Friday, 6 April                                   Port Arthur    -     Richmond    -    Hobart

Robyn writes:  We woke this morning at seven, just before Steve, our B&B host, arrived to make sure we got our breakfast. It had rained quite a lot during the night but was starting to look as if it was thinking of clearing, so we crossed our fingers, dressed warmly, and planned our day accordingly. My plan was to head back to Port Arthur for the morning while Lex had decided to do a cruise to Tasman Island. After breakfast, we packed up again (getting good at it), said farewell to Steve and Lex dropped me off at the front entrance to Port Arthur just before 9. I was the first one in the door and set out to explore once more to my heart’s content.

First up I had a look at the memorial to the many victims of the 1996 Port Arthur shooting. It’s rather heartrending but good that they have razed the coffee shop where so many died to the ground and put a peaceful garden in its place. They carefully avoid mentioning Martin Bryant’s name anywhere, which is a good thing. No dark fame in having his name repeated.

I joined the first walking tour of the day and even though by this stage I knew a fair bit, I still learned more of the history and about the buildings. Then I had a good wander around and got to go into all of the buildings. Fortunately, once again I was NOT haunted (for which I was once again grateful) though I do admit in the said-to-be extremely haunted old vicarage, I balked on going into one particularly dark room on my own! One of my favourite parts was the old orchard, full of heritage apple and pear trees. There was a sign telling us to help ourselves, so I did. The apples were tiny and a bit spotty but were the crispest and tastiest I’ve ever had! I finally had time to visit the museum also and see the many displays and artefacts they’ve dug up over the years. All in all, it was a glorious history-filled morning (my favourite kind!)

 This window into the ruins of the corridor at the asylum was really clever - if you look carefully you can see the sketch of what it looked like.

 The gardens are lovely - they have been rebuilt after researching photos and records to make them as authentic as possible.

 View from the most haunted room in the old vicarage. No ghosts I could see!

Lex called me just before one o’clock.

Lex writes:

I took the Tasman Island Cruise. It left from next door to our B&B (yes two doors up from the Port Arthur turnoff). After a 15-minute bus ride to a bay at Eaglehawke Neck (which is now a suburb), we jumped onto a purpose made boat for the trip. There were enough tourists to almost fill two such boats – it’s a popular tour.

The sights we saw can best be described by photos.

Cape Hauy, the lanterns and the candlestick. Just another bunch of rocks - not!

A one thousand feet high dolerite cliff

 

There were hundreds of seals on Tasman Island

 

The "landing" for the Tasman Island lighthouse keeper. Behind the platform is a cableway to haul people up the slope, at 40 degrees.

 

 

Sea stack and bottle green water

 

 

 

They are shown below, except for the dolphins and the sea birds. The dolphins swam alongside our boat in the roughest water of the trip, jumping out of the water right beside the boat as if they were in a swimming pool. The sea birds included two types of Albatross. One has a wingspan of 2.5 metres! And the other has a wingspan of 3 metres. They flew beside and over the boat without flapping their wings – truly remarkable creatures. I took no photos because the sea was too rough, the boat was travelling at speed, and there was a real risk that the camera would get soaked in salt water if I took it out for a photo. Of course, there was not a great prospect of getting clear pictures anyway.

All of us tourists wore three quarter length macs. They were waterproof and largely wind proof. However, they were not designed for warmth. I had a total of 5 layers on, and was just warm enough when the boat was travelling at speed. The temperature was somewhere around 15 degrees all day – it gets colder later in the year.

We were on the water for three hours, and arrived at our drop-off point (at Port Arthur) at about 12:30. After a welcome, short walk up a road, we all arrived back at the cruise company office, where we had boarded the bus. Then it was time to call Robyn.

 

Back to Robyn:-

He came straight away to pick me up and we headed first to Eaglehawk Neck, the very narrow site where they had soldiers and dogs stationed at all times to spot any would-be convict escapees. The warden’s house there was very old and interesting – incredibly low doorways which show you how we’ve collectively grown over the last few centuries. Lex walked down to see the ‘dog line’ but my legs rebelled at the thought of any more walking!

