FEEDBACK ON RETURN FROM THEIR TRIP
Hi Gerry,
You would remember that we
enquired a month or so back regarding places to see in Tasmania,
and you provided some very helpful information for us. (Our
first email attached - see below).
We have been home now for over a
week and wanted to update you on our thoughts about the trip,
which saw us in Tasmania
for 32 nights ( approx. 5 weeks).
We have already written a blog (-
see URL below, it is just a single entry ‘summary’ which we
thought might prove useful to others). It contains different
information to what follows here.
We might also add the info in this
email to it, but thought we would give you ‘first choice’ if you
wanted to publish any (or all) of this email on your
touringtasmania site.
Your choice, we would be very
pleased if you chose to do so! But we also recognize that
you may not find it suitable for your site. Please let us know.
(Also we have taken many good
photographs ( - both of us are keen amateur photographers) so
should you want / need any particular photos for your site we
could possibly provide some, and would only ask that you
acknowledge photo source as being from us). I can send an
example or two if you wish, let me know.
Our blog is at
www.mytb.org/alibut-cheek
and we would be very pleased for
people to visit there and perhaps leave helpful comments if they
wish.
Some of what we wanted to say is
on our blog, but there is not much detail about individual
places that we visited. Our blog is worth a visit as it will
provide practical information for a trip to Tassie.
Here is the start of our trip
description!
__________________________________________________________________________
Our intention was to try and go to
some ‘off the beaten track’ places as well as the normal tourist
favourites.
The best hint for planning a
Tassie trip would be to research carefully as there are many
‘hidden gems’ to be missed on a rushed and poorly researched
trip! The next best hint is to ensure that you take enough time
if you can. There is a lot to see and much of it is just great.
I have to say that the ‘normal’
tourist destinations were all very good and we cannot think of
one that we would have rather skipped, or left off our list!
They were all very worthwhile and definitely no regrets about
spending the time to see them.
The whole of Tassie is packed with
beautiful scenery and places, and also is very interesting with
a large variety of different sights and things to occupy even a
jaded ‘professional tourist’.
Here is a brief summary of our
Tassie experience . . . Will skip over the ‘normal’ destinations
like Port Arthur etc as these were always very good and
DEFINITELY shouldn’t be missed. We will focus on what the
lesser-known places were like.
-
We have a 4WD and although we have an excellent
caravan, we decided to camp in a tent with the option of staying
in cabins or motels / pubs as necessary. Leaving the van at home
wasn’t a bad idea – no regrets as we thoroughly enjoyed tenting
and the elements of freedom and back to basics by traveling
light. More info at our blog on this and other aspects! We
essentially traveled anti-clockwise around the island. Feb-March
is a ‘low rainfall’ season and we didn’t experience much rain at
all.
-
Stanley: The Nut an
enjoyable walk. Caravan Park excellent, especially the Camp Kitchen.
(This kitchen, like most others had everything you needed. On
our entire 32 nights in Tassie we only cooked perhaps three
meals on the gas stove at our tent. Camp Kitchens
/ BBQ’s were almost always available as well as Microwaves etc
wherever we went). Tenting was easy (apart from the few very
windy days encountered, when some dust blew in). Basically all
we used the tent for was to sleep in at 95 percent of sites.
-
Did round trip Stanley – Smithton – Dismal Swamp
- Marrawah – Sarah Anne Rocks (nr Coutta Rocks, beautiful
colours), back to Stanley.
-
Dove Lake /
Cradle Mountain
and its wildlife very beautiful. We found 3 days was still not
enough time to do justice to the place. Saw Tassie Devils in the
wild on two occasions, as well as Pademelons Wallabies and many,
many Wombats. The Pademelons constantly came to our tent and
within a few inches of us. The campsites are private and very
bushy – nice. Camp Kitchens
excellent, with big log fires.
-
Strahan: the
Zeehan Museum excellent, and we took a Gordon River cruise which was amongst the top
three favourite things we did in
Tasmania. Hints – take
the earlier morning cruise if possible, and if it is calm
weather you will see the ‘mirror smooth’ water of the magic Gordon
River.
Once the first cruise goes there the waters stay rippled all
day, no mirror. Both cruises are excellent ‘must do’ and the
lunch served on board ours was a veritable banquet. Visit to
Sarah Island fascinating, suggest reading Marcus Clarks ‘For the
Term of his Natural Life’, or ‘The Ship Thieves’ before going
there so as to appreciate what the convicts had to cope with.
These are well worth a read anyway.
-
The West Coast Abt Railway another ‘must do’ and
you can do it one way, catching a bus to / from Strahan. How
this railway got built was legendary.
