Tranquil rainforests, rolling grasslands and undisturbed sand dunes – these might all sound like different places, but you’ll find them all in the Tarkine in Tasmania.
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The region of jaw-dropping beauty is unprotected from mining and logging, and one Tamworth local is doing her part to preserve the region by travelling deep into its wilderness.
In March, Sally Doherty will go on the trip of a life time, after fund raising enough money to join a seven-day group trek through the heart of the Tarkine.
“It has a range of different habitats – grasslands, different types of forests and there is a coastal area,” Ms Doherty said.
“It’s got a really rich Aboriginal heritage as well. Along the coast is where you’ll find the Aboriginal middens. Because it’s so isolated, they’re so well preserved.”
The money Ms Doherty raised will go towards the Bob Brown Foundation, who is fighting to make the Tarkine a national park – and therefore protected – by 2020.
“It has lots of flora and fauna species that are under threat, like the button grasses, that we just won’t get back again if we log and mine it,” Ms Doherty.
To raise money for the trek, Ms Doherty raffled off an artwork of the Tarkine – a drawing by her father Brian Doherty.
“We had to raise $3500 to go, and I’ve reached my target for that. Now it’s just about getting the word out, so people can support the Tarkine and get behind it,” she said.
Ms Doherty visited the region about 20 years ago and it’s beauty made an impact on her.
“I was coming up with an idea to celebrate my 40th in May and I was thinking about an overseas trip,” she said.
“But I saw this and decided to do something that gives back, something wasn’t just about me.”
Ms Doherty has never done anything like this before and has been busy preparing herself for the journey.
“I haven’t done Flagstaff yet, but I’ve got a couple of weeks – I’m waiting for it to cool down a bit first,” she said, laughing.
“I have been wearing in my new trekking boots.”