Tas - Tasman Island Cruises

We spent an exhilarating three hours with the Pennicott Wilderness cruises exploring the coast between Eaglehawk Neck and Port Arthur. The ocean was smooth, hardly a cloud in the sky, a near perfect day. The boats seat about 30 people, we had our long pants, jumpers, jackets and beanies on and we were still frozen. They handed out red weather- proof ponchos which helped keep out some of the chilling wind. Thank goodness it is "summer".
We went inside deep sea caves, cruised below some of the highest sea cliffs in the southern hemisphere, watched albatross soaring on the wind, and laughed at the seals playing in the water and relaxing on Tasman Island.
We passed a refurbished sail boat, the James Craig, and I was amazed at how much the boat rocked from side to side on a relatively flat sea. Several people on board were on the mast riggings enjoying the ride.

Mike and I had a fantastic time and would highly recommend either the Port Arthur or the Bruny Island cruises by the Pennicott cruises in their yellow boats.

Tas - Port Arthur

I was a little apprehensive about going to Port Arthur, firstly because of all the suffering that the convicts endured and, secondly, of the murders that happened there several years ago.
We did, however, decide to visit the Historic site and enjoyed the afternoon immensely. When we arrived, we were placed in a group with a tour guide who lead us around the site, learning the history and hearing many stories about the Port and its’ people. By 1840 more than 2000 convicts, soldiers and civil staff lived here. A range of goods and materials were produce here, everything from stone and bricks to furniture, clothing, boats and ships. Our guide was very enthusiastic and entertaining which was a pleasant contrast to the horrors that the convicts were forced to endure.
Later in the afternoon, the second part of the tour was a 20 minute ferry cruise out to the Isle of the Dead cemetery where all those who died at Port Arthur were taken to be buried.
At one time when it was a thriving ship building and convict settlement there were over three hundred buildings and today is the best preserved convict site in Australia. Now, there are thirty historic buildings and ruins left and they are dispersed in the beautiful well kept gardens.

Tas - Hobart

We stayed about 20 minutes outside of Hobart and drove in for the day. We took a tour of the city on a red double decker bus with a very entertaining driver and tour guide. We drove by many of the original old buildings, Casade brewery, crossed the Hobart bridge and viewed the city from across the harbour.

We had lunch at Salamanca Place which is full of fantastic restaurants, bars, specialty shops and galleries. The markets here on a Saturday are massive with local produce, crafts, food and almost anything else you can think about.
We walked around the harbour, viewed the cruisers, fishing boats and sail boats at Constitution Dock. The area has a great vibe and we visited more galleries and ate a wonderful seafood dinner on the docks. It doesn’t get much better than that!
The heritage here is rich and the Hobart people love showing off their city and we loved it.

Tas - Bruny Island

Bruny Island is Tasmania’s fourth largest island. We drove to Kettering which is 40 klms south of Hobart and caught the vehicular ferry, the “Mirambeena”, for the short trip to the island. The men on board who direct the vehicles into their positions on the ferry do an amazing job, a bit like a jig saw puzzle, getting everything to fit in neatly.
We picked fresh strawberries and ate them over the next couple of days. They were delicious. All over Tasmania fresh produce is sold at road side stalls, we have bought cherries and stone fruit.
The southern tip of Bruny is very rugged and is the home of Australias’ second - oldest manned lighthouse, built by convict labour with spectacular views over the Southern Ocean.
One day while here, the weather was cold and wet. We stayed in one of the National Park camping grounds, collected wood and had a fire each night. We were thankful that we had bought our beanies along. One morning, it was 7 degrees inside the van. Mike got up, lit the gas burners on the stove and they heated the van up very well. An unusual way to get warm but it worked! This is Tasmania in the summer time. Every day that we have been here we have worn a jacket and I believe that the temperature has been in the high 30’s back home in the Hunter. Amazing! Such a contrast.
Captain Cook, William Bligh and Matthew Flinders have all stopped at Adventure Bay on the island. We visited the local museum which held many of the ships logs and artifacts.

NSW - Queenstown

After leaving the lush area around Strahan we drove through the countryside for about forty five minutes when we rounded a bend in the road and suddenly the landscape in front of us looked like a desert.
The forest had all gone and you are left with bare hillsides that have either been mined for copper or the fumes from the furnaces have poisoned the vegetation. It is such a stark contrast to the lush forests that we had been driving through.
The road out of Queenstown is a challenge for anybody towing a caravan. It winds its way narrowly around, and up and down several mountainsides, is very steep with countless hairpin turns. Somebody had recommended that we travel south along the west coast as these hills would be a nightmare on our brakes if we had to go down them. As it was, our caravan and four wheel drive brakes were smelling when we finally left the area. I must say, I was rather nervous as we traveled this stretch of road and was so glad to reach our camp for the night. We spent the night beside a lake and it was wonderful to sit there, relax with a beer and watch a fly fisherman trying to catch his dinner.

Tas - Strahan

One of the main reasons we came to the west coast was to visit Stahan and cruise up the Gordon River. We had always heard so much about the area and we were not disappointed.

The township is another small and charming one with only a few shops and restaurants but many places to stay. Our caravan park was within walking distance to town which was handy as we certainly needed the exercise.
The boat trip took us from Strahan onto Macquarie Harbour which is six times larger than Sydney Harbour, and out to Hell’s Gate, where the harbour meets the ocean. (Named by the convicts who were sent to Sarah Island). This is rather a narrow gap so I can imagine on a rough day at the change of tide this place could be extremely dangerous.
Back in the Harbour, we cruised by a large salmon farm where we watched the fish being fed pellets by adding them to water and then hosing them onto the feedlots. Each feedlot contains around 30,000 trout or salmon being fattened up for market. They take up to two years to grow to plate size. The seals occasionally break through the netting for an easy feed and then the freed salmon belong to anybody who may be lucky enough to catch one.

Further upstream we stop at Sarah Island which was Australia’s worst and cruelest penal colony in the early 1800’s. The prisoners here became specialist shipbuilders and for five years it was Australia’s biggest shipyard. We walked around half the island and it was hard to imagine the cruelty that took place on such a beautiful island.
This morning cruise was three hours long and included a buffet lunch. The scenery was stunning and the area very peaceful. The forests are so dense that it is hard to imagine how anybody could make there way through them. Fantastic area and when visiting Tasmania this area is a must see to appreciate these magnificent rain forests.

Tas - Stanley

Stanley is a very pretty, restored Bass Strait fishing village with tiny, brightly-painted cottages neatly terraced on the lower slopes of an extinct volcano, called The Nut. We enjoyed walking around the town checking out the shops, the many B & B’s and then ate fish and chips for lunch overlooking the bay. As this is a major fishing port the seafood here is fantastic. I have never seen such huge crayfish. There were many in the tanks between four and six kilos each.
We left the area heading further west to the Tarkine Forest and the Dismal Swamp. The swamp is at the bottom of a sinkhole which has been formed over thousands of years of dissolving rock. One way to enter the swamp is to be propelled down a 110 metre curved tube lying flat on your back inside a bag with your helmeted head slightly elevated, in 5 seconds. I screamed the entire way down as I was flung from side to side on the “bullet train”. My poor neck, I needed my Chiropractor after that whip lashing ride. It was fun though, but scary.

As you wander along the four pathways there are works of art done by local artists disbursed in the forest. The smell of the forest is beautiful with blackwood, myrtle, sassafras and eucalyptus trees. It is special to see all of these magnificent trees close up.