King Solomons Caves, Mole Creek. July 30, 2013.

Had a wonderful stay in Devonport at the very up market B&B.  The plan for the morning was to visit King Solomons Caves in the Mole Creek region and a photographic exhibition in Launceston in the afternoon.

The cave was very compact cave but with very nice colors.  And being winter we were the only people actually at the cave at the time of the compulsory tour.  So guess what, we had a private 45 min tour with the Parks and Wildfire ranger.  He gave good explanations but more importantly let us take photographs.  The light strategy for this cave was very low level lightning to give it a dark and cave-like feeling.  But does make it hard to make good photographs.

The photographic exhibition a the QVMAG (Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery) was very good and chronicled wilderness photographers throughout in Tasmania starting in the early 1900's. The Tasmanian Wilderness is an area that we hadn't seen much photo off, so this was really nice.

Last night in town was spent eating, drinking and packing.  Tomorrow we fly to New Zealand.

Caroline at the entrance of the Cave.

Beautiful colours in the Cave.

North West. July 29, 2013.

The Far North West is dairy country and looks a lot like the Central North Island of New Zealand.   We spent the day enjoying the countryside and the good weather.

First thing was to climb "The Nut", which is a strange geological formation in Stanley township.  Usually the chairlift is available to avoid the steep hike to reach the plateau, but of course it is closed in winter.  The view from the top was wonderful.
We stayed in Stanley Seaview Inn, motel accommodation.

We followed a recommended backcountry road route around the Tarkine region.  Unfortunately a swollen river and lack of capability of our rental car shortened the trip somewhat and we had to back-track to a bridge downstream to finally make the crossing of Black River. All good fun however.

Next up was Rocky Cape National Park to see a cave where Aborigines took shelter 8,000 years ago. Also gave us a chance to see some beautiful coastline and enjoy rock hopping along the shoreline.

We finished the night in Devonport, the home of the ferry to mainland Australia.  We found the most amazing and upscale B&B 'Inspire Boutique Apartments'; the place is pure luxury and indulgence.

View of The Nut and the township of Stanley.
This is where we stayed the night.

The road across the swollen Black River.  Our
rental car was not going to make this crossing.

Rocky Cape National Park.

Lighthouse at Devonport and lovely setting sun.

Cradle Mountain. July 28, 2013.

Today's weather report was for rain, but this did not deter us from a walk in famous Cradle Mountain National Park.  We started the hike where the Overland Track starts. Then we continued towards and partly around very pretty Crater Lake.  A quick dash up to Marion's Lookout to see if we could see Cradle Mountain, but low cloud prevented that.  Returned via Wombat Pool and Dove Lake.  Only the last hour of the walk involved rain, so all in all, we were very lucky.

We had a great day in the park.  Maybe one day we will return to complete the 7 day Overland Track, but probably in summer.

Crater Lake.

Strahan. July 26-27, 2013.

July 26

The early morning rain stopped as we arrived in the beautiful quaint seaside town of Strahan.  We were not planning on staying the day, but quickly changed our mind and signed up for two tours:  a visit to the local Little Penguin colony in the late evening and a river cruise the following day.

Stephen checked out the local waterfall, namely Hogarth Falls. Caroline gave her heel (spur) a needed rest.

The Fairy* (or Little) Penguin visit was wonderful.  We departed just before sunset on a small boat (The Bonnet Island Experience) and headed out to Bonnet Island.  We first passed through Hells Gate out to the Southern Ocean (the small boat can only handle this depending on the sea conditions) and promptly turned around and headed back in, through the heads, where we feasted on fine cheese and wine while waiting for the sun to go down and the Penguins to waddle into their burrows.  After dark we went ashore the tiny Island (probably only 30 meters end to end).  Our group of six had the chance to see about 12-16 of the smallest of all Penguins in their burrows.  Really neat stuff.

* These penguins were once called Fairy Penguins. I googled the name change. I will leave it up to you. To me they will be Fairy Penguins. (Caroline).

The Seaside Port of Strahan.

The Cemetery is evidence that the town
is several hundred years old.

A Fairy Penguin on Bonnet Island.

We stayed in Risby Cove where we got a good deal on a one-bedroom suite directly overlooking the water.


July 27

We joined World Heritage Cruises for a cruise around Macquarie Harbour and up the Gordon River (Tasmanian Wilderness Unesco World Heritage). First stop was Sarah Island, a former Penal Colony and apparently one of the hardest of all Australian Penal Colonies. Second stop was a Salmon and Ocean Trout fish farm located in the middle of the huge harbour and which was actually quite interesting.  After lunch we walked in the temperate rain forest to see the Huon Pine.  Overall, a good day out.

Intensive Fish Farms.  Here a farmer is feeding the fish.

Gordon River which is part of the
Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area.

