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May 2018 - December 2031
  • K and A's road trip
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This blog is written to remind us where we have been and what we have done Read more
  • K and A's road trip
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  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Hobart

    November 19, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    We had a relatively lazy day before we moved on to the "wild west."
    We drove a short distance to Richmond, where the bridge is considered to be the oldest in Australia. The Sunday market was running. One of the stalls was selling woodcraft by a master woodturner who had crafted some quite astonishing pieces. Woodcraft is very popular over here. The town of Richmond is delightful, with quaint shops and buildings.
    We then drove to Bridgewater by way of Brighton where we stocked up on provisions and completed the riverside walk. After that we returned to base via Lindisfarne.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Hobart

    November 18, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    The Saturday market at Salamanca is renowned as being one of the better markets in Australia. Today also happened to coincide with the Hobart Christmas Pageant, so we drove into the city once again. We parked up at the car park near the Botanical Gardens and walked into the city from there.
    We took a small detour to have a look at the Cenotaph and then followed a stream of families with children wearing reindeer antlers and christmas hats into the city. We watched the parade start off promptly at 10:30. It was quite colourful at times and there were four very good pipe bands. A number of national groups were representing themselves with very colourful displays from Nepalese, Indians,Thai, Columbians amongst others but the most impressive of all was the Chinese Dragon. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and the procession was completed by Santa - to the great relief of the children.
    We then made our way along the harbour to reach Salamanca and the buzzing market there. It was busy but not unpleasantly so. Along with the usual market wares there were some interesting stalls.
    We then returned to the harbour front to enjoy a nice fish lunch at Fish Frenzy. It too was busy. We enjoyed a glass of house wine with our fish and chips. We then made our way back to the car via the Military Remembrance walk on the Domain. Each tree here is dedicated to the honour of a fallen serviceman. We visited the Botanical Gardens before returning to base.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Hobart

    November 17, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    We drove into the city - a 15 minute drive from our campsite and over the Tasman bridge. As the city came into view a large cruise ship was in dock and was dominating the sky line. We found long term parking difficult to find on the side streets so, eventually, we used the General Hospital car park as recommended by the receptionist on our site. Our first stop was the information bureau where we signed up for the red bus tour. A number of the cruise passengers were on the bus too, they were on a four day cruise from Sydney with Hobart the only port of call. The Royal Princess was full with 4000 passengers apparently.
    The bus tour took us around the most interesting and historic sites of the city over a 90 minute period, providing us with a commentary as we went. A very pleasant city with a thriving harbour.
    After that we had a wander through the waterfront, Salamanca and Battery Point. Passengers started streaming back to the cruise ship ready for a 4:45 departure.
    A beer and wine at The Whaler in the harbour was very welcome, after which we headed back to base.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Hobart

    November 16, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    Our first full day in the area saw us drive out of the city. We drove south through Margate to Kettering where we caught the ferry over to Bruny Island. Are you going to Bruny was the mantra when we told people on other campsites we were coming to Hobart. Arriving on the island after a short ferry crossing our first stop was the cheese, beer and bread farm where we enjoyed some tasters of on-site made cheeses. Very nice they were too, so we have some to enjoy with the family at Christmas.
    The weather turned wet for a period, so we abandoned our plan for the next stop which was to climb the 300 stairs half way along the isthmus which gives good views to the north and south parts of the island. Instead we carried on to Adventure Bay, where we had singled out a decent walk - The Fluted Cape and Grassy Point Walk. The weather had cleared and we set off on a relentless climb up through the forest to the cliff top, some 290 meters above the sea which was directly below. The path then followed the cliff line down to the Grassy Plain where the early settlers located a very profitable whaling station.
    We were on constant lookout for some of the area's white wallaby but only fawny coloured ones were to be seen. The albino ones showing themselves later in the evening apparently. A very pleasant 2 hour walk, after which, we dropped into the chocolate factory shop on our return northwards. Karen was not impressed with the lack of tasters.
    The sky was clear as we drove over the Isthmus so we had a look at the views from the lookout. All of a sudden a fierce wind blew up and a squally shower passed through giving us a bit of a soaking. Undaunted we moved on to the start of our next planned walk which was to see the arch on the beach beneath Elizabeth Cape. A very different landscape of flatland and sandy links with low scrub.
    The arch is reached either by the beach or by passing over the bluff. a longer route. We did not have the time for the longer route so we passed along the beach. Due to the tide, the arch could only be reached by wading through the shallows which Karen was determined to do. Paddling through the water she made the arch in comfort but mistimed the waves on her return and was drenched to well above the knee. Karen's second soaking of the afternoon. Thankfully she had some spare shorts in the car that she was able to change into for the return journey.
    We caught the second to last ferry back to the main island after a full day.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Hobart

