Grindelwald, Tasmania
Encyclopedia
Grindelwald is a small Swiss
Village inspired town developed just north of Launceston
by a Dutch immigrant to Tasmania
, Roelf Vos
, after he sold his supermarket chain to Woolworths
. Since his son Mike Vos took over, the town was converted to a golfing
center and many of the original attractions left to deteriorate. The strict building codes were also lifted and many new buildings do not reflect the swiss theme.
The Town has 4 main lakes around which it is built and a fifth that is out of site and used to maintain water levels in the other 4 in times of drought. Lake Serene on which the main village is located is the uppermost in a chain of 3 that run through the golf course with the creek that they feed being a tributary of Muddy Creek. Lake Louise is the largest of the accessible lakes and is located in its own drainage basin. A swiss style restaurant and church are located on its shore and with a bridge connecting the lake's island.
Grindelwald is located on top of a prominent volcanic hill that rises 200 meters above the Tamar River
and the town of Legana
. Though largely level on top, steep slopes and basalt
cliffs drop away on the hill's north, east and southern faces with 2 access roads tracking around the base of the hill before coming in via the western slopes.
The town has many amenities and attractions including a clock tower, church, lookout, shopping area and village square, hotel with indoor pool, restaurants, retirement village, bakery, BBQ area, public toilets, Band Rotunda and outdoor recreation areas such as a golf course, mini golf course, tennis courts, playground and canoes.
In the 1990s, the town expanded with a new suburb named Pleasant Hills, though not in keeping with the swiss theme. An olive grove was also established in 2006 at the end of the valley on which the golf course is located. A series of cabins have also been built just outside the main village.
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
Village inspired town developed just north of Launceston
Launceston, Tasmania
Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
by a Dutch immigrant to Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
, Roelf Vos
Roelf Vos
Roelf Vos was a wealthy Tasmanian businessman who, amongst other achievements, established a supermarket chain carrying his name initially in Launceston, but later expanded throughout the whole of northern Tasmania. The equivalent in the south of the state was Purity Supermarkets.Vos initially...
, after he sold his supermarket chain to Woolworths
Woolworths Limited
Woolworths Limited is a major Australian company with extensive retail interest throughout Australia and New Zealand. It is the:* largest retail company in Australia and New Zealand by market capitalisation and sales...
. Since his son Mike Vos took over, the town was converted to a golfing
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
center and many of the original attractions left to deteriorate. The strict building codes were also lifted and many new buildings do not reflect the swiss theme.
The Town has 4 main lakes around which it is built and a fifth that is out of site and used to maintain water levels in the other 4 in times of drought. Lake Serene on which the main village is located is the uppermost in a chain of 3 that run through the golf course with the creek that they feed being a tributary of Muddy Creek. Lake Louise is the largest of the accessible lakes and is located in its own drainage basin. A swiss style restaurant and church are located on its shore and with a bridge connecting the lake's island.
Grindelwald is located on top of a prominent volcanic hill that rises 200 meters above the Tamar River
Tamar River (Tasmania)
The Tamar River is a 70 kilometre estuarine in northern Tasmania formed by the merging of the North Esk River and South Esk Rivers at Launceston to its mouth at Low Head, north of the second largest settlement George Town and into the Bass Strait...
and the town of Legana
Legana, Tasmania
Legana is a small township on the Tamar River in northern Tasmania, Australia. It lies 12 kilometres north of Tasmania's second largest city, Launceston. It is adjacent to Riverside, Bridgenorth, Grindelwald and Rosevears...
. Though largely level on top, steep slopes and basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
cliffs drop away on the hill's north, east and southern faces with 2 access roads tracking around the base of the hill before coming in via the western slopes.
The town has many amenities and attractions including a clock tower, church, lookout, shopping area and village square, hotel with indoor pool, restaurants, retirement village, bakery, BBQ area, public toilets, Band Rotunda and outdoor recreation areas such as a golf course, mini golf course, tennis courts, playground and canoes.
In the 1990s, the town expanded with a new suburb named Pleasant Hills, though not in keeping with the swiss theme. An olive grove was also established in 2006 at the end of the valley on which the golf course is located. A series of cabins have also been built just outside the main village.