Tasmania
Late last month we popped over to Tasmania for a week.
And the shiny blue sky, perfectly-sized airport and fresh clean air all added to this good feeling once we’d landed. We headed over to the car rental desk and were greeted by another friendly face. What a delightful Tasmanian to start our trip with! Emma was ever so helpful and we really can’t thank her enough for starting our trip off just right.
Hobart
It’s easy to immediately sense the history of the buildings in Hobart, they speak so strikingly of another time. After this quick intro to the city, we whizzed out of town in our little two-door rocket, on our way to Bruny Island. Winding out of Hobart, we stopped at a lookout point on Mt Nelson, swung by the old Shot Tower poking out of the trees, took a break at beaches in Kingston and Blackmans Bay, stocked up on food at a local produce stand and then finally made it into the ferry queue.
Bruny Island
Bruny Island is glorious. The townships are on a much smaller scale than I expected, but that was a welcome surprise. We drove down to South Bruny, and stayed at a beautiful campground nestled in the forest and just behind a glorious big bay. It was so peaceful! Over dinner, we marvelled at how eventful this first day had been!
Freycinet National Park
We took the inland route, and popped out to the coast again at Coles Bay, hoping to stay at Freycinet NP that night. Unfortunately, we were too late, the NP was closed and all the sites full. So, we ended up staying at a campground in Coles Bay. We had a lovely evening walk along the rocks and watched the sunset over the silky, smooth sea.
It was getting hot and the march uphill was sweaty but quick. The viewing platform for those classic shots was super crowded so we didn’t hang around, but instead plopped down the gravely steps to the bay itself. Certainly lovely, but it was kind of windy so we didn’t swim. We crossed over to the other side of the headland to see if that beach was more swimmable, but again it was a bit windy. So, we looped back around. I hit my 10km peak and started to tire, until I saw the carpark of course, then I was off like a rocket!
Bicheno
Bicheno, where we stopped for coffee and a swim. Each time we arrived at a new bay, I was just gobsmacked by the colour of the water! Sure, it’s chilly, but how could you resist swimming in such stunning clear waves!? Our destination that day was the Bay of Fires, so we jumped back in the car and moseyed up the highway, stopping for pretty fields, ocean overlooks and ancient trees. We stopped in St Helens for food and fuel and were both feeling a bit weary from the drive. Just a little further to Binalong Bay, then we could stop.
Bay of Fires
There is a whole string of different campgrounds in the Bay of Fires, each with a massive dose of charm. We didn’t have to check out many, we set up at the very first one! Wow, what a spot! We swam immediately. We stayed at this spot for two nights, just soaking up the beauty. The second day was pretty foggy, so we went inland for a scenic drive. That night a huge thunderstorm rolled overhead and we lay awake feeling proud of our tent for holding up.