-
We did a drive to the
Bird River,
and walked part way to Pillinger. This was simply amazing and a
hilite of our trip. 4WD recommended, but a standard vehicle
should make it provided there hasn’t been much rain on the
track. The old abandoned towns around Queenstown (- and
Pillinger itself) are worth a look also, so much has happened
there and now there is little remaining.
-
Next was
Russell Falls
/ Mt Field NP area. (Note – facilities at the camping area are
quite inadequate, but there is no choice other than to stay
there. We have written to the NPWS about te standard of the
park). These falls are as expected – spectacular. And a few kms
‘up the hill’ is Lake
Dobson,
also very nice. The best part of the area for us (great scenery)
was a full days’ trip to Lake Pedder
via the Edgar and Scotts Peaks Dams. Then back and on to the
Gordon Dam. Man! That Gordon Dam is a majestic sight, causes a
nosebleed just looking at it. Try not to miss this ‘wilderness’
drive.
-
There are – or were – railways everywhere in
Tassie, so for railway buffs like me it is a smorgasbord. Some
have long gone and it can be hard to find the remnants without a
good accurate map. We couldn’t find quite an impressive set of
ruins supposedly near Williamsford. There was no obvious
signage, which leads me to maybe our biggest whinge concerning Tasmania: in quite a
few areas and places there was inadequate signage. There were
both extremes – sometimes several signs then elsewhere totally
ZILCH signs! (And even some towns like Queenstown: we reckon
around half or more of the street signs were just . . . . .
missing!!??). So in many parts you just drive past the turnoff
to some nice scenic place, and miss it because there is no sign
to say it is there. Much work needed in this department! Just a
bit of money or a little more information would make a big
difference. Hint: Carry a few good maps.
-
In
Hobart – well, the
Salamanca Markets were a bit disappointing. Sure there was much
being offered, but not the magic markets we had expected . . .
However a great surprise was we got to tour the ‘Steve Irwin’
(Sea Shepherd) and had a full update on the situations around
the world where this ship is fighting a noble battle to save
marine life. Not just whales, but also trying to help save an
estimated 300,000 to 500,000 sharks, a lot of which will have
their fin (only) cut off to go into Shark Fin Soup and they will
then slowly sink to the bottom of the ocean and drown in agony
just for the sake of their lousy fin being made into soup!! It
would make you cry as the sharks are such a key and critical
part of the chain of life in our oceans. Really rewarding tour
by people who sacrifice an imitation life to live a real one,
trying to make a difference. Leads me to quote Pink Floyd:
“Would you exchange a walk-on part in a war for a lean role in a
cage?”. (Wish You Were Here, 1977). Catch the ‘Steve Irwin’ in
Hobart, or anywhere else if you get a chance . . .
-
A trip up Mt Wellington was very nice and the
views are outstanding. The size of the concrete tower thereon is
also outstanding! You can do some good walks to and from the
summit, beware the weather!
-
Right. Moving on we were very south, at Southport and Cockle Creek (‘Population 3’), the most
southern settlement in Oz. Did a walk (as in many other places)
along the beach etc. The Ida Bay Railway is well patronized.
Very nice area, scenic and the campground at the Tavern has good
facilities and cheap $60 cabins. It is also the southernmost pub
in Oz, so have a beer there! Much history around there with
massive whaling in earlier days, and the French landed
hereabouts. Watch the sandflies – sustained many bites.
-
Tahune Airwalk – worth doing, especially if you
haven’t done one like it before. Then over on the ferry to Bruny Island,
and a 3 hour Eco Cruise down the coast. Don’t miss it, we had a
great time and saw a lot of interesting ‘stuff’. (Be surprised,
like we were).
-
Next – to the
Tasman Peninsula, near to
Port Arthur.
We stayed at
White Beach
– close by to Pt A. It was nice, clean, right on the beach.
However we met some people who had stayed at the Pt A Caravan
Park and they thought it was the best park they’d seen.
-
Port Arthur -
nothing needs to be said. We also went to the Coal Mines
Historic Site (northward) and found it to be excellent. Very
spectacular ruins remain, and the history and story behind this
place is fascinating. Wonderful place to take photos! Also a
good scenic walk is from Fortescue Bay around to
Canoe Bay,
where there is a sunken wreck. Of course there are many other
good walks and many other sites to be seen on the Peninsula. All very worthy of attention. Get the booklet:
’60 Short Walks In Tasmania’. Not to be confused with John
Cleese’s book: ’60 Funny Walks You Can Do!’.
-
The ‘Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park’ is nearby
and a place to see a few Little Devils close-up, if you missed
seeing them at Cradle Mtn (as we did). Also a Spotted Quoll and
a few other critters are on display. The highlight of that park
is the Bird Show, at around 3pm
each day. The entry fee was a bit tall, but the bird show was
excellent.