The White-bellied Sea Eagle.

Update on Sterlin

Talk about being frustrated.  But at long last Sterlin has left Los Angeles, some 62 days after he was dropped off.  In the end we had to switch to an exclusive 20 foot container to get things moving.  Shipping company has been a disaster.

Sterlin is now somewhere in Mexico on a little boat (Maersk Wolfsburg) making its way to Balboa, where it will transfer to another slightly bigger boat (Bahia Negra) and then head to Auckland and then Sydney.  It is now due into Sydney on 8/31, some 46 days after the original 7/16 date.

This has caused us to rethink our plans to kill the extra time.  So now, we head to New Zealand to catch up with friends and family and do a little sight-seeing.

Although this has been a frustrating process, at least Sterlin is now on his way.

Central Tasmania. July 25, 2013.

Today was the day we made some serious ground towards the North West through central Tasmania.

First stop was Mt Field National Park and Russell Falls. Caroline was heard to say, "this is probably the most beautiful falls I have ever seen". During the drive back to the road North we passed over Meadowbank Lake. And to our great surprise we saw a platypus swimming in the lake. The platypus was very shy and only surfaced for a few seconds each minute or so. But it was good to see one in the wild (so to speak).

The planned destination for the day was Derwent Bridge which is near Lake St Clair.  After a short and very cold visit to the Lake, we decided to press on as Derwent Bridge had very little to offer.  Just a pub and some over priced cabins. Lake St Clair is famed in Australia as it is the end of the Overland Track, which is the most famous walking track in Australia.

We ended up in Queenstown. On the way stopped at Nelson Falls, which are also quite pretty. Checked into an extremely average hotel in Queenstown (Comfort Inn Gold Rush). But had an enjoyable evening in the local pub filled with local yahoos.

Russell Falls and Mt Field National Park.

Lake St Clair.  A very lonely place in winter.

Lovely evening colours of the high plateaux.

Nelson Falls.  Again very beautiful.

The Far South. July 23-24, 2013.

July 23

Drove through the towns of Gordon, Cygnet, Huonville, Franklin and Geeveston on our way to the Tahune Forest Reserve and the Tahune Airwalk.  We walked above and among the giant trees where the Huon River meets the Picton River.  The rivers were running fast due to all of the rain that has dropped in the last 48 hours.  The Airwalk was a fun way to experience the forest and learn a little bit about the trees being farmed.  Of course stopped to see the "largest" tree in Australia.  While in the area we dashed up to Hartz National Park and visited falls.  Found a nice self contained studio at Driftwood Cottages in Dover for the night.

Tahune Airwalk cantilever over the Huon River.

One of the Swing bridges.  This one over the Huon River.

Claimed to be the biggest tree in Australia.

Caroline enjoying the view of the Hartz National Park.

July 24

Absolutely wonderful day in the deep south of Tasmania.  We drove south to Cockle Creek which is the furthermost point in Tasmania accessible by car.  And then we hiked another 2 hours to gain views of South East Cape which is the furthermost point of mainland Tasmania.  When we signed into the walkers register, the previous entry was for 5 days earlier.  So it seem not many people make it down this far in winter.  The rental car we had did a fine job fording water and even a little off road wheeling.

Although it typically rains 212 days a year in this area, we had good fortune and completed the walk without getting soaked.  We finished the walk at 3pm and stomped on the accelerator and made it back to Hobart, a little after dark.

The End of the Rod, indeed.

Whale Sculpture at the end of Tasmania.

South East Cape in the background behind Caroline.

Stephen looking South trying to see Antarctica!

Oyster Cove. July 21-23, 2013

July 21

Left Hobart and headed South in rainy weather.  We were not going far, in fact only a few hours to see a friend we made during our 2011 Antarctica expedition.  Rod and his wonderful wife Jeannie live in Oyster Cove, which is a beautiful cove and gateway to Bruny Island.  Our drop in for lunch turned into a most enjoyable two night stay.  We spent the nights chatting about all sort of things but mainly about Antarctica and the various sub-antarctic islands.  Rod is quite the expert on the antarctic region with an impressive photogragh and book library dating back to the late sixties.  Rod and Jeannie have also visited Cape Adare on numerous occasions including a trip to dugout one of the historic huts.  I love these Polar stories.

As it rained hard all day, we stayed inside and near the fire.  Dinner included rhubarb and apple crumble with ice-cream (just like mum makes it).

We received news that our beloved car Sterlin finally has a sail date from LA and thus an arrival date into Sydney.  Unfortunately Sterlin will not arrive until the end of August.  So this night we made the decision to head to New Zealand to cool our heels for a bit and booked incredibly cheap air tickets (AUD$139 each).

Old train in Margate converted to sell Pancakes.

Stephen, Caroline Jeannie and Rod.

