BACK IN TASMANIA

After a much friendlier windscreen notation from the bio-security chap than the usual tick, Geelong to Devonport proved another fairly smooth ferry ride, much smoother than the construction of the new ferries.

I made my usual start with breakfast at the wonderful Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm. Their ongoing success was evidenced by the major extensions underway of their vine areas, and the re-development of the walkway around their little lake.

Is a chocolate coated raspberry ok at breakfast time – yup.

Coming down some previously unventured backroads from Deloraine through Cressy, and out west and back into Campbell Town, it was very apparent why the English pastoralists’ eyes lit up at what they saw.

Apart from the compulsory unnecessary book acquisition at the always exciting Book Cellar, this time a new copy of the valuable research tool, Bateson’s Convict Ships, my only research success was to find a previously unseen earlier anglican cemetery than the one at the church. Am looking forward to getting the Hobart Archives, to see if there are any records, as I try to find the burial of my great, great, great, great grandmother, a notoriously difficult lady by all accounts, accidentally killed by her husband.

Next stop was Coles Bay, for my first Wineglass Bay cruise. The forecast was for NW winds gusting up to 100kmh, so they advised it might not be possible to go out into the Tasman Sea and get into Wineglass Bay. As luck would have it, enhanced by a fast run up the coast to beat the wind, we did make it.

The rocks are quite different to the wonderful Tasman Island (south east corner) cruise, that area being largely the massive dolerite cliffs and more typical sandstone. Freycinet, named by Baudin, is generally volcanic pink granite. The granite runs right up into southern Victoria, presumably merged by pressure, given that Tasmania and the mainland arrived here at different times by different routes.

Although the granite can be found in various modern buildings, such as the new Parliament House in Canberra, many failed attempts have been made to commercially quarry here. In the earliest days, they would drill into the rock with a hand-drill, insert wet plugs and wait for the expansion to work a gap that could be used to lever blocks out – not a job for the impatient. The creation of the national park meant the end of dynamite, so the quarry sits as a reminder of failure.

Reflecting how interesting the Tasmanian coastline is pretty much wherever one is, I thought I had probably seen as much of it from the water as you can without your own Tom Thumb, and a cat called Trim (not too trim to end up on a dining table in Mauritius). The only available cruise/trip I haven’t done, I think, is the new luxury one over in Port Davey, but the done list is:

the Princess of Tasmania and Spirit ferries from Mlb and Geelong to Devonport; the ICAT fast cat from Bell Bay to Port Welshpool; the Tamar Estuary (not a river); flown low to Flinders and King Islands; the D’Entrecasteaux Channel; Maria Island pelagic; Brunie Island pelagic and southern ocean; Tasman Island south east corner; flown low over south coast to Melaleuca, boat trip up a creek without a paddle into Port Davey, and flown low out over west coast; and Macquarie Harbour, Gordon River and out through Hell’s Gates.

This White-Bellied Sea Eagle nest has been built over many years and is massive.

Ironically, as the Captain wisely raced up the coast, we were ahead of the wind arriving, and got closer into the rocky coastline than is usually possible. Keeping our distance as required, a couple of humpbacks entertained, accompanied by some seals and wandering albatross – the first time I had seen these birds up close.

Wineglass Bay was glorious, as it inevitably is. I recalled that the kiddies version of the name is that it is beautifully curved like half a wine glass rim. The real version is that in the whale killing days, there was so much blood sitting in the cusp of the beach, it looked like a glass of claret.

A pod of Bottlenose Dolphins was evidently expecting us, and had great fun playing in the turbulence around the boat.

Another interesting spot was one of the many ‘waterfall bay’ along this coast line, as the english again displayed their skill at innovative place names.

If Kath Day Night was on board, she would have recommended heading south toute-de-suite, as the wind picked up quickly and significantly. Made for a fast trip, being north westerly. It was really gusty by the time we got back, well except it wasn’t, compared with the rest of the afternoon. Even those like me who don’t get sea-sick were very glad not to be out on the water later on.