-
Next, to
Freycinet Peninsula, camping at the Big4 at Coles Bay.
The NPWS has lovely sites right on the beach, and these looked
great. But the weather was ‘what if’, also they have only cold
showers (albeit in nice new facilities). We chose Big4 to avoid
cooking etc in the rain as there was a reasonable Camp Kitchen
and GREAT hot showers. It’s worth noting that many Tassie
caravan parks will charge for a hot shower, with 20 cents and
even up to a DOLLAR(!) in the slot for between 3 and 7 minutes
of shower.
-
The beautiful town of
Richmond with its famous
convict-built bridge was on the way, and well worth a couple of
hours’ wandering around. Go walk into some of the back streets,
they are more interesting than the main street there.
-
Wineglass Bay
looks very ordinary on a rainy windy day, and it is inadvisable
to go to the peaks to view it due to slippery conditions. We
went to several other bays (4WD only to Bluestone Bay, then
Sleepy Bay and
Honeymoon Bay
– all pretty even in the light rain). Saw
Wineglass
Bay
in the misty distance, it looked very ordinary. Such a shame as
we had been very keen to do the walk and photograph it.
-
Worthy of a comment, as we head up the ‘Crayfish Coast’
(- the right hand side!) of Tassie: the crayfish are very
expensive to buy, and prices vary greatly. We saw small (1Kg)
Crays for around $45 to $77/ Kg and large ones (around 3Kg) for
$50/Kg. These prices seem very expensive when you consider that
Tassie harvests a lot of them. When I was there in 1976 it was
the same – the Crays at St Helens and
Bicheno were more expensive than in Sydney, and it appears
that is still the case. We are told that overseas demand pushes
the price up. It is a shame that your actual Tourist in Tassie
cannot get a good deal on the famous Tassie Crays! We didn’t try
one – just too expensive (- as in 1976). Perhaps a scheme could
be worked out where you can get a subsidized Crayfish (or
Crayfish meal) at a reasonable price! Give everyone on plane or
ship coming in a ‘$20 off’ voucher or something similar! Do
wonders for the restaurants there.
-
Moving right along, from Freycinet we traveled
through Bicheno, had a look at
Falmouth village (quaint) and
arrived at Big4 at St Helens.
Nice grassy site and we caught up with quite a few ‘new friends’
we had met in previous sites.
Camp Kitchen
absolutely excellent, everyone hung out there and it was a great
little community. Given that the West Coast had been so
wonderfully scenic, we were skeptical about whether the
St Helens area could meet the ‘picture perfect
challenge’. We found the Bay of Fires
was very good, and worthy of our time, but not quite as pretty
as we had hoped. Once again I suspect that a tourist needs
better information about where the ‘best’ places are, and
this wasn’t made available as far as we could tell. So it was
‘hit and miss’ to try and find the elusive ‘red rocks’ that you
see in so many photographs. We should have researched more!
Anyhow, we found some pretty good places, and to our delight
also found some places not on ‘everyone’s list’. Traveling in a
loop through St Marys (- another very nice town with a soul and
a history, just like so many we don’t have time and space to
mention here -) to Elephant Pass
(beautiful scenery) there is a famous pancake café there. Great
tucker and atmosphere. Then along a scenic winding road down to
the coast. The locals recommended the ‘floating Fish & Chips’
shop, and we had a very nice feed there, sitting overlooking the
bay to the east and the town to the west. Just up the road is
the classier and more expensive restaurant but according to the
locals, the fish is no better. Nothing like local knowledge. We
reckon the newspaper makes it taste better anyway.
-
Now a couple of days behind schedule but not
concerned (- we hadn’t booked the ferry back yet, have a week to
go) we headed west towards Longford via The Blue Tier. This is
an area near Goshen / Lottah and is
truly beautiful and quite different / unusual. Drove high into
the clouds (well, misty rain) and at Poimena did the Goblin
Forest Walk. Truly amazing scenery, the ground cover was
fascinating. Say no more! Drove down via a mountain road (scenic
as blazes) towards Tasmania’s highest
falls – Saint Columba Falls. Beautiful. Now late, we settled for
staying at a pub in Scottsdale. It was an
excellent pub. Mine Host was convivial (- whatever that means),
rooms clean, etc. Next day, wood carvings at Legerwood (chain
saw sculptures). Nicest countryside. Onto Longford, which has a
great and scenic caravan park, right next to a very nice river.
Ducks abound, and are super-friendly, taking bread out of my
hand and the little ones trying to take at least a small piece
of finger as well!
