Monkeying Around in Tassie and Victoria

After Launceston we headed inland intending to walk the Walls of Jerusalem but low cloud prevented this so a return to the coast put us at Baker's Beach within easy reach of Devonport for a trip to the cinema to see Sanctum in 3D - good film but not sure about 3D. Watching the ferry to Melbourne leave at sunset was impressive given the narrow channel available out to the stormy seas.

A return to the hills and some excellent bush camping at Lake Rowallan enabled us to do our planned walk despite the unusual fall of four inches of snow overnight. We met another Swiss couple on a round the world trip http://www.offintothehorizon.com/ and at dusk saw a spotted quoll nosing around outside.

Sarah enjoyed a days riding in the forests around Lake Barrington before we headed off to the coast for our return sailing to Melbourne. A group of suicidal bikers nearly caused grief on a series of tight hairpins - two came off in spectacular fashion but seemed uninjured despite the damage to the bikes.

On a fast stretch of road whilst heading for the ferry we experienced a sudden and alarming loss of power so pulled off to inspect - all seemed well but we could not get the revs up so limped slowly in to town where I replaced the fuel filter and all was well again.

The ferry crossing was very enjoyable with Tasmania retreating in to a glorious sunset and Melbourne appearing lit up at dawn as we again crossed Port Phillip Bay.

We are now exploring the Victorian goldfields with beautifully preserved heritage towns and villages, warm weather and empty camping areas. We will head down to the Great Ocean Road after the weekend and then to inland to the Grampians over the next week or two.

Pics are here - hope you enjoy the new feature on the blog - a slideshow of other pics we have taken which will change at each new posting.

Locations once again here - we have noticed that Google must have photographed the area during the drought as many of our campsites are unrecognisably greener after the January rains.

Top notch Tasmania

Cape Huay at the southern tip of the Tasman Peninsula provided superb views to the seas way below and after the absorbing remains of the convict days at Port Arthur we headed back through Hobart and followed the east coast north. Freycinet was we felt rather over done and we found scenery and isolation more to our liking on the north east tip of the island with wonderful coastline, camping areas empty now that the schools are back and a large high pressure system ensuring that we have enjoyed the views in their best light. Some conservation fishing off the beach ensured that we enjoyed pork chops cooked on the gas barbie supplied at Stumpy's No.4 campground - it is amazing the free provision of facilities to enjoy life outdoors in the most remote of places.


An afternoon snorkelling revealed hidden treasures beneath the blue sea followed by a remarkable sunset which rounded off a perfect day in the Waterhouse Conservation Area.


We are now in Launceston to enjoy a couple of museums and the impressive Cataracts Gorge before heading inland to the mountains for our final week or so.


We met up briefly with one of the Swiss couples I had met back in October who are engaged in a similar tour and have come away with some good ideas for onward travel plans.





Photos here and updated locations here

More from Tassie

The island continues to amuse and enthrall us as we continue to enjoy good weather with sunny skies and fresh conditions. Having a dongle here in Oz has so far proved invaluable especially as much of the info about walks and wildlife is available online and downloadable.

It also means we get to post more often although I guess coverage will drop off once we head west in a month or so.

After a rewarding walk in the Hartz NP we headed inland to stop at historic Oatlands which reminded us of stone built Cotswold villages and had a free camping spot overlooking a lake which reminded us of villages in France. This put us conveniently in position to enjoy a combined day at the Tasmanian Cattlemen's Association annual get together and Ross Rodeo with both events providing spectacular displays of horsemanship and stockmanship in very much a no nonsense atmosphere. H&S, fears re liability and an aversion to risk seem to have knocked the stuffing out of similar rural events at home so the approach here was very refreshing.

We have now moved on to the Tasmanian Peninsula once guarded at Eaglehawk Neck by ferocious dogs to prevent convicts escaping the penal colonies of Port Arthur.

The tessellated rocks were fascinating but the blowhole somewhat benign given the current calm sea conditions. Quiet Lime Bay nature reserve is our base for tonight and a daring red necked wallaby has already inspected our set up. The chances of seeing a Devil are slim but we will probe the woodlands with a light after dusk.

A few photos here and the recent locations here which update daily , regards to all.

The Edge Of The World

South West Tasmania has rewarded us with stunning scenery, a variety of wildlife and reminders of an inglorious past.

The ingenuity of man was impressively portrayed at Lake Gordon hydro scheme where the 140m high dam held back Australia's largest freshwater body of water. Nature hit back with the wilderness of the World Heritage listed South West National Park where we barely scratched the surface at Lake Pedder.

Bruny Island provided good walks, sea eagles, albatross, tiger snakes, echidnas, dolphins and stunning cliff scenery before Hobart's impressive architecture and dark history filled a very wet day.

Cockle Creek to the south was as far in that direction as we can go in this country with a walk to South Cape Bay emphasising how far from anywhere else we were. The spectacular bay with churning seas was more than half a world away from the next land mass - South America's narrow southern tip.

Sunny but cool weather has been ideal for us and we have met some interesting people perhaps most notably a couple from Devon on a year long trip and just about to head to New Zealand. We now head north briefly to a Cattlemen's event before returning to Hobart to continue our circuit via the Tasmanian Peninsula and the east coast.

