If there's a single keynote for Tasmania's north-east, its colour - travelling through this part of the Island, you will be aware of the constantly changing hues of the land, the sky and the sea.

On the coast at Bridport , you will find one of Australia's top golf courses - Barnbougle Dunes - overlooking Bass Strait. From Bridport to Tomahawk, you will see long sandy beaches, the bright orange of lichen-splashed granite and the clean, clear turquoise of the sea.

St Helens is a picturesque fishing port on the shores of Georges Bay and is the north-east coast's largest town. Beyond the sand bar, the ocean offers up game fish, while to the north is the pristine coast of the Bay of Fires.

In Scottsdale's green and fertile valley, dairy herds graze rich pastures and the fertile red soil nourishes wonderful vegetables - onions and peas, carrots and potatoes. In summer fields of poppies adorn the landscape, and lavender bushes grow in tidy, purple stripes.

This is a region of surprising variety - from neat croplands of Scottsdale and Ringarooma to coastal heathlands and pastures of Mount William, where Forester kangaroos graze; from the rugged summits of Ben Lomond and Mount Barrow to the dairy pastures of Winnaleah; from the exciting offshore fishing at Bridport and St Helens to the rows of green-blossoming hops around Branxholm.

Each place has its own surprises - sapphires panned from old mines near Branxholm and Derby; impressive wood sculptures of war heroes at Legerwood; farm cheese at Pyengana; skiing and walks on Ben Lomond's craggy heights; more echoes of a mining heritage on the Blue Tier; rough-cut local granite in the towering Eddystone Point lighthouse; and sweeping views of forests and farmlands as the Mathinna road descends to Fingal Valley.