July 22

After the afternoon off it was time to become a tourist again and we caught a late morning ferry to Bruny Island.  Had a great day driving up and down the island, but mainly stayed in the car due to the near constant rain.  Captain Cook and other notable captains of the day made stops in this region to take on water etc.  At the southern tip of the island (or Cape Bruny) we experienced some classic weather blowing up from the South to get a true southern tasmanian winter experience.

Julie joined us for the Island trip.  Julie is a WWOOFer, which is a Willing Worker On Organic Farms.  Basically Julie helps out and gets paid in the form of food and boarding.  Julie was also new to the area and was keen to see Bruny Island as well.

Two Trees Bay.  Captain Cook watered his ship here in 1777.

Caroline enjoying a windswept Adventure Bay.

Cape Bruny and the Souther tip of Bruny Island.

July 23

The weather had improved and time to head south.  We said goodbye to Rod, Jeannie and Julie and headed out.

Hobart. July 19-20, 2013.

Friday, 19 July.

A few nights ago we caught an add on tv advertising serviced studios at Zero Davey Boutique Apartments in Hobart for AUD129. And this is where we checked in last night: cute little studio with kitchinette, washing machine and most of the trimmings.
Just had our second home cooked meal here :)

Leisurely start this morning and around 10am we set off to visit MONA: Museum of Old and New Art. We didn't know what to expect, really, but I for one was blown away by the whole experience: the set-up, exhibits, the O (your own personal guide in the form of an iPod),... We left around 3:30pm, after a delicious late lunch in the cafe. If I ever make it back to Hobart I will definitely visit again!

Outside the MONA entrance.

Reflection on Data.
With permission from Delia Nicholls,
Research Curator, Mona.

Data Wave.
With permission from Delia Nicholls,
Research Curator, Mona.

We then drove up Mt Wellington only to be just about blown off the mountain by the fiercest winds I can recall ever having experienced! I'm serious, at one stage I was actually blown backwards while walking forward... or at least while trying to walk forward. No need to tell that since the light was fading fast it was a very short visit. But the few minutes we were there the views were simply stunning.


Saturday, July 20th.

Just updated my Heel Spur Post.

Port Arthur and the Tasman Peninsula. July 18, 2013.

Travelled South from Triabunna to Dunalley via a small forest back road.  It was beautiful in the early morning mist and completely void of other people.  This is a great way to start the morning.

At Dunalley we visited the Tessellated Pavement State Reserve which has an interesting rock formation which only took 100 million years to make.  Here we also visited a natural arch leading to the ocean and a somewhat disappointing blowhole.

The highlight for the day was a visit to the Port Arthur convict site and probably Tasmania's most significant heritage site as well as part of a World Heritage site.  Back in the 1830's to 1850's this was a great place for the english to send the hardest of convicted British criminals for a little re-education and free labor.   They also employed a "Separate Prison" model such that inmates did not talk or interact with each other, and in fact they spend 23 hours of each day just with themselves.   This is also the site of Australia's worst massacre (28 April 1996) where 35 people were killed by a lone gunman and ultimately led to a national ban on semi-automatic shotguns and rifles.

This is the land of the Tasmanian Devil.  Be careful.

Tessellated Pavement

Natural Arch.  The coastline is a beautiful coastline.

Port Arthur Convict Site.

PS: On route to Port Arthur we drove through a tiny town called Doo Town. Some of the names of the houses caught my attention: 'Doo Us', 'Doo Mee', 'Doo Little', 'Toucan-Doo', 'Wattle-I-Doo',  'Thistle Doo Me' and some more I can't remember (Caroline). I was laughing the whole drive through town :)

Maria Island. July 17, 2013.

We decided to stay 2 nights in Triabunna, to be able to enjoy a whole day on Maria Island.  We had arranged the night before for our "free" ferry ride to the island.  We were interested to find out what the catch was, as commercial operators do not typically provide services for free.  Well, much to our surprise, the ferry crossing was indeed free, with the State government paying $35 for each person they take to the island (go figure).

We rented bikes for the day so we could enjoy more sights than if we walked.  First stop was the Painted Cliffs before the tide made it hard to access.  These are sandstone rocks with infused minerals providing beautiful colors.  Next was the Fossil Cliffs, which plunge vertically into the sea and provide panoramic views.  Lastly was a visit to the old township of Darlington which served as one of many Australia's convict sites and is also a World Heritage Site.

There is a rich wildlife scene on the island including the Cape Barren Goose which was nearly wiped out but is now off the endangered list.  There is also a Tasmanian Devil translocation project where they have moved 14 healthy Devils onto the island so they may naturally breed and be free of the nasty tumor desease that's killing them.

Painted Cliffs

More Painted Cliffs

Cape Barren Goose