Pictures Locations updates daily

Tasmania

Our journey down the north west coast took us along the Western Explorer - a gravel road only put through in 1995 which took us through remote wilderness scenery south of Arthur River and provided a chance to walk up Mt Donaldson for excellent views.

Corinna provided a relaxed base to enjoy a couple of walks and an afternoon kayaking on the Pieman River. The sunny pub verandah was the perfect spot to end the day.

Zeehan seemed a bit lost despite its excellent museum and the strangely moving Gaiety Theatre alongside which seemed to echo with the memories of more prosperous times. Strahan was more upbeat with its Gordon River cruises and the spectacular expanse of Ocean Beach. We had walked in the vast dune system north of there prior to camping nearby.

Queenstown bears the scars of its long mining history but was the gateway to the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers NP that protects a huge swathe of west central Tasmania. Lake King William provided a couple of nights of idyllic bush camping before we headed round to Mt Field NP.

This is the oldest in Tasmania and gave us the chance to walk high up in alpine scenery once more. A long and tiring walk took us above the tarns and round to K Col before a descent to other picturesque lakes and a fascinating old ski hut at Lake Twilight that contained relics from the early days of skiing in the area around the 1920's and 30's.

We are now in the Mt Field campsite on the eve of Australia Day so of course there is quite a buzz.

Dashboard lights blink occasionally but otherwise all is well at a practical level - the fresher conditions are very welcome and we have heard recently from a couple of people we have met during the course of our travels and kept up to date with their news.

Pictures as usual here and the Spot locations here - these update on a real time basis so even if the blog hasn't been updated this link will always give an idea of where we are on at least a daily basis.

Over to Tasmania

The day after the last post we decided to head to Melbourne early and try to get the alternator looked at. Thus we hopped over the Yarra Ranges which were discharging water to the plains at an alarming rate and arrived at a non main dealer VW garage. They referred us to an auto electrician down the road and they suggested we left the van with them for the day on Friday.

Thus we needed a pitch for the night so headed down the Mornington Peninsula to look for a space. For the first time on this trip we were faced with a long strip of municipal campsites jammed between the road and the beach which encircled this eastern side of Port Phillip Bay. Despite the heavy rain few people had left and we were unable to get a pitch so instead took a modest but comfy motel room.

On the Friday we dropped the van off, waited out the rain over lunch in an Italian restaurant and then hopped on the train in to Melbourne as the sun emerged to plan our full day on the Saturday. Finally back at the garage all was well apparently until we took a test drive where in fact we had lost all gauges and the speedo. Fortunately a quick fix saw us on the road again - the proprietor assuring us that all would be well. We drove down towards Brighton on the coast, took another morel room for the night and wandered round to a bar for a few beers in the evening sun.

On Saturday, the day of sailing, we parked near the ferry terminal noting with some annoyance that we still had a minor electrical glitch and then walked in to Melbourne centre to enjoy the Immigration Museum, the old trams and a walk along the swollen river admiring the soaring city architecture and older colonial buildings squeezed in between.

Early evening saw us lining up to drive on board where our cabin was situated right beneath the bridge with a wonderful view of all the action. The two hour sail out of the bay gave the sun time to set as we sat outside with a cold beer before retiring to enjoy a bit of telly and sleep soundly for a 5am wake up call.

This came on time and gave us time to enjoy the approach to Devonport as the sun rose. We disembarked and turned west stopping shortly to make calls home as it was a reasonable hour back home before we stocked up in Burnie as strict Tassie quarantine rules prevent the importation of fruit and veg.

We then meandered along the coast enjoying the lofty views from old volcanic outcrops at Table Cape with its lighthouse and Rocky Cape before staying the night at Black River.

Today we have continued west stopping to climb the Nut at pretty Stanley, pass Cape Grim ( inaccurately named ) with its 62 wind turbines and stop for the night at Green Point in Anne Bay, Marrawah where a trio of windsurfers were enjoying the terrific conditions.

Piccies Spotties

Victorian Alps

Our first few weeks of 2011 have been spent enjoying more of the Australian Alps with good walks to remote cattle musterers huts, a hot but memorable day up to Mt Hotham and a remarkable variety of Parks camp sites - each uniquely different but all providing a chance for a fire, often a solar shower and occasionally a swim. The earlier rains have promoted greenery and flowers helping to erase the scars of devastating fires in 2003 which covered vast areas of these high and inaccessible tops.

The rough tracks in to the remoter areas filled the van with dust but were otherwise adequate and took us to some very special places in which to spend the night - abandoned gold towns, musterers huts and high plains, deep valleys and dense woodlands. Occasional forays in to the towns for food, gas and fuel gave us the chance to meet friendly ordinary Australians and share their concerns for the people of flooded Queensland.

We head to Melbourne later this week - a minor alternator fault may hasten our progress - before we catch the overnight ferry to Tasmania for 4-6 weeks.

The scenery and wildlife continue to absorb us and we have enjoyed a prolonged dry spell which broke over the last day or two with spectacular storms in Howqua and heavy rain here at Lake Eildon.

Pictures by here and locations by there.