Then we decided to come into Hobart via the historic town of Richmond, a bit to the north. We had a very late lunch there at 3 o’clock in a little café there, then had a most enjoyable wander around the town. I went down to look at the historic Richmond Gaol, but sadly we didn’t have time for a proper visit. There are some wonderful little shops along the way and Lex bought himself a souvenir – a set of Huon pine, sassafras and myrtle coasters in a lovely wood shop. Then we of course walked down to see the old Richmond bridge – the oldest in Australia. Finally, we realised that we really had to get going to make it into Hobart on time for checkin at our accommodation.

We had a rather worrying half hour drive with Tasmanian drivers displaying their usual tendencies (drive at 60km/hr on the open road, brake the whole time as you go around a corner, etc etc) then hit peak hour traffic in Hobart but made it with a full five minutes to spare! Trevor, our host, was on hand to welcome us to our lovely little studio flat in Battery Point. Parking out the back is included, which was very important in choosing where to stay. We’re on street level in an old Victorian building and look out at a book shop across the road. Perfect view! The flat has a bedroom/sitting room and adjoining bathroom and quite a decent size kitchen. It has a heater which is being used this evening!

Tonight[RC1] , we’ve walked along Hampden Road where there are lots of lovely eateries to be found, and settled on ‘South on Hampden’, where we’ve had a delicious meal. After tea we followed our young waiter’s instructions on how to get to the local Coles to get milk and various groceries to see us through the next day or so. We’re here for three nights so it’s nice to be settled for a few days!

---

 [RC1]

Thursday, 5^th April                 Scamander to Port Arthur

Robyn writes:  Oh, the history! Of all of the places in Australia to make you feel that perhaps you’re back in the UK, Port Arthur comes closest by a country mile. It’s been forty years since I was here (1978 on a school trip) and it is so good to come back and see it all properly.

We were up bright and early in our little unit in Scamander – another glorious morning – cool but bright and sunny and it soon warmed up again. However, today’s weather feature had clouds rolling over occasionally, so we alternated between bright sunshine and dazzlingly blue/green seas and grey and just a bit gloomy. Fortunately, the rain held off right up to the exact moment our day was finished, and we were heading for the car!

We bade our hostess farewell and were heading south again by 8.30 towards Bicheno where we’d seen the blowhole yesterday.  After that, it was all new territory and we enjoyed seeing the changing landscapes and the beautiful coastal views as the road hugged the ocean for a good deal of the way. Of course, we had several stops to smell the sea air and admire the views.

Our first stop of the day was the Freycinet National Park near the little town of Coles Bay, with the aim of doing a short walk or two (the aim being to be at Port Arthur by mid-afternoon.) However, we rapidly lost enthusiasm when we discovered that a 24-hour car parking pass (nice, but we only wanted 2!) was going to cost us $24. And hiking permits were going to cost us $12 each! As this was turning into the prospect of a very expensive stroll in the bush, we decided to pass on that on head back into Coles Bay. There only appeared to be one, tiny café with no parking so we checked out the possibility of a cruise (that day’s had just left – we saw it heading out into the bay) so we just walked out the jetty in the FREEZING wind, admired the scenery then headed south again.

We had an early lunch in Swansea at half past eleven at a nice little restaurant called Saltshaker, overlooking the bay. By this stage the day had morphed again into sunny blue skies and was gloriously warm, so it was lovely to look at. Lex really enjoyed his scallop pie (he’s been eyeing them off since we arrived in Tassie.) I was less enthusiastic about my Thai Beef Salad which was so salty it was almost unbearable (and I quite like salt!) Anyway, the view was lovely.

