting for you to explore. So don’t stop at Hobart – it’s just the beginning.