    November 15, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    A short trip from the peninsular to Hobart. We are staying in a campsite next to Cambridge which is just down the road from Richmond.
    After setting up, in the afternoon, we took the Pinnacle Road to the top of Mount Wellington - the views from the top are extensive and put the location of the city in perspective with the surrounding area.Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Port Arthur

    November 14, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 13 °C

    The Cape Hauy walk is noted as one of the great one day walks in the peninsula.
    We drove the short distance to Fortescue Bay, the last part of the journey along a 12km gravel road through the forest - always a treat.
    The day park here is the finishing point for a four day walk - The Tasman Three Capes walk - which has to be completed in an anticlockwise direction.
    We passed a lot of oldies on the last leg of their walk as we passed through eucalypt forest, giving us an occasional view of the sea. Eventually, we climbed up out of the tree line into general scrub with magnificent views of the Cape coastline. We could see the very undulating path stretching out in front of us, dropping into deep valleys and rising over the headland in front of us. Eventually, after 1 hour and 50 minutes, we arrived at a wind swept cape lookout where the brave could look at the totem pole rock feature in the raging sea below. Needless to say Karen would not go anywhere near the edge, despite trying to do so twice. It really was too scary!!!
    After a short stay at the Cape, we returned to the car park, retracing our steps. Karen counted over 2250 stone steps on the return journey.
    This is billed as a strenuous walk, every bit as strenuous as some of the South West Coastal path that we have completed, and we enjoyed it immensely.
    We dropped into Doolishus (in Doo town) for a well-deserved fish and chip late lunch. Very tasty.
    Returning to base we started preparing for our trip to Hobart tomorrow.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Port Arthur

    November 13, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Another nice spring day, which we had allocated to go up to the north western side of the peninsular. This part also falls south of the Dog Line and was turned into a coal mining area. Convicts were forced to work the mine, and the coal was transported to the growing city of Hobart by ship.
    The coal was not of great quality, apparently.
    After a good walk around the old mining area we drove to Nubeena to find an ice cream and then on into the Tasman National Park to complete a walk to the Cape Raul and the Shipstern Bay lookouts. There was a relentlous climb up to the first lookout, followed by a decline to the bay lookout.
    Shipstern Bay is where the big waves come in for the professional surfers, but conditions were relatively calm as we looked down on the coast line.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Port Arthur

    November 12, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 13 °C

    We returned to the historic site in the morning to see the things we couldn't get to yesterday.
    We started at the talk in the Separate Prison, where we heard about the regime that drove many insane. Thereafter, we saw the old hospital ruins and military area, the cottage allocated to Smith O'Brien, an Irish Nationalist political prisoner who was given special status, finishing at the Commandants House.
    We left the site at lunchtime to drive the short distance to Remarkable Cave, which we descended 115 stairs to see. Returning to the top, this was the start point for a bush walk along the cliffs . The pathway was fairly busy with people returning from the walk to Mt Brown. We set off, walking along a well defined pathway once again (walking here is very well catered for). We passed over a viewing point for a blowhole many hundreds of feet below us, and continued through scrub land until we reached the bottom of the mountain. The last part of the walk involved a fairly steep scramble up through rocks to reach the peak, where there were great views of Stewarts Bay, Puel Point and the headlands. We then had to retrace our steps back to the car park, again arriving back pretty exhausted.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Port Arthur