-
Through the general euphoria that envelopes one
enjoying a holiday came the troubling thought that Easter might
fill the ferries and leave us stranded for a while! Rang to book
and was told the days we wanted left us the choice of: a) we can
go, car must stay. b) Car can go, we must stay. We opted for a
day sailing on Easter Thursday. This would suit us ok as we had
friends to see in
Melbourne.
-
Longford had the world class race track back in
the 1960’s, and the great drivers of the time raced there. The
track has long since gone, but the Country Club pub (which
existed right on a racetrack corner) is filled with photos and
memorabilia. It has an excellent pub meal, and several of us
‘old mates’ went for a meal there. We saw and heard of Stirling
Moss, Jack Brabham etc having raced at Longford. And there is a
race car in the pub – just needs fuel they reckon!
-
Highly recommended was a drive to the Ben Lomond
NP. Carr Villa provides picture postcard views of the peaks.
Onwards and up ‘Jacobs Ladder’, an extremely steep zig-zag road
to the top of the mountain. Breathtaking views. Legges Tor
(1575m) dominates the scene. A few kms further on and you arrive
at the Alpine Village and the beer is good at the pub. You can
walk (non-ski season) to the summit easily from the village.
-
The famous Woolmers Estate was another ‘must see’
while at Longford. It would be difficult to find another
complete estate established so early in
Australia’s
history (1817!!) and which has been so well preserved that some
of the clothing and personal effects from the very earliest days
are still kept there. The tour was brilliant. A huge Rose Garden
exists in the grounds. There is a coffee shop and restaurant
also.
-
From Longford it was on to Mole Creek. On the way
we went into Launceston, and took the chairlift across the
Cataract Gorge there, a nice ride worth doing. We had decided
to stay at the Mole Creek Holiday Chalets for our last 3 days in
Tassie. An excellent choice, as these cabins were clean, very
well appointed and charming. Rather than packing up the tent we
shouted ourselves a bit of luxury. Besides, we would have to
leave very early on the last morning so there was no option of
packing up a tent at 5am!
-
Mole Creek is another charming area and township.
Abandoned railway, great pub, lovely guest house, etc. The Info
Centre there has won awards and the NPWS officer there was
extremely helpful. The Mole Creek Caves (and
Marakoopa Caves)
are the main attraction in the area, and we saw both the
Marakoopa ‘upper’ and ‘lower’ (River) caves in one afternoon.
The lower caves were in our opinion far more interesting, but no
regrets seeing both.
-
Drove to Devils Gullet, a very high rock shelf
overlooking an endless view. This was very nice, the wind was
extremely cold late afternoon, making us realize just how
dangerous it could be with insufficient warm clothing and
shelter if you were stuck up there overnight. People die in
Tassie alps almost every year through exposure. No wonder!
-
We had always intended to do an extensive walk and
perhaps camp a night in the Walls of Jerusalem NP, which is
entered via the Mole Creek area. It is a beautiful unspoilt area
and not on the ‘usual’ tourist trail for the obvious reason that
it takes a long walk to get into it properly. We were prepared
to camp a night or two, trouble was our ferry trip was booked
and we had run out of days to do it! We opted for a strenuous
(understatement!) 8 hrs return walk into the park and out again
on the same day. It was a steep uphill trudge for over 2kms,
rising 600 metres in the process. Then a further approximately
1-2kms before we would get onto the top of the plateau and in
amongst some totally beautiful lakes, called ‘Solomon’s Jewels’.
Left the car park at 9:30am and got back to it at 5:30pm with
some great photos, but we fell short of our intended target as
Marilyn’s walking boots were tight and were massacring her toes.
She was only just able to stand the pain when we got back to the
car. You have to take all the gear necessary for an overnight
camp with you as the weather can change to blizzard at the drop
of a hat. So I carried a 14Kg backpack which was good, as now I
know I can do it and not die or have both legs drop off. This
walk on our last day was another highlight of the trip, turning
out to be another totally beautiful place to see. We are sworn
to return some time and do a 3-day on the plateau (- as well as
a couple of other walks that we didn’t have time for this trip).
-
Back at the Chalet we downloaded the hundreds of
pics taken and prepared for a very early departure the next
morning.
So ended a great holiday. Could
have stayed another week or two easily, but now there is reason
to return.
The above doesn’t fully do justice
to the trip as we have left out a great deal of detail on many
of the towns and places of interest along the way. And we met
and befriended several people who were great company and with
whom we shared some really good times! (Hello Andy & Carol Peter
& Vinnie and others!).
Hopefully this will be a summary
that will be helpful to anyone who intends to go there.
Happy travels!
Lee
& Marilyn
NSW
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