Tassie Tour Continues, Part 3.
17/03/16 Thursday, Launceston, Tasmania.
Leisurely morning, breaky at the Restaurant next door. Bill & I then headed up to Cataract Gorge, which is only a few kilometres away. Bill was quite impressed at the quality & style of the Launceston houses, nestled along the hillside.
C'mon Bill love the Selfie !
Ah this is walking. "The Inclinator".
Our first attempt at finding Cataract Gorge had us on the north side, heaps of stairs. Doesn't worry me but Bill with his stuffed hips has no hope, so we don't even bother to attempt it. Back in the car and we drive around to the south side of the Gorge which is a lot better set up for mobility restricted people.
There is even a "Inclinator" like a Elevator but takes the occupant down at a 45 degree angle. This kept Bill happy, I used the stairs.
Cataract Gorge is really nice, some good hiking trails, swimming pool and many other great facilities. I came here with Jenny and kids during our 6 month 4WD, Camper trailer tour back in 2001/02, it hasn't changed a bit.
Next we drove around the City Centre, then headed for George Town, which was claimed for King George III by Lieutenant-Colonel Paterson in 1804.
Along the way we had a look at the Batman Bridge, which crosses the Tamar River, it's a huge structure and worth the look.
While in the George Town area we went out to Low Head, which has a light house. It was built in 1833 after a number of ships came to grief on Hebe Reef. I had a good walk around while Bill stayed in the car.
Low head Lighthouse, near George Town.
Bill enjoys the view from the car. At Low Head.
Then back to the Penny Royal in Launceston, dinner at a nearby restaurant & then we called it a day.
Meanwhile back at the Bar at the Penny Royal.
The oldest Penny I spot is 1916, 100 years old !
18/03/16, Friday Launceston to Port Sorell, via Deloraine, Mole Creek, Latrobe & Devonport.
We Catch up with Steve & Heidi.
Lots of driving again along some fantastic winding roads, Gog State Forest was spectacular, it's between Mole Creek & Latrobe. It did rain all day, but not such an issue in a car.
We left Launceston at 10 am , I made sure me stayed away from the boring main road between Launceston & Devonport. Stopped in Deloraine for lunch & continued along the Meander Vally Highway.
Deloraine, we check out the British Hotel.
Spot a Sunbeam Roadster in Deloraine, it would be around 100yo.
River view in Deloraine, Tasmania on a rainy day.
After a good look around Devonport we drove over to Port Sorell, which is close to where Steve & Heidi live. They have been back home for a few months after 11 months of cycling & some driving around Europe. Jenny & I managed to catch up with them in "Melbourne" England after making contact via their blogs.
Spotted some "kids" in Devonport trying to catch a wave on a flat cold day ???
A great couple and they were happy to host us for the night. Heidi cooked us a really good vegan Lasagna with broccoli & beans which I enjoyed & Bill even ate it !
We stayed up until 11pm talking about our past & future adventures, it was fun.
19/03/16, Saturday, Port Sorell to Strahan via Penguin, Burnie & Rosebery.
Bonza & Willsie, do Tassie's West Coast.
Firstly a BIG THANKYOU to Steve & Heidi, really good to catch up. Heidi you are an awesome Vegan Cook, impressed me enough to think about converting. Catching up with you both plus Neil & Tracey in Hobart really help make our trip the extra bit special. Meeting the locals is defiantly a bonus of any trip.
Check out the map, stars represent where they have been. Search the Internet for "Run Ride Roam " if you are curious about their adventures....great couple !
Meanwhile, Team Billsie hit the road, Bonza's driving, it's around 10.30am, "Great day isn't it Dad"...'Hey, say again"...."GREAT DAY ISN'T IT DAD"...."yeah tops, so good"... I decided to have a snooze...!!!
Basically it was a driving day nothing really that exciting for me, just a 3.5 hour drive to Strahan. Some windy roads on a cold sunny day. The stop in Rosebery (most honest town in Australia to test it once again I left the Sport Wagon unlocked, yes really) for lunch at the Bakery was good .... & more driving "aarrgghh" really not my style any more.
While we crossed the mountain range the temperature dropped to 8 Degrees Celsius ... "How cool is that Dad"...."say again Will".
So why is Rosebery so honest you ask? Back in 2002 we
(Well the kids) left our 1984 HJ60 Series Landcruiser in the Main Street unlocked with a rear door left wide open for 2 hours while we looked around town. All our money, cameras & other worldly possessions left in wide open view. When we returned everything was still there, amazing !
Anyway I digress we arrive into Strahan, book into the Strahan Village, which I booked on my smartphone the night before (see Bill it's a new world) . Went down & Bill booked a boat trip, then checked out the Hardy Pub for three beers.
Downtown Strahan.
We finished off our day with a smorgasbord at the Club 42, about 50 meters from our room. The views were truly amazing. Expensive but good, between us we had at least 30 oysters, plus all the others good stuff...(oh Jenny if you are reading this I nabbed 4 buns for breakfast :-).
View from our Hotel, in Strahan.
Three more days of the Bill-Will-do-Tas road trip to go....
No comments:
Post a Comment