Then it was back in the car and south towards Port Arthur. We stopped en route to have a look at yet another convict-built bridge - this one is called the 'Spiky Bridge' for obvious reasons! And no, they have no idea what the spikes were for....We arrived at our accommodation, a B&B right beside the front entrance, at about 3 and were welcomed by Steve, our host.  Turned out we were the only ones booked in for the night, so it was good to have the place to ourselves. Once we’d checked in and got our keys, we headed for the historical site itself. Tickets there are for two days admission and give you a short harbour cruise and walking tour as an inclusion, so are excellent value. We grabbed a cuppa and biscuit each then went straight down to the harbour to catch the 3.30 cruise, which we did comfortably. It gives you a great orientation as to the layout of the harbour. The weather was cool and cloudy but thankfully the rain held off.

 

Spiky bridge!

 Island of the Dead

 

 

After the cruise, we proceeded to walk our legs off around the site, up hill and down dale to see all of the historic buildings, most built by convicts starting from 1830 when the settlement began. My favourite is the ruin of the church – reminded us of several sites we’d seen in England. Port Arthur, of course, has a long and bloody history both old and modern, but is a wonderful place to visit. We were allowed to stay until it was nearly dark, which we did! It began raining just as we walked out the front door, practically the last to leave the grounds.

Then we went back to our B&B, had showers and returned to the site for the Ghost Tour which we’d booked previously. We had a lovely meal in their restaurant, ‘1830’ – highly recommended but we were very lucky to get in without a booking! Our tour began at 8.30 and was really good, if somewhat damp (the gentle rain kept it up for a good while) – young Jett, our guide, was a good storyteller and took us to some of the most haunted places at the settlement. He’s not up to the standard of Jack Sims, the Brisbane Ghost Hunter yet, but give him a decade or two and he might be! Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your viewpoint) our tour wasn’t one of the ones to see a ghostly visitation. I must say I was a bit relieved about this! It’s a really atmospheric and eerie place at night and I’m quite willing to believe that spooky things do happen there.

 

No ghosts....that we could see, anyway!

The tour ended about 10.15 and we were so relieved to return to our lovely warm room and sleep very soundly at the end of a long, wonderful day!

If I lean back from my seat at the breakfast bar, I can see a silver sea meeting a pink sky. It is a beautiful sunset over Scamander, and a balmy 18 degrees makes it about the perfect end to the day. Adding to the joy is an excellent milk stout from my new friends at Iron House Brewery. Robyn is enjoying the Pinot Grigio she bought from Iron Pot Winery on Monday. But, let us start at the beginning.

The day dawned clear and bright. Our fears for a cold morning were soon put to rest - we had been prepared for cold weather that so far has not appeared. Not disappointed there. Also, there has been barely a light silver cloud in the sky, and nothing even looking like rain. Even the wind has stayed away.

The sun beamed down on us as we headed south toward Bicheno. In a sheltered bay, we saw the famous blowhole. Actually, it was pretty tame, but the other tourists loved it. Prominent among these was a good proportion of Asian visitors. They stood patiently waiting for the next big wave to shoot water into the sky. True to their stereotype, they take lots of photos of themselves, their girlfriends, and whatever they came to see. However, most did not even take the time to look around the bay.

Tourists; Oh! and a blowhole spouting water into the air.

I drove to a coastal spot in north Bicheno and found a seafood shop selling lobster at $120/Kg. I settled for a $15 lobster roll. It tastes like the red claw crayfish we get out of the Fairbairn dam at Emerald. Then we went into town for morning tea. The cafe (Pasini's) didn't have anything we wanted to eat, so Robyn just had tea, and I just had (excellent) coffee.

Across the road is a bakery. I had a mini quiche, and Robyn thought she should try one also. She also decided that the jelly cakes looked good, but restricted herself to just one :- restraint!

The drive back through Bicheno was beautiful. It is a pretty town with the sea so blue and the granite boulders so different to anything we are familiar with. The view from the road further north can be good too.

We drove north through Scamander, and on the St Helens. This is the regional centre, and the biggest town for many miles. Robyn bought sunglasses, and then we drove on to Pyengana. There is a cheese factory there. Attached to this is a dairy, and a cafe. They make cheddar in its various forms. Mild, matured, and enhanced with things- caraway seeds, chilli etc.

