Thursday April 14th and Friday April 15th, 2011
Thursday morning we woke up bright and early, gathered on the sidewalk outside the hostel and waited for the tour van to arrive. We were there on time but the van arrived a little late. No worries though we were eventually all pick-up and headed off for our next day of exploring the wilds of Tasmania. Of course, the rain returned for a second day but it's ok......it's Tasmanian rain which means it is the cleanest, least polluted rain in the world.
The group met our new driver, Robert (I may have forgotten to mention that it was Damien who was driving the group on Wednesday). Robert was going to be with us for the next 6 days.
Our first stop of the day was in the little town of Ross. It was cute and quaint and everything that Tasmania should be. It also happens to be the half way point between Hobart and Lauceston (the other major city in Tasmania). We stopped to check out a few little sites....mainly the bakery and grocery store but I also found a few other things.
This guy looks pretty relaxed. Just chillin' enjoying a little bit of rain.
Not sure who this guy is but he was one of a matching pair that were decorating the windows of a small house on main street (ok not totally matching, there were different old white guys on each plate). It really was a quaint little Tasmanian town.
Town Hall. It's little and old and well......that's about it but you know I love it.
Like a few other places, the water in Ross was a little high. In fact the road you would normally access the town by was closed because it was totally flooded.
I thought about swimming over to check out this memorial but the water was running far too fast and it was a little cold.
Now do you believe me? The water was HIGH!!!!!
Do you read roman numerals? My lessons seem to be lacking because I am not sure how far it is back to Hobart.
Once we left Ross we headed to one of Tasmania's most famous spots and one of the most photographed places in the world, Wine Glass Bay. It is an absolutely beautiful spot with crystal blue waters and white beaches and wonderful views.
Am I the only one who thinks this looks a little unsteady?
There is a pretty nice 9 kilometre hike that takes you to a few lookouts including the one over Wine Glass Bay. The above pictured rock was part of it. After short few moments we made it to the Wine Glass Bay look out.
Unfortunately with the rain and the cold and the complete lack of sunshine this was our view. Very......very disappointing but I guess there is only so much you can do. Just close your eyes and imagine, bright sunshine, turquoise water, beautiful trees and friendly wildlife. I can see it......can't you?
Yes, not happy with the rain and the cold but still smiling. It's Tasmania!!
Look at this cute little guy. He still came out to say hi even with the rain. He is a wallaby (I think a Tamar wallaby). So cute. I loved him.
How pathetic is he? But still so cute. Obviously this little guy is use to getting handouts from tourist. We were good though......we didn't even pet him.....although I just wanted to give him a great big hug. So cute!!! I love friendly wildlife.
This is Coles Bay.....on the opposite side from Wine Glass Bay. Mainly I'm taking this picture for the sun.....the one tiny little patch of sun.
Walking along Coles Bay Beach......not even remotely inviting. Such a shame.
On our hike. That is my new friend Bibi (short for Bibiana. She's from Switzerland). We ( and a few others) made the 9 kilometre (5.5 mile) hike. It took us about 3 hours which we thought was pretty good considering this was part of the "moderate" trail. It was quite difficult at times but so worth it.
Once we were finished our hike we headed to our accommodation for the night. It was a backpackers in a small little town called Bicheno. There isn't much in Bicheno but it is a place that you can see some cute little penguins (about 5,000 of them call Tasmania home). We didn't make it out to see them (we decided it was too cold and too wet but Bibi and I found a great little restaurant (Pisianos) which made some great, great food.) Not at all what you would expect from a tiny little town like this.
Our little backpackers. They crammed a whole lot of people into this tiny little house......but at least there was hot water.
Friday, April 15th, 2011
Friday morning we crawled out of bed a little too early, braved some more rain and cold to check out a few more of Tasmania's great and beautiful spots. Our main destination of the day was another of Tasmania's most famous sites, the Bay of Fire but we hit up a few places before that.
Checking out the morning surf. Don't get too close. You'll get very, very wet.
Once we left the surf we headed up to Whaler's look-out. Basically this was a hill that locals would climb and look out over the water looking for whales. Once they saw the whales, they would signal the boats and the hunt would begin. Of course this was all back in the day when Tasmanians could still hunt whales. Bicheno's economy would have been based around whaling for many years. Now the small town is mostly supported by tourists.
The view from the top. I didn't see any whales but then again it isn't whale season.
Apparently the lookout would sit up in this tree and look for whales.
The sun attempting to peak through the clouds. It would have been awesome if it had tried a little harder but I can't control the sun.
From there we headed to the Bay Of Fire.
A quick look at the Bay Of Fire.
How the Bay got it's name is not completely known but it may have something to do with the lichen that grows on the rocks (or it may have been due to the fires used by aboriginals to help with hunting and forest regeneration). Anyway, the lichen is very very special because it is very rare. It only grows where the air is very clean.....like here in Tasmania.
Hanging out with the lichen. Yes I was a little cold.
That's Bibi and I. Yes it was cold but we enjoyed some climbing over the rocks. It was pretty neat to look at. Nothing I have really seen before.
Some of the odd rock formations that the lichen will grow on. Makes no difference to the lichen as long as it has nice clean air.
Before I talk about our next stop I want to go back to the name thing. Like I said two theories as to where the name came from. The first is that explorers floating by saw the orange lichen growing on the rocks and thought it looked like they were on fire. The second and just as likely theory is that those same explorers saw many bush fires set by the aboriginals. They set the fires to help herd animals into certain areas to make hunting easier. But also when the fires went out and the forest began to regenerate (which doesn't take long) many animals would come to the forest and feed on the short grass.......also aiding in hunting. Anyway, I'm going with a combination of both these theories.
From there we started to make our way to Lauceston, but not without making a few stops along the way in little Tasmanian towns and beautiful Tasmanian waterfalls and an amazing Tasmanian cheese shop.
The little "hospital" in St. Helens. So cute. Looks like a little house.
Also in St. Helens just down on the waterfront. There was no sign so I have no idea what it means or who put it there but it look interestingly out of place.
At the Pyengena Dairy Company. They make great cheese and really good ice cream too. It was a great stop. Weather didn't matter here......everything tasted so good.
That's our guide and driver Robert checking his weight outside the Dairy Company. Not sure if the scale was accurate or not but he didn't look pleased with what it said.
St. Columbia Falls. The falls are about 90 meters in height and you can walk to see them in about 30 minutes (round trip). Apparently they are looking spectacular right now because of all the rain. I was impressed.
The view from up at Columbia Falls. So amazing. Tasmania is so beautiful, but I may have said that before.
Now I can't remember what town this is in but an artist has done something really interesting with some old trees that fell over. Instead of them just being ripped out of the ground, they were carved into memorials for people from the area who were killed in action during World War I. I thought that was a very good idea and they look amazing. This one is dedicated to John Henry Greg McDougall who was killed at Passchendaele Ridge, France in 1917.
Just after dark we arrived in Lauceston, Tasmania's 2nd largest city and Australia's 3rd oldest city. With a population of 100,000 you can an imagine by Tasmanian standards it is a happening place. For the rest of us it is just another small city.
We didn't do much but grab some dinner and then go to bed but there would be tomorrow for checking out local sites.
Julie
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