Vanderlayindust

The part of Lenah Valley I live in affords breath-taking views of Mount Wellington looming what seems like directly above us and a stunning view of the eucalyptus covered foot-hills surrounding it. You see the snow covered peak of the mountain in the winter and you see it bathed in sunshine in the summer. At night from our deck the sun sets behind it, and rises above it in the morning.

From the other side of Lenah Valley, many are blessed with sweeping views of the eastern shore and River Derwent.

There are many bush walks which can be accessed on foot from home (off the end of Lenah Valley Road), two dog off leash areas (one off Lenah Valley Road and John Turnbull Park) and a creek with mini waterfalls, which although very cold, never fails to attract children in warmer months. August Road is great for jogging, long and relatively flat.

The air smells so clean and fresh here, its hard to believe Hobart city is so close by. We go away on holidays and as we drive back home the fresh air / gum tree smell just floats into the car its beautiful. You just feel really healthy living here.

There is an RSL club, a chinese restaurant (in a castle?!) with the most amazing chinese food, two Italian restaurants, a florist, two hairdressers, petrol stations, chemists, doctors surgeries, newsagent, bakery, TAB, 'the Food Store' with very high quality fresh produce, wine selection and a deli with beautiful food. There is a primary school and brand new child care centre as well as numerous play grounds. A new bottle shop has just opened at the other end of August Rd and the extremely popular 'Hill Street Store' seems to be opening another branch next door to the bottle shop.

While there could be a little more variety, say in the amount and types of restaurants, given North Hobart is only a 2 - 3 minute drive away, with what is probably Hobart's biggest & best restaurant scene, its not a big issue.

The people in Lenah Valley seem friendlier than any suburb we've lived before. We have great relationships with all our neighbours and don't know of any disputes over anything. People seem to go out of their way to get along. Its a refreshing change.

The downsides; driving to work along Lenah Valley Road which turns into Augusta Road, you meet all the Glenorchy / Moonah etc traffic that has come over Kalang Avenue heading into town. If you leave home between 8.15 - 8.45 its particularly bad and it can take about 20 minutes to get into town rather than the usual 7. Leaving at any other time though pretty much guarantees a quick trip

It can be windy here but generally if you're noticing wind its going to be pretty much the same in other places too:)

A downside for prospective residents is the cost of housing has really shot up and stayed up in Lenah Valley. A 3 - 4 bedroom 2 bathroom house now seems to be $50 - 100,000 more than in previously comparable suburbs like Howrah or Lindisfarne. This may be driven by the new sub division and development areas which are seeing brand new, stunning, modern houses being built, akin to say the new areas in Tranmere.

Get in quick!