 We had lunch. Robyn had a cheese sandwich (special order), and I had the Farmer's Lunch (Cheese, pickles, Fevre, Ham, onions, relish). Both were good, but struggled to eat all the cheese; Robyn helped. I bought a bottle of milk stout (made by Iron House Brewery, which is just down the road from Scamander) for tonight.

Our walk for today was St Columba Falls, just a few kilometers past the cheese factory. It was only seven hundred meters to the lookout at the base of the falls, but the track somewhat inclined (steep !). It was lined with tree ferns and crossed two sidestreams.

There were tree ferns all along the track.

The falls themselves were impressive, but somewhat tamed by a lack of recent rain. They looked better in real life than the picture shows.

St Columba Falls near Pyengana

After zooming down the mountain, we headed back into St Helens; then to Binalong Bay.


 Binalong Bay is a separatley named bay at the bottom of the Bay of Fires. It is a popular bathing spot. The small waves rolling over the bathing tourists were the greenest I've ever seen. I could see through them, like light green glass. Beautiful.

Green sea and pretty girl.

We continued along the bay. It is an open bay, consisting of several white sandy beaches, interrupted by outcrops of granite. Those rocks were typically coloured yellow or orange by lichens growing on them.

Robyn and orange lichens clinging to a granite outcrop.

The northern boundary  of the bay is known as The Gardens. The road had narrowed to a country lane as we approached this point, and turned at right angles around individual farm houses. We were reminded very strongly of Ireland (Sheep's Head Peninsula in particular).  At the end was another granite outcrop and more orange lichen.

As the sun began to set, we headed for home. It took us less than an hour, and we arrived before dark.

Now...about that beer.

Til tomorrow... bye for now

Tuesday  3rd April               Launceston to Scamander

Robyn writes: A travelling day today, so a much less exhausting day than yesterday – only a gentle 14,000 steps registered on my fitbit! We were up at 7, and dressed warmly to wander out in search of breakfast in Launceston. (A balmy 12 degrees and another gloriously sunny morning.) We settled on ‘Yolanda Jean’s’, a little café in a semi-circular lane of shops in the CBD. Yolanda gave us a delicious and huge breakfast to set us up for the day. Then we were off, back to the Best Western to finish packing and set off.

Yolanda-Jean's in Launceston

After looking at lots of options, we decided to drive south to visit Brickendon, a World Heritage listed family farm dating right back to the convict era. It was established by the Archer family in 1824 with convict labour, and is still run by the same family seven generations later. (No relation to the Archer family that settled Rockhampton, we were told.) The farm buildings dating back to the 1830s are mostly still there with many still used as they were then. Some were quite huge, like the two ‘Sussex barns’ which were used to house animals in cold weather or when they were ill. Lots of ducks, chooks, turkeys, geese etc in the solid brick 170-year-old poultry shed! We were greeted by the farm cat, Mr Higgins, who graciously allowed us to pat him and then accompanied us on most of our tour of the buildings. From Brickendon, we then went across the road to the much grander Woolmer House, also originally an Archer family property but sadly now gone out of the family. We were able to wander around the lovely gardens there. The house itself is a lovely old Georgian one, and reminded me of the style of Agatha Christie’s house in Devon. For only $12.50 each for the admission which covered both properties, it was really great value. The weather also continued to amaze us – gloriously sunny and reaching 25 degrees at one stage!

Sussex barns and Mr Higgins, the farm cat

Woolmer House

From there, we decided to continue south on the A1 to the pretty little historic village of Ross for lunch, about three-quarters of an hour drive (everything in Tassie is quite close!) We went and saw the beautiful old 1836 stone bridge (convict built, of course) and then had a lovely lunch at the Man’o’Ross Hotel in town. Ross is a delightful little village full of historic stone buildings – we had a wander around and really enjoyed it all.

Ross Bridge

Pub where we had lunch

Finally, around 2, we started our trip north-east to Scamander, the little seaside township on the eastern coast where we are staying for two nights. We came up into the mountains and then down a fairly impressive, steep and quite narrow two-lane winding road to the coast, stopping in St Mary’s at the IGA to get some groceries. We’re staying in a little studio unit which has glimpse of the sea from our verandah and is quite roomy and comfortable.

