Within the last two years we had spent seven months in Australia, spending around one month in each major city. We visited each state or territory – except one…Tasmania. Having made a return trip to New Zealand for three months, we thought it was an opportune time to spend a couple weeks in Tassie!
We had been told given all of our time spent in New Zealand and Australia that we probably did not need to do Tasmania, but we are glad we did! Size-wise, Tasmania is manageable to see over a couple week period, at least to get a good flavor. Tasmania is the size of Kentucky or Ohio, actually shaped like Ohio. It is much smaller than New Zealand.
We spent a total of four nights in Hobart giving us a taste of a great city. We landed in Hobart late on a Saturday and checked into a city center hotel after making it past the dog looking for contraband at the airport. They are strict on certain kinds of fruits and vegetables that can be brought into Tasmania, even from other areas of Australia. The dog was very effective at his job!
We strolled the Salamanca Area a couple times, eating greek cuisine the first night at Mezethes Greek Taverna. We haven’t come across a lot of Greek food the last few months being in New Zealand so this was a good break from the fish and chips, lol. We enjoyed lamb and some fresh Tassie oysters! It was a Sunday evening, however, there was still plenty of activity at the street-side pubs and restaurants as we strolled through the area.
One of the highlights of our whole trip to Tasmania was the Museum of Old and New Art, MONA. The museum was started by a native of Hobart, David Walsh. David made his millions gambling, playing cards professionally and wanted to “give back”. He is doing this through this extraordinary museum.
The museum consists of everything from a mechanical digestive system that actuals “poops” at regular times to a Porsche on steroids (representing the world’s glutinous infatuation with consumerism) to a 2,000 plus year old mummy to a display of hundreds of vagina “sculptures”.
Yes, Vulva Sculptor James McCartney cast over 400 vaginas from actual women around the world, aged 18 to 76. The project was called the “Great Wall of Vaginas”.
On a much “different note”, back in the city center, we loved the architecture of Battery Point neighborhood and the bayfront. The view from Mt Wellington, over 3,000 feet above the city is not to be missed.
There are plenty of restaurants of many cuisines in the city and we tried Indian, Thai as well as Greek. One of our favorite places was Templo, a small place with an ever-changing blackboard menu and an Italian influence. It has received outstanding press and reviews. We shared small dishes including a pasta (homemade noodles and sausage with fennel), beet salad, pan grilled fish, homemade sourdough bread, and a prosciutto wrapped bread.
Over ten nights we circled the “state” of Tasmania. We spent two nights in each area which provided a relaxing pace for exploring the beautiful coasts, mountains, cities and history. The entire country is made up of several scenic tourist drives and nearly one half of the country seems to be “preserved as national or state forests.
Tasman Peninsula
On the Peninsula we made visits to the Tasman Arch, Tessellated Pavement, the Blowhole and Devil’s Kitchen. All stops are small drives apart, beautiful and worthwhile visiting.
The weather here was a bit rainy on Day 2, but we did manage to walk a few kilometers of Cape Hauy, one of the three renowned Cape Walks. These are typically done over 2-3 days with fantastic views of stunning coastline with some of the grandest rock formations in all of Australia. Unfortunately, due to the weather this was one area we did not get to thoroughly explore.
It is here where we began to see the colorful parrots, birds and numerous Wallabies and other marsupials so prevalent across Tasmania and Australia.
Port Arthur
Our visit to the Port Arthur Penitentiary, a UNESCO historical site and one of Australia’s former convict settlements exceeded our expectations. Exploring this extraordinary history is amazing, from the preserved buildings and grounds to the stories and tales.
I was thinking that this was going to be just a so-so visit. What is amazing is how the penitentiary system and its theories has not really changed much in over 150 years…sad.
The grounds here are also the site of the last mass shooting in Australia, where in 1996, 35 people were murdered at gunpoint and 23 injured. That resulted in action by the Australian Government, within weeks, to put in place much tighter gun laws that have been very effective. The site and memorial on the grounds where the cafe/site of the murders occurred is moving, to say the least.
Coles Bay
A couple of hours north, up the east coast, is Coles Bay and the Freycinet National Park. This is another beautiful area sporting the Hazards Mountains, Wineglass Bay and Honeymoon Bay. We made visits and short hikes here.
Honeymoon Bay is a very short walk, secluded, and where one could spend hours relaxing! But no time for that, lol.
Here we enjoyed lots of seafood. One stop for lunch on Tracey’s birthday was the Freycinet Oyster Farm. We enjoyed the fresh oysters, mussels and abalone!
The Birthday dinner was at one of the areas finer dining areas looking over the bay. The Edge restaurant has excellent views and excellent food!
Bay of Fires
The drive continued up the coast through a couple small towns and miles and miles of outstanding beaches…all essentially empty and all to ourselves.
