Devonport: Dull Street, Dramatic Coast

Before coming to Tassie, my friend Nathan said something along the lines of, “That part of Tassie is beautiful – but don’t bother with Devonport, there is nothing there to see.” Despite this sage advice, we did go for a brief wander through the main street of Devonport after Brigid and CK picked me up from the airport. They had taken the ferry across the day before and stayed at a local hotel by the river.

“How was the ferry yesterday?” I enquired.
“12 hours of boredom,” was the response.

This is why I took the 30-something-minute flight. Planes will always win over a boat for me – although I was extremely grateful that they took one for the team, as it meant we had wheels to explore Tassie with. Once checked out of their hotel, we made a quick drive down the main street of Devonport, which lived up to Nathan’s description. Not much there, not that pretty, but the pharmacy did have an auto-dispensing machine, making the prescription that I forgot to fill extremely quick to acquire.

Medication sorted, plus cool drinks and a coffee for us all, we headed towards the coast for a look at something that looked cute on Google Maps – the lighthouse. Perched looking out over the north of the island, the Mersey Bluff Lighthouse stands guard with its vertical red stripes facing the ocean. While I’m busy taking photos of the lighthouse, CK is off racing down the rugged coastline, potentially to his death below.

“Don’t fall in, CK – you’ve got the car keys!” I yell, as he disappears behind a rock somewhere down near the unforgiving, steep shoreline to Bass Strait. Spoiler alert: no CKs were harmed in this blog post, but Brigid and I decide to supervise from above rather than joining CK’s quest to get closer to the water.

The view from up here is stunning. Sure, it’s looking out into the ocean – which is always nice – but it’s the rugged, rocky shoreline that stands out for me. This lighthouse wasn’t just for Instagram; those rocks below would have been treacherous back in the day for those approaching the island of Tasmania. Everyone says this, but Tassie really is much more like New Zealand than Australia sometimes.

Reunited with CK, we wander over to the other side of the bluff to take in the view of the beach. The water is so clear, and quite a few people are already out for a swim. We’re tempted to join, but without towels it’d be a wet butt for the rest of the day – perhaps when we return to drop me back at the airport on Friday. A few scenic photos taken, and Brigid splashed a few times by CK, it’s time to head back to the car and start the road trip adventure.

Our planned next stop is the Tasmanian Arboretum, but it just so happens that along the route is the Don River Railway. With me being a train nerd (as well as a plane nerd), we decide to detour there next, leaving Devonport’s contrast of a plain, dull main street and its beautiful bluff and beach experiences behind us.

Next stop: trains.Read more