Tasmania! Part 1

Cape Raoul, Tasman National Park

January 1 2014
Tasmania In Springtime …Brrrrr!
Our first day in Tasmania is cold and rainy…we just got off the plane to a cold and rainy overcast day.  The temp is around 50 degrees.

Arrived in Hobart with all our worldly possessions in 5 carry on bags

This is not what we expected.  We're not prepared with warm clothes, don’t have a clue where we are going and don't have any reservations for camping! This is summer vacation season and most camper parks are booked.  We’ve not traveled this loose before and feel a little nervous about the unknowns.

Our first night...in a van down by the ocean!

 Luckily, I did pre-book a camper van, the last “backpacker model” available.  December is the extremely busy time for Australia as summer vacations and Christmas holidays roll into the same holiday.  Everyone has the same idea to caravan camp in Tasmania.  The Tassie Motor Shack rental company host picks us up at the airport and gives instructions on how to camp in a motor van.  It’s really quite well equipped with gas cooking hotplate, bed, linens and water…plus a shovel for the toilet facilities!  Our camper guide offers advise on free camping along the way with maps. We note the many state and National parks have camping sites…here we go…its a new adventure being vagabonds on the road!

First views of Tasmania's wild coast

Beautiful views!

Off we go down the road.  Our tentative plan is to drive counterclockwise around the island starting from Hobart , heading east to Port Arthur, up to St Helen’s, north as far as Bridport, then  to Launceston and back to Hobart down the central highway…all in 19 days!

Gale force winds atop Cape Raoul, Tasman National Park

We drive only 50km away from Hobart airport and stop in the town of Sorrell to stock up on supplies at the local supermarket as instructed by our camper van guide.  We were not the only ones…most of the store was filled with other backpackers and campers grabbing the last bits of civilization before heading south into the region of the Tasman Peninsula.  The parking lot was filled with all types of rigs, campers and motor homes and camper vans!

Onward we drive another 60km. its getting dark and we still don’t know where we can stop.  Now, both of us are snapping at each other” let’s pull over right here”... "No! We can’t just stop here!” We drive a bit more until we see a secluded newly made cul-de-sac in a new home development…”Here, this is a good spot”…we circle around like a wagon in a wild west caravan until we settle on the perfect location, one that blocks the wind and provides privacy from the road…so many things to think about!  Set up our little camp, which consists of pulling out the rain cover, set up the folding table and chairs. Done.  Our first night in Tasmania, camped along the road.  True vagabonds. So glamorous
We have views over a grassland meadow.  The ocean bay is a few yards away across the road…not too bad for our first night camping.  But tomorrow we booked the last campsite at the Port Arthur Holiday Park in the Tasman National Park.

Happy NOT to be on a boat in these winds!

Jan 2
“Edge of the World” –
We stopped in a small market and while talking with the locals, we were directed to an awesome hike out to Cape Raoul Lookout – a two-hour hike to rocky bluff cliffs overlooking the coastline.  Fantastic views while being pelted with gale-force winds blowing, the hold-on-to your- hat- kind of winds created a powerful experience and we felt like we were on the edge of the world…which is kind of true…next land stop would be Antarctica.   We were looking across the Tasman Sea experiencing  “the roaring forties” so often heard about. And referring to the  40th degree of latitude where strong winds are common .  Many shipwrecks are noted along these shores. The seas were frothy with white caps blown flat and we saw waterspouts picked up by the strong winds travel across our view!  It looks like tornadoes.  We are both so glad we are NOT on a sailboat in these waters!

1-3-2014
With no plans we head out this morning for a walk to find.  Tasmania is known for miles of well-signed walking trails.  Today, we turned up a road with a sign for Craig’s Cliffs and Lookout.  This track was not as well used as some others and we found ourselves bush-walking through the forest.  There were orange directional arrows tacked to the trees that showed our way into a rain forest of giant tree ferns and wet eucalyptus.  Quiet, and creepy...we see no other people all day.

Hiking through a rain forest

We came to a view of the valley. Not as spectacular as the roaring coastline, but impressive still.  Today was an overcast cloudy calm day and much appreciated.
We’ve talked to the locals who all say this is an unusual year of weather for Tasmania.. High winds and cold temperatures so far.

1-4-14
There are no “homeless” in Tasmania, only people living in camper-vans! We laugh about our homeless wanderings! This night we stay in the Port Arthur Holiday park. Nice visitors...

A wallaby in our camp

Our first snake sighting...will find out which venomous snake this is...

On to Fortescue Bay in Tasman National Park..  down a rough gravel road to a beautiful horse-shoe shaped bay with white sands and turquoise waters.  The winds are  still horrendous, 60 mph gusts, the bay flashed with white caps.  The would ather sit inside somewhere, but we have no place to go to warm up…so we go for a hike out the point  to Cape Hauy.

Cape Hauy,  Fortescue National Park

This turns out to be our favorite hike so far! A fabulous stepping stone constructed trail  that ends right on the farthest southern point on Tasmania.  We could see miles of coastline in either direction.

Stones steps make the hike easier and preserves the land

Awesome look-down!

Miles of coastline in view...

7-1-14
 Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park
On Swansea and stayed in a busy family park for the night. Did I mention it is summer vacation for all of Australia? We are lucky to find a spot, but there are kids running through our"space" and its just not what we were expecting...next night we stay at a backpackers lodge..camp in the meadow and used the common kitchen facilities...very nice with a bottle shop next door and wood fired pizza..more our style!

Wineglass Bay in background

Wineglass bay beach with some of our "close friends"

We hiked out to Wineglass Bay beach, a famous postcard picture of turquoise waters and white sand beach.  This park is similar to our Yosemite in that its famous and crowed with tourists. We are part of the crowd so I can't really complain too much, but we hiked single file solid with people two miles to this beautiful beach!  We decide to head inland off the busy coast to escape the madding crowds... the only downside that we see in Tasmania so far.  Its too discovered!

Red Algae stains the rocks of "Bay of Fires" Bay

John has many comments of his hiking "shoes"!

We drive inland at St Helen's  hoping to escape the " March of the Caravans" stopping high on a ridge in a eucalyptus forest...alone at last...more later...