After checking into our place in St. Helens, we drive up the coast for a couple more scenic spots including Binalong Bay. From here, along the Bay of Fires, the white sands extend for what seems like miles and the rocks colored with orange lichen.
For dinner, a very cool, basic spot also popular with locals, Skippers Floating Eatery!
It was a very windy, rainy Saturday across all of Tasmania so we made a drive through town and a stop at the market. We made it a work day, that is travel planning and laundry. We cooked a pasta dinner in…nice to eat in for a change!
Launceston
Sunday morning was gorgeous, sunny with nice cool temps. It was a beautiful drive to Launceston with a stop at St. Columba Falls…some of the highest and longest falls in Tasmania. It is a short hike to these falls.
On the way out back to the main road toward Launceston, we made a stop at Holy Cow Cafe. We sampled some cheese and lunched on a delicious food platter!
Our stay in Launceston was a beautiful boutique hotel, very comfortable. We could have stayed forever! Launceston itself seems like a nice town, with terrific 19th century architecture built into the hills along the river.
We were able to do a short hike here in Cataract Gorge, one of the highlights of the city and a real gem.
On our first evening in town we passed by about a dozen Maseratis just parked on the Launceston streets! On the day we left, some of the winding country roads were closed for the Targa Tasmania, one of the largest road races in the world, with around 300 entrants. The race is a week long and travels most of Tasmania! With the roads blocked one day on our route we had no choice but to stop and watch about an hour of the racing! Well worth it!
Cradle Mountain
The drive to the Cradle Mountain included a stop at Liffey Falls. We have seen many waterfalls in New Zealand and in Tasmania the past few months, so we were not sure how impressed we would be with more cascades. The Liffey Falls exceeded our expectations. It is located in a lush rainforest with several sets of falls in their make-up. The water pouring through these falls was awesome with the recent rains over the weekend.
One of the most visited sites in Tasmania is Cradle Mountain. The hike to the summit can be done in a day hike. It can be a bit challenging, primarily due to drastic weather that regularly presents itself there. Tasmania is located in an area know as the “roaring forties”, within the 40th and 50th latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere. It is known for very windy, rapidly changing weather from prevailing westerly winds. These can bring warm sunny weather or cloudy, cold with snow all in a day. The peaks were covered with snow when we visited on an autumn day from the prior day’s snow.
We did not do the multi day hike, but did four to five hours of hiking in the shadows of the Cradle Mountains, the highest point in Tasmania at 5,000 plus feet. The Dove Lake Circuit, Crater Lake and Falls are beautiful hikes, not too strenuous.
The view of the summits are incredible and seeing some wildlife, at least the aloof wombats are nearly guaranteed. The weather cooperated providing cool temps with lots of sunshine!
The nearby Cradle Mountain Tasmanian Devil Sanctuary was worth a visit to the devils and their smaller carnivores, the quoll. We stopped here on the way out of the area. We wanted to make sure we saw the infamous devils before leaving Tasmania. Both the devils and quolls are shy, nocturnal creatures and are not easily seen in the wild. Their crazy screams and screeches along with their red ears and full set of teeth certainly earn their devil status!
Stanley
Stanley was our next stop on the tour. En route, we stopped in the town of Wynyard for some lunch. We decided on a cool little spot, Wynyard Seafoods on the Wharf, specializing in Fish and Chips of course. They have always been one of my favorites. I was bad and ate too much. Lunch included some crumbed fresh scallops.
We made a quick stop at a lighthouse on the last leg of our drive into Stanley. Stanley is a very small seaside town with a crescent shaped white sand beach.
Stanley is a unique location made famous by ‘The Nut’, a large rock landmass formed as a volcano cap that towers above this fishing village. Climbing The Nut is a must, or at least taking a chairlift to the top. Once on top, it is relatively flat with outstanding views of the area.
Strahan
Our final stop on the circuit was Strahan. The drive down the west coast region of Tasmania to Strahan was mostly winding through hills on two lane rural roads (as was much if Tasmania)!
Strahan sits on a river as well as the Southern Ocean and has beautiful beaches and sand dunes. It is a popular destination for both international and local tourists. When we arrived we drove out to Ocean Beach, Tasmania’s longest beach at 33 km. Another incredible beach, beautiful white sand and only a handful of people as far as the eye could see.
We stayed at a lodge with a nice view over the city, river and bay. The town also has some beautiful old architecture. We had a fabulous dinner at Bushman’s Bar and Cafe that included blue nose, sea trout and mussels.
The five hour drive back to Hobart climbed through more hills, passing through some significant mining towns and areas. Apparently there is a lot of iron, tin and other minerals from the Mt. Read volcanoes.
If you are in this part of the world, Tasmania is definitely a place to spend at least a couple weeks. It is a beautiful and interesting part of the world that has much to offer!
And a few more pics!
