Well thanks to the truncated activities on this stretch of the trip due to the weather, so is this blog entry!
The conditions varied between “Melbourne” and “perfect storm” as we made our way north so we pulled the pin on planned stops like Lake Dobson and Nelson Falls and continued directly to Queenstown where it started to let up around the scenic Lake Burbury. A little further along there’s an old copper mine on the outskirts of Queenstown, take the goat trail to the top where you’ll find a outset viewing platform to really take in the views and test your vertigo.
Coming down the mountain, just before the town there are a couple lookout points for photo ops with views of the road snaking around the mountains.
The next day we awoke to… oh look… more rain! The drive to Cradle mountain was slow and tedious, made worse with the traffic thickening and the very narrow parts of the road closer to the national park. You know you’re running out of room when you need to fold in your side mirrors so they don’t clip a guide post or on coming cars! Thankfully the rental car survived unscathed even though we were ready to ghostie it off the mountain by then.
Travel tip:
Little towns like Rosebery are peppered through out the mountain ranges and are good places to stop for a bite to eat and for some supplies for the day ahead.
Travel tip:
If you didn’t buy a parks pass for all the parks or are only visiting Cradle, you will need to stop at the visitor’s center to purchase a ticket. The lines can be quite long if there is a tour group, so factor this into your itinerary.
Pulling into the Cradle mountain car park we could see how grand the place… could be, alas the drizzle was becoming steady rain again and it was pretty much a white out. After having lunch in the car and watching many people walk half way down to the boat house and turn around for an hour, the rain radar showed no sign of letting up so we reluctantly moved on to our next stop, Deloraine.
Travel tip:
When they say the weather can turn quickly (and severely) they mean it, so come prepared. A small folding umbrella or emergency poncho is probably not going to cut it in anything more than the most mildest of conditions, but its probably better than nothing! A hardshell jacket, rain paints (or at least gaiters) and waterproof boots are a good start. Wearing your fave pair of J’s is not advisable even in the dry, yep there were several people at the visitor center wearing these and other basketball shoes that you wouldn’t even play basketball in let alone try to tackle wet trails with!
One small plus to the never ending rain, many of the small creeks had come alive with flowing streams which I’m sure was also a nice welcome to some of the bushfire strickened areas we drove through.
Travel tip:
Looking for some good valued eats while staying in Deloraine? Check out Sullivan’s on the river. Classic “fish n chip” shop style snack bar on one side and dine in restaurant on the other. After eyeballing the heaped “I made this myself” homestyle pizzas it was an easy and filling choice 😀
The next morning we woke up thinking, you know what we haven’t had in a while? RAIN! And lots of it! Yep mother nature was still playing that ol’ broken record so it was another slow and tedious drive to Liffey falls. The unsealed parts of the road, replaced by flowing streams did little for the nerves nor the confidence we had in the rental car, which had gone from white to completely brown.
The plus to all the rain did mean the falls were flowing nicely and fellow sightseers were few and far between which made it was easy to get some photos without having to fight the crowds.
After all the fast forwarding of planned stops we ended up a little time spare before heading to Launceston for our flight home so we made a quick detour to the Melita Honey farm in Chudleigh, only the little store was open but it was nonetheless packed. They of course have plenty of honey and honey based food and body/health products …and ice cream 😉 There were also plenty honey and bee related souvenirs and trinkets along with a small display and information on bees and the harvesting of honey.
Travel tip: the farm is not really near anything else, not even toilets, but continue down the road for a minute or two for a rest stop if the rain and cold has gotten the better of your bladder.
The final coup de gras and bit of salt in the wound was a nice sunset as we were leaving, gotta love a place with a sense of humor even if we were the butt of the joke. Hehe butt. Ok, so there was alot of whinging about the weather but not enough to deter us from a return trip, hopefully in the not too distant future.
Tasmania 2014 part #1 – Arrival, Eaglehawk Neck
Tasmania 2014 part #2 – Port Arthur and Salamanca markets
Tasmania 2014 part #3 – Hobart to Queenstown to Cradle Mountain and Liffey Falls
Port Arthur
Port Arthur is only about 30min from Eagle Hawk Neck but with the weather souring it took much longer. I’m not sure if it was because we were heading closer to Storm Bay but I wouldn’t discard the notion as part of the reason things went from bad to full blown craptastic.
We’re not afraid of a bit of rain, even less of a bother when we were prepared for the worse with plenty of wet weather gear and even a sealed cover for my camera but as we pulled into the Port Arthur Reserve our hopes started to diminish greatly as the heavens opened and it really started to come down. Rivers of ankle deep run off flowed through the carpark and visibility had dwindled down to under 10m.
Inside the visitor center it was a madhouse of drenched tour groups or those about to be, clambering for the overpriced disposable garbage bag ponchos. For half an hour we watched the tours bravely yet futilely go out into the white out, waiting for the rain to pass but to no avail. So we decided to do a quick drive around the surrounds, stumbling around a little “beach” area before heading into Hobart.
