Australia 2003-4

Hi everybody, this time from Melbourne, one of the largest cities in Oz at 3.5 million people. We just arrived Sunday evening on the boat from Tasmania, so we haven't seen much of town yet.

We have had mixed weather since you last heard from us in Adelaide. The weather on the mainland was pleasant and sunny but that changed in Tassie. The scenery was lovely but I would advise anyone travelling there to bring full rain gear and be prepared for cool weather. February and March are supposed to be the best months with the most sunshine, but it was in short supply while we were there. On the mainland we have been using our tent in the Caravan Parks, with occasional stays in hostels in the cities. In Tassie, we reversed this because of the weather and only used the tent four nights out of the two weeks we were there. That said; we did enjoy our all too short visit. Two weeks was not enough time. About a month would be ideal, allowing time to lay low while it rained and to visit all the scenic spots on the island.

But back to where we last left you, in Adelaide, enjoying the warmth and hospitality of Carol and Eric Hobson. Oz's version to the Tour de France, the Tour Down Under, started in Adelaide while we were there so of course we had to watch one stage of the bicycle race. We had driven up to Mt Lofty in the Adelaide Hills, reputed to be the best lookout of the area. We passed lots of bicyclists practicing hill climbing over the more than 10 km of steep roads to the summit. It looked like more of a challenge than the favourite Gat loop in Ottawa. The first stage of the Tour Down Under left from downtown Adelaide and proceeded through the Adelaide Hills, conveniently located close to our proposed route out of town. We drove to the small town of Birdwood where we relaxed with coffee until the racers appeared. The stores in town decorated the streets with balloons and streamers and gathered by the roadside to cheer on the contestants. The first to roar through town were advance cars with roof top replicas of racers in their team jerseys. Next came a group of three racers, one from the Oz team. They had just completed the longest climb of the day and the day belonged to the best hill climbers. Almost ten minutes later the main pack of riders roared through town., followed by a few stragglers. I don't know who ultimately won the Tour, but my money would be on one of the three leaders we saw.

Bicycle race at Birdwood

Coorawong Dunes

We left the racers and headed south to the coast, stopping to walk on the Coorawong dunes. This long expanse of yellow sand dunes was less dramatic than the white Sahara sand dunes we visited at the Eyre Bird Observation. We took a path two km over the dunes to the ocean where the only people around was a group of fishermen with long poles stuck in the sand at the shoreline. Fishing, and this method of fishing from the shoreline in particular, is perennially popular in Oz. The most popular vehicle is a 4WD equipped with fishing pole holders. We walked back via the road used by the fishermen to reach the beach. We were just thinking that Priscilla could have driven out on the track when we hit an extremely soft patch where we watched one 4WD making several attempts to get up a small hill on the sandy track. Priscilla would not have been pleased.

The next day, acting on the recommendations from fellow campers at our caravan park, we headed for the Grampian Mountains, but not before taking a wine tasting tour in the Penola area. There are so many good wine areas in Oz it is hard to know which ones to concentrate on. We did manage to try wines from four vineyards in this area and bought wines to have with our meals in each.

Mackenzie Falls at Halls Gap

Halls Gap Pinnacle

The Grampians and especially the main town of Hall's Gap, where we camped, reminded us of the Mt Washington area in New Hampshire, except smaller and not quite so busy. We stopped to admire Mackenzie Falls, the largest in Victoria with lots of water running over them, and to admire the rocky cliffs from the Balconies lookout. We were glad to have warm sleeping bags as the temperature dropped to 10 C overnight but warmed up beautifully for a four hour walk the next day. Most of the trail was the best maintained in Oz with steel railings, steps, and ladders to ensure your safety. Nevertheless it was a good walk with lots of lookouts and interesting rock formations, as well as the requisite snake on the path.

We decided we better make a reservation for the ferry to Tasmania and found out we could go the next Sunday or not until a week later on Feb 2. Since our time seems to be running out, we opted for a Sunday night crossing. We had hoped to stay in Melbourne before travelling to Tassie and get tickets to watch the Melbourne Open Tennis tournament, but there was no time. The booking left just two days for the Great Ocean Drive so the tennis viewing would be limited to TV at the caravan park.