Scamander beach

Lex tried the Tassie oysters

After a much-needed cuppa, we headed down to the beach in the late afternoon to enjoy the sea air and views. It’s all very peaceful and relaxing. We had a nice meal in the local pub down overlooking the water on the way back and then dragged ourselves (legs are SORE after yesterday!) back up the hill and home. It’s been another big day. Tomorrow we head out to explore the beauties of the east coast.

Robyn writes:  We’ve had a huge day today! After a glorious night’s sleep in our king size bed at the Launceston Best & Western, we were up around 6.30 sipping our hot caffeine and marvelling at the glorious sunshine outside. Not what we’d expected, though as it turned out, northern Tassie is actually in a bit of a drought, and things do look quite dry everywhere.

We went out for a bit of a walk early on and to look for breakfast, which we finally found at Banjo’s Bakery & Café after a good wander around the CBD. It’s unusual in that it still has heaps of shops still in it, and a mall. It was a very breezy and brisk morning at about 12 degrees and we were glad of our jackets. Once we came back, Lex took the shuttle bus back out to the airport to collect our hire car (a late model Corolla – very nice and extremely comfy to travel in.)

A glorious view from our hotel window.

 

 

Early morning in the Mall

 

 

The leaves are changing for Autumn

 

Meanwhile I wandered down to the Mall and the Information Centre then met up with him once he was back in town and we headed for Cataract Gorge, the huge natural feature right on the edge of the city. What a bonus to have just a ten-minute walk away from the CBD; it’s just spectacular! We walked up the eastern pathway, which took about half an hour or even longer with all the stopping and gazing at the scenery. For part of the way we were serenaded by a Scottish bagpipe player (resplendent in kilt, of course.) At the top of the gorge is the First Basin, with a lovely picnic area and a chairlift which we took across to the other side. Great views and only a teensy bit scary! We then walked back across an old (1904) suspension bridge, stopped for a cuppa and then walked back into the town area.

 

Looking back towards Launceston

 

Chair lift

 

On the bridge - rocking a lot!

By this stage it was lunchtime, so we stopped at the Penny Royal centre – named after the old windmill on the city’s edge. We had a lovely lunch there by the waterside watching all of the activities going on around us – they had a replica sailing ship loaded up with parents and kids which went on a ‘cruise’ – lots of drama and history, which I was very pleased to see! There was also a real-life drama playing out above us – they have action and adventure climbs, flying foxes, etc there. We watched a family abseil down the cliff – first the two primary-school aged daughters, then the dad, then it was the mum’s turn…..she went to jump, balked at it; balked again, then just stood up there, all strapped up and ready, and her family calling encouragement from below. By this stage the entire crowd was watching with interest and every face in the place was watching her! We actually don’t know how this all played out, either, because when we left about ten minutes later, she was still standing there, poor love…..I really felt for her – on one hand, she was obviously scared stiff. On the other hand, she had two daughters down there that she needed to model ‘face your fears’, ‘girls can do everything’ etc etc for!

After this dramatic and delicious interlude, we headed for a walk through the adjoining park area along the river and admired the very British trees there – oaks with acorns and chestnuts – just lovely! Flooding is obviously a problem as we walked right along the top of a huge flood barrier called a ‘training wall’ designed to channel floodwater into the Tamar River and out to sea. From there we headed back to the hotel as by this stage, my fitbit informed me, I’d walked about 14 000 steps and I was exhausted! Finally back, I flopped in a heap while Lex valiantly went looking for some milk for a cuppa – with no luck. Corner stores / 7-11s etc do not exist in the Launceston CBD. I went down to reception and the nice lady there popped up with some milk for a much needed caffeine boost, followed by a good lie down. The day was quite warm by this stage, especially after all the walking. Glorious weather for a holiday! It was a bit cloudy at times but then cleared again this afternoon.