    November 11, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 13 °C

    We awoke to discover that during the night we had been visited by many Tasmanian long nosed potoroos (a relative to the wallaby). Our groundsheet was covered in about 40 potoroo droppings!! We had not heard them bouncing around but clearly they had been there!
    We visited the historic site of the penal colony today - Port Arthur.
    Our campground is located on the former farm garden area for the settlement and chained convicts forged and built the pathway between the two. The walk is about 1km and passes along Stewart's Beach.
    The Tasman Peninsular started off as a small punishment settlement where convicts were set to work felling and logging the massive blue gum trees that covered the area. Its situation lent itself to expansion into a high security prison, and by 1830, repeat offenders would be relocated to here. A guide advised us that repeat offenders in GB or its colonies would be sent to Australia, to any number of the new penal settlements, thereafter, repeat offenders within Australia would be moved on to Port Arthur. Every building and structure within the establishment was built by convict labour. Some of the workmanship in various buildings is exquisite. Every brick was manufactured on site, and boys from the juvenile prison on Point Puer crafted the stone for the stone built buildings.
    We took the short boat tour around the bay to see the location of the first juvenile prison ever built by the British anywhere and the Isle of the Dead where over 1000 people - freemen and convicts are interred.
    The site is massive. It closed as a prison in 1877 and fell into disrepair after two major bush fires in the late 19th century.
    We enjoyed a rather eccentric talk by an American guide at the church and a more conventional one at the Junior Medics building.
    The new prison, called the Separate Prison, based on the Pentonville model, was quite disturbing, as was the asylum next door. Unfortunately, the regime at the new prison often led the inmates to be taken to the asylum, where their condition was managed but not treated. No understanding of mental illness in those days!!
    We did not have enough time to see it all, so we resolved to return in the morning. We set off on the convict walk back to base as the site was closing at 5pm. This took us past the boat yard area where convicts built timber boats and ships for the new colony. A very moving day seeing at first hand the conditions these convicts experienced.    Read more

  • K and A's road tripTravelerBig Adventure

    Port Arthur

    November 10, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    We woke up to fine weather, and after breakfast we drove north to Eaglehawk Neck, the second of two isthsmi connecting the Tasman Peninsular with the main island
    The first visit was the Captains Hut Museum. The captain was responsible for catching any escapees from the penal colony back in the 1800s, and was in charge of the Dog Line, a line of ferocious dogs tethered along a narrow channel across the 100 yard wide isthmus. A short walk took us to its location.
    After that, we walked the beach to the Tesselated Pavement, a geological feature of the beach. Crossing through a narrow gap in the path onto the beach, some locals advised us that moments previously a venomous Tiger Snake had crossed there, too. We trod carefully thereafter.
    Arrived safely back at the car. we drove up to the Pirates Bay lookout where in glorious sunshine we enjoyed the view whilst taking our lunch. (Great coffee served at The Cube)
    A further short drive took us through Doo town, where most of the locals have named their properties with Doo in the name. Doo Nothing, Dr Doolitle, Dootoomuch, etc..
    Doo town is next to a blow hole, which we visited - but the sea was not raging enough to see it in all its glory. Next to the Blowhole was The Tasman Arch, from where we took the bush walk to Waterfall Bay. The waterfall was not there to be seen when we arrived at the lookout. However, the cliffs and shoreline were spectacular along the way. The walk took in The Devils Kitchen.
    We will revisit Doo town this week to sample the fare at the renowned Doolichus Fish Bar.
    Back at base, we were visited by Green Rosellas, who are fearless and blue wrens who are much more timid.
    As we were settling down for the night, we heard a commotion immediately outside the tent. Alan got up to look eye to eye with a possum - sitting on our kitchen unit - who was clearly disappointed to find nothing edible in our rubbish bag.    Read more

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