The Great Ocean Drive was worth while, although we would have liked a few more days in Cape Otway National Park, where we stayed overnight. The route along the south coast of Victoria is lined with scenic lookouts, several of which drew us. There were sheer limestone and sandstone cliffs, deep gorges and rocky protuberances in the ocean where the pounding surf had worn the cliffs away. There were also lots of other tourists. In fact I think every tourist in Oz was there, especially at the Twelve Apostles. Tour buses on a day excursion from Melbourne were disgorging their passengers when we arrived in the afternoon. The spiky rock stacks were still an impressive sight, although it was difficult to see all twelve. They were originally called the Sow and Piglets; the Sow being a larger rocky island and the piglets the smaller rock stacks. Sometime in the Victorian era they were given the more dignified name of the Twelve Apostles.

12 Apostles on Great Ocean Drive

Delayed by the cows

We were delayed for about half an hour on our way to the Caravan Park on Cape Otway. People on foot and horseback were transferring a herd of about 350 cows from one pasture to another. The cows completely surrounded us on the road, slowly munching the greenery on the road verges.

The Bimbi Caravan Park was one of the best we stayed in. It was small and well kept, plus there were koalas in the trees and an outdoor theatre offering a free movie, Waking Ned Devine, that night. The movie, viewed sitting in our camp chairs, bundled up against the cold, was just as funny the second time as the first time we saw it in Ottawa. Our only regret is that we had to leave the next day and missed good walks to a swimming beach and a lighthouse.

Koala at Bimbi Caravan Park

Torquay Beach for Body Surfing

The second half of the Great Ocean Drive lacked the sheer cliffs of the first half, but it did have a narrow twisty road high above the ocean and several inviting white sand beaches. It was the Aussie Day, a long holiday weekend, and the tourist towns and beaches along the way were jammed with visitors. We stopped in one town, Lorne, to have our coffee break in the sun, then we stopped in Torquay to watch the windsurfing, sail boarding, and surf boarding. I couldn't resist the water and they had wetsuits for rent to protect me against the cool waters. I had a blast. Ray decided to veg out on the shore but I rented a suit, got my boogie board and rode the surf into shore for almost two hours.

After that we just had time to drive to the docks in Melbourne and board the Spirit of Tasmania for our overnight trip to Tasmania. I should have known we would have problems after our experiences crossing from Western Oz to South Oz, but I never asked and no one warned us that you couldn't bring any fresh fruit or veggies into Tasmania. We had just bought provisions to last the next three or four days and it all went into the garbage. Added to that were the fuel restrictions on the boat. We had been carrying around a jerry can full of extra petrol for our trip from Cairns to Alice Springs and we had never had to use it. Ray filled the car up minutes before joining the queue for the boat so the 9 liters became a gift to another passenger. We also had two fuel canisters for our camp stove that were confiscated, but at least they return those to you at the end of the trip. Besides those gripes, the trip was easy. Our inner cabin with bathroom was compact, but comfortable, as I imagine cabins on the cruise boats are, and we managed to sleep most of the way over.

Once we landed in Devonport in Tasmania at 6:30 AM, we bought groceries to replace our confiscated hoard and headed to the Cradle Mountains. This is the traditional starting point for the seven day Overland Track. I had intended to give it a try but Ray dissuaded me. He was not keen on carrying a tent, stove, pots and provisions for seven days. We chose to take day hikes instead. I am glad we made that decision as the good weather only held until the day after we arrived in Tassie. That would have meant six days of hiking and camping in the pouring rain with no views. Ugh.

We got a good tent site and hustled over to the Park information center for a two hour walk in the sun around Dove Lake. New boardwalks have been constructed to make it easier for people to enjoy short walks and a frequent shuttle bus is available to transport people from the info center to several locations in the park. The drivers are all friendly and provide a short commentary on the area as you drive around. On the way back from our hike the first afternoon the driver pointed out a wombat peacefully grazing by the side of the road near the Park headquarters. He let four of us out and we rushed over to take photos of the oblivious furry creature. They look sort of like a koala with short stubby legs and no big black nose. One of the drivers told us about his experiences raising an abandoned baby wombat. They look slow and lazy but he claimed they could outrun Cathy Freeman, the Aussie Olympic winner. His wombat, Wally, was trained to use the toilet and loved to sleep on their furniture. He had to be returned to the wild when he got too big to keep inside but managed to claw through a wooden door when they tried to put him out at night.

wombat grazes beside the road

path on Cradle Mountain walk

Dove Lake is nestled below Cradle Mountain and surrounded by smaller hills, so we had a pleasant warm up to our longer walk the next day. Again we circled Dove Lake, but this time from farther out. We walked around several other alpine lakes and climbed to the top of one of the smaller mountains surrounding Dove Lake to Marian's Lookout for a great view of the area. At the end of Dove Lake is the start of a side trip to the 1545 M Cradle Mountain peak. A sign at the start of the trail advertised 2 1/2 hrs for the return trip, and with a half hour rest at the top, we needed all that time. It was a challenge, but well worth the effort. The climb reminded us of several of the rock hopping trails we have followed in the White Mountains of NH, but we really had no problems and going down wasn't half as difficult as Ray feared. The 360 view at the top was wonderful, especially given the rare clear skies. Down at the trail junction again, we still had another two hours or more of hiking to get back to our start.