It's an acorn!

Once we’d recovered, we decided to go for a drive north to see something of the countryside between here and Bass Strait, so we headed off in the Corolla. We visited a lovely little winery, the Iron Pot Bay, where I tasted some of their whites and bought a most agreeable Pinot Grigio. Then we popped into the Lavender Factory across the road to sniff all of their lovely products. I acquired some lip balm. Then we headed half an hour north through Beaconsfield, where the mining disaster was some years ago, to Green’s Beach to see the sun set. Unfortunately, by this stage it was windy and blowing and FREEZING cold, so I didn’t really enjoy the walk – another two or three layers, plus a scarf, and it would have been most invigorating! After that, we were (very quickly) back into the car and headed south again to the A7 and back to Launceston mostly in the dark. We got back here at 7, then went downstairs to the Tram Bar once more for another lovely meal. This actually does have a real, old Launceston tram inside the restaurant - sadly, all of Tassie's trams and trains are now gone, except for the heritage lines. We’re thinking we’ll sleep VERY well tonight. My fitbit informs me that I’ve done nearly 25,000 steps today. It’s been a huge one!

Beaconsfield tile mural and old mine buildings

Sunset and Bass Strait

Tomorrow we say farewell to Launceston and head east to the coast.

At about 8 o'clock Robyn and I rolled out of bed. We deserved a sleep-in after yesterday's exertions.

This morning was Easter Sunday, in case you didn't realise. Mikeal celebrated by cooking us all a fine bacon and egg breakfast.

Leaving Perri behind to pack and organise herself, the Hooleys took the Cuskellys to the Eagle Farm markets. They have reduced to a foo market lately, with no craft stalls and only a few clothing stalls. Mikeal and Caitlin bpought some vegetables, and then we left.

I wanted to see Hamilton wharf, so we went for tea/coffee at Max Brenner's. Even though the place was practically deserted, we waited for half an hour for three hot drinks. None of us will be back there anytime soon.

Back at the Nundah flat, we collected Perri and drove to Sandgate for lunch. What a contrast!
The Full Moon Hotel was packed full; and we walked straight up to a table for 5. Three had white wine (a very nice Pinot Grigio), and we ordered quickly. The food came in good time and was praised by all of us. I can recommend this place as it overlooks Sandgate and the sea (albiet through some tall trees).

Feeling full, we headed back to the flat to repack our bags. After much manipulation, both Robyn and I had bags weighing just under 20 Kg (the Jetstar limit). My carry on bag weighed 5 Kg, and felt like 15. Robyn's was only marginally lighter.

At about 3:30 Mikeal drove us to the airport, where we received a shock. Our bags were supposed to be checked in by 3 ! A nice Jetstar lady hustled our bags through the bag drop and away. Then we proceeded through security checks and finally, to gate 38. Here we waited for the boarding call, which didn't actually come. There was an announcement that we would be boarding shortly; then without notice, they simply started checking people through! Very glad we had joined the waiting queue!

Later, He and Caitlin would take Perri to the (international) airport. She is flying to Japan tonight. She will stay a fortnight there with a friend. From there, she will fly to London to take up a position as a nanny in north London.

Meanwhile, our flight went smoothly, even though the seating was quite cramped. I was very glad to get off the plane after nearly three hours sitting in the same position.

Launceston airport is easy to navigate, and the bags arrived at the carousel quickly. We walked only 30 metres to the Taxi rank, and were on our way in minutes. Our driver was friendly and chatty. He gave us a few suggestions about what to see. For $43, he also took us straight to the Best Western Plus hotel in Launceston.

It took us only a minute to book in. Then we took our bags to Room 412, changed, and went down to the Tram Bar for a drink and a meal. My chicken Parmigiana looked like it came from a turkey - it was huge. I ate it, and it was very good. Robyn got most of my chips to supplement her soup.

Now we are back in the room and ready for a good night's sleep. The Launceston town clock has just struck the bell ten times (for 10 PM). It has been a long time since I heard a town clock do that.

Till tomorrow.....