The approximately 90min drive took hours with the abysmal weather and only started to let up as we got closer to the city.
After checking into the cool little Alabama Hotel we took a short drive around town and to Rosebay Esplanade for some photos of the harbour and a distant Mt Wellington. Thankfully by then the rain had stopped so we can actually show you a couple photos!
Travel tip: the Alabama doesn’t have any off street parking but there a plenty of overnight parking garage options nearby. You can also park on the street out front, just remember to check the post times.
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Salamanca markets
Next morning we got up early to pop into the Salamanca markets before hitting the road. It was a rather easy choice since very little else was open on the long weekend.
Getting there – The market is located pretty much on the water at Sullivan’s cove and is short walk from the town center. We recommend heading straight towards the water then following it south to take in the scenic bay views.
The market is of a decent size and is filled with all the markety things you’d expect, though the items tend to lean towards a more up market feel with jewellery, carvings, paintings and framed landscape photos. There are also a few clothing stalls but again with a more “grown up” feel. Of course, what would a market be without food and fresh produce? Plenty of fruit and veg in a separate pavilion and the food trucks scattered through out the venue make breakfast and brunch blend together and lunch unnecessary.
Tasmania 2014 part #1 – Arrival, Eaglehawk Neck
Tasmania 2014 part #2 – Port Arthur and Salamanca markets
Tasmania 2014 part #3 – Hobart to Queenstown to Cradle Mountain and Liffey Falls
A few things usually dictate when and where we travel – time of year, events and price of flights. Cheap flights pretty much always take a precedent but we prefer travelling in between seasons to avoid crowds and public/school holidays where possible. This time however was pretty much the opposite of that. We were locked into a small window due to work commitments so basically it was the Easter weekend or nothing till the end of the year and who wants to wait THAT long amiright?? With only 5 days at our disposal we had to keep it reasonably accessible with minimal expenditure. We’ve heard rave reviews from our landscape photographer buddies championed by Mel Sinclair who mentioned (and was smart enough to go the following week!) that around this time of year the Fagas trees start changing colour (they even have a festival dedicated to it) so we thought, why the heck not.
Well the first problem was going when we had to not when we wanted to so we were actually about a week early for the colour changing, no problem, just need to look for places in cold areas where winter is coming early. Second problem, travelling during a batch of public holidays, surely not everything will be closed right? Sadly we were wrong on both accounts, throw in constant wet weather ranging from heavy drizzle to outright monsoonal downpours and a feeble rental car with no will to live and that was just the beginning of our Tasmanian adventure! It was trying to say the least but we’ll try to keep the whinging to a minimum and stick to the facts 😉
The biggest Keyzer Soze moment of making people believe the devil didn’t exist was arriving at the airport to clear skies. The drive out to Eaglehawk Neck was reasonably uneventful, apart from a bit of afternoon/pre long weekend traffic it took a bit over 2 hours from the airport including the low speed limits, endless road works and unpaved roads with trucks and 4wds gunning it with no consideration of on coming traffic.
We chose the Best Western Lufra Apartments because they are pretty much directly above the tessellated pavements. The hotel was a little dated but that sort of thing never really bothers us, we go on holidays to do things other than look at the wallpaper! Meals were a little higher priced but when it’s the only option in the surrounding area the choice is pretty easy if you don’t want to go hungry. The staff however were friendly and helpful.
The next morning we got up for sunrise, a little icy but nothing too unmanageable. The sunrise itself was rather uneventful – enough for a couple nice photos at the tessellated pavement, nature working its magic on carving out a rather intricate grid in the rock, but it did hold high hopes of a beautiful day of sightseeing. Back to the hotel the dining room’s expansive windows displayed a spectacular view and the buffet brekky with most of the basics covered wasn’t too bad either. Being a long weekend we were expecting a bigger crowd but it was rather tame, probably was a different story for the proceeding days though.
Conveniently, the Pirate’s Bay area is also very close where you can take in the blowhole, Tasman Arch, Fossil rock look out and Devil’s Kitchen all with in the space of an hour or so if you stick to the main lookouts and 86 the scenic walks. The weathering and layering of the rock formations at the Tasman Arch was tragically poetic to see nature creating and at the same time destroying history of the landmark. Like most natural landmarks there is no open and close times so getting an early start, beating the crowds and getting these sites out of the way is definitely the way to go to maximise your day.
Travel tip: about 2km from Eaglehawk Neck on the way to the blowhole there is a small town nicknamed “Doo Town”, which lovingly coming about because… well they added “Doo” to everything. Its pretty much a “blink and you’ll miss it” blimp on the map but cute and quaint enough to stop for a quick selfie while trying not to snicker at “doo doo” jokes.
With the weather still clear and our sense of adventure high we headed further south to Port Arthur to take in the convict town and its historic buildings…
Tasmania 2014 part #1 – Arrival, Eaglehawk Neck
Tasmania 2014 part #2 – Port Arthur and Salamanca markets
Tasmania 2014 part #3 – Hobart to Queenstown to Cradle Mountain and Liffey Falls