Near the junction we met up with a man who wanted directions to the Peak Trail. We told him how long it took us to go up and that it was challenging, but he was still keen. We wondered about the wisdom of going up as it was already after 3 PM, the sky was clouding over and he had no water, no warm clothing and was wearing sandals. Some people have to learn the hard way.

We hustled on our way and made it back to our shuttle bus just in time for the rain to start. Luckily we only got slightly damp and we had raincoats with us, but I was more concerned for our clean laundry already dry on the outside lines at the campground. We managed to retrieve it before it was absolutely soaked and got it dried in the drying machine, so we had something to change into after our shower.

That was the end of our sunshine for quite some time. The rain went on in earnest all night long. We had a mud lake surrounding our tent but we were comfortable inside. Many of the campers suffered from leaking tents but we thought we had escaped until I discovered the underside of my thermarest was wet. The center seam on the tent floor was leaking. That did it. The rain stopped long enough for us to scrub the mud off the tent, pack up and leave for Launceston.

We gave up on tenting and stayed overnight in an on-site caravan in Launceston. All the literature told us to head for the East Coast when the weather was bad in the west so that is what we did the next morning. It was still raining but we took a road over two mountain passes to get to St Helen's. We got within 14 km of St Helen's when a barricade across the whole road stopped us. We had passed over small flooded sections of the road beforehand, but this was impassable. We would even be heavily fined if we attempted it. We turned around and headed for lunch and to assess our options in a nearby roadhouse. There weren't any. Six and a half hours after we left in the morning we were back in an on-site caravan in Launceston. There were no other unflooded roads to St Helen's. In fact, the main street in town was under water and everyone in town was stranded for a few days.

Caravan for the night

Ross Bridge

We changed our plans and headed south to Hobart, with side trips to the historic towns of Ross and Richmond. Like many of the towns in Tassie, these were convict stations. Many of the original stone buildings and bridges, built with convict labour, have been retained and restored. The towns are now popular tourist destinations with good restaurants and gift shops. The convict past has become a good tourist draw in Tassie.

We stayed at a nice hostel in Hobart and used the rainy weather as an excuse to watch the finals of the Melbourne Open tennis tournament. I don't think I have watched as much good tennis before. It made me keen to get back on the courts when I return to Ottawa.

The rain did stop long enough for a nice walk on Mt Wellington. We ended up walking in low cloud so we never did see the advertised spectacular Organ Pipes, dolomite rock formations at the top of the mountain, but the temperature was good for walking. At one point we followed a side trail that ended in dense bush. That was a mistake. I had been thinking it was just about warm enough to take off the zip-off legs of my hiking pants, but I delayed doing so. Shortly after I noticed a black blob on Ray's calf. It was a leech, getting fat on his blood. He managed to flick it off and then discovered a leech on my pant leg. It was still skinny as was protected by my long pants. I stayed in long pants for the afternoon. I would still recommend the walk!

Mt Wellington walk

Unusual tessallated rocks near Port Arthur

Port Arthur, on the nearby Tasman Peninsula, is a must on any Tassie tourist list. It can be done as a day tour from Hobart but it is much better as an overnight trip. We drove there in more rain and stopped on the way to see the unusual shoreline rock formations called the Tessellated Pavement. It looks like a cobblestone patio someone has constructed on the beach, but is the result of several underground upheavals of the sea bottom and subsequent erosion by the sea, the tides and the salt.

Port Arthur Penal Station

We didn't get any promised views of the Tasman Peninsula as we continued on but the skies had cleared for an afternoon visit of the Port Arthur historic site. This was a Penal Station from 1830 - 1877 for male convicts who were considered dangerous or repeat offenders. There was also a juvenile detention center on adjacent Point Puer for boys from 9 to 16 years old. This was the first time that boys were separated from adult prisoners in the English Commonwealth. Conditions were harsh by today's standards, but not for that era. The prisoners endured hard physical labour but they were learning trades and if they could stay awake in the evening, had access to a large library and some education. Most did eventually finish their terms, but very few of them ever made it back to England, so many Tassies can trace their roots to a convict. As we heard in later conversations with Tassies, this is just beginning to be acceptable. There is a computer database at Port Arthur where you can put in a name of a person or town and get a list of a convict. With that information you can write to the genealogical society to get more information about an ancestor.

