Hollybank thrills Hawks

The Hawthorn Football Club spent Thursday afternoon being thrilled at Forestry Tasmania’s newest eco-tourism venture - Hollybank Treetops Adventure. The afternoon proved that the high-wire tree canopy adventure is not for the faint hearted with the tough young football lads finding the 3-hour experience tested their nerves!




Shane Crawford, Luke Hodge, Brad Sewell, Sam Mitchell, Lance Franklin, Chance Bateman, Trent Coad and Grant Birchall all rode the wire reaching speeds of around 80 kilometres an hour through the tree canopy.

“It was really good fun,” Sewell said shortly after climbing out of his safety gear.

“I’m usually not too bad with heights, but when we first got up there, the wind was blowing up a bit and a few of the boys were carrying on pushing each other about – it did get a bit nervy.

“It was a bit hairy the first couple of times we went across up there, but it was good once you got the hang of it; it was great.

“Once you get comfortable up there you can have a bit of a look around and it’s a really nice view of the park.”

But while Sewell admitted to a few nerves, he maintained he was nowhere near as jittery as a couple of his well-known teammates.

“Buddy (Lance Franklin) was shocking, he was the worst. His knees were shaking up there a couple of times,” he said.

“Changer (Chance Bateman) is terrible with heights as well, so they were pretty good amusement value up there.”

The Hollybank Treetops Adventure “Flying Fox” is the longest continuous cable ride in Australia. With high-tension cables up to 50 metres above the forest floor and with the longest run stretching 372 metres over the Pipers River gorge the experience is nothing short of exhilarating.

The Hawthorn Football Club made their way to the Hollybank Reserve, 20 minutes North East of Launceston, for lunch following their training session at Aurora Stadium.

The eight young thrill seekers had already eaten and were settling their stomachs after their safety induction and harnessing session when the remainder of the team arrived.

Launceston City Council Chief Executive Officer Frank Dixon welcomed the team. Although many of the other team members showed a keen interest in riding the wire once they had arrived at the attraction, time restraints meant that the treetops Adventure will have to be a feature of a future trip to Tassie for the rest of the Hawthorn team.

For more information regarding the Hawthorn trip to Hollybank Treetops Adventure contact Claire Bennett on (03) 6233 8244 or claire.bennett@forestrytas.com.au or visit www.hawthornfc.com.au. To book your own Treetops Adventure visit www.treetopsadventure.com.au.