The Port Arthur site was once a thriving town but once the prisons were closed in 1877, the buildings were subject to fires and vandalism. Although only a few of the original buildings survive or have been restored, there is plenty to see on the site. We took a boat tour of the bay and a short guided walk to learn more about its past. We also spent a few more hours just wandering around reading the informative signs by the buildings. The colony was self sufficient with shipbuilding, coal mining, shoe making, brick and nail production. Religion was thought to heal the troubled soul, so church attendance was mandatory. The most disturbing building was the Hall of Silence. As a punishment, prisoners were kept in isolated cells where no one talked to them and they wore heavy masks to isolate them further. It is no wonder that the number of inmates sent to the subsequently constructed madhouse rose dramatically.

The next day was still good, so a walk in nearby Fortescue Bay was in order. We had hoped to do a walk to see the Totem rocks at the end of Cape Raul but recent bush fires had forced the track closure. The rains had halted the fires but the tracks had not been repaired and there was a danger that trees or tree limbs would fall on us. We met a Dutch couple who had gone on the walk anyway and said it was awful. Everything was burnt and one section had lots of leeches. We did a nice coastal walk instead and even saw several penguins nestled under rocks or tree stumps beside the trail.

With the change to good weather, at least during the day, we headed to the Freycinet Peninsula to try out another walk. The Freycinet is a long skinny lick of land a little farther north on the East Coast. The craggy topped Hazard Mountains crown the end and sandy beaches line both sides of the peninsula. The weather was even good enough for us to try tenting again. The Caravan Park at Coles Bay was crowded, but well equipped with a camper's kitchen and convenient to swimming and hiking trails.

Wineglass Bay

Coles Bay Beach

We set out in sunny weather for a five hour loop hike. We climber up to a pass between the Hazard mountains for a glimpse of the lovely Wineglass Bay, a white crescent of sand backed by green forests. We got down to the beach in time to watch a pod of eight or more dolphins swim back and forth along the shoreline. Several people were sunbathing on the beach but few were in the water for very long as the waters were cool. We continued our hike through the forest to Hazard Bay on the other side of the peninsula. We had time to try to identify more birds on the route, have a picnic lunch on the rocks, walk two hours back to the campsite tent and have a swim at the beach nearest to the Caravan Park. The water was cool but we managed a short swim and a walk down the beach. It was quite relaxing.

Bicheno is a small resort town at the head of the Freycinet peninsula. We stopped there on our way further north, intending to have a walk through the hills of another National Park. It sounded like a longer walk than we wanted so we settled for a coastal walk along the rocks right in Bicheno. The rock hopping got to us somewhat but it was pretty along the coast. We were just deciding to drive a bit further north before stopping for lunch when we saw those familiar black clouds hovering over the hills. We lunched in Bicheno and were glad we hadn't gone into the hills to get drenched.

That afternoon we made it to St Helen's, a week later than we expected. The weather looked too threatening for a tent so it was an on-site caravan again. They are really quite comfortable with their own kitchen, but you have to go outside to the amenities block for a shower or the toilet.

Launston Cataract Gorge

The next day was our last in Tassie. We headed back to Launceston by a different route than our aborted one the week before. We had heard good reports of the Cataract Gorge so off we went. This is a popular spot for both tourists and locals and since this was a sunny Saturday, many family groups were out. There is a large swimming pool on the grounds, but it was closed due to the recent heavy rains. From the look of it, it needed to be drained and refilled. You have a choice of crossing the gorge on a chair lift or walking across a suspension bridge. In the middle of the heavy rains the previous week the suspension bridge was closed for fear it would be swept away, but it was fine now.

We opted for a walk from the suspension bridge to Duck Reach power station, two km upstream. Nearly everybody else sticks close to the suspension bridge area so we almost had the place to ourselves. The power station was built in 1885 using the latest in technology to provide power to the bustling town of Launceston. When it was completed it was the first in Tassie and one of the earliest in Oz. Floods in 1926 destroyed much of the station. The station was rebuilt, then destroyed again in the 1960s. This time it remained closed until it was reopened as a tourist attraction in the 1980s. We found a different route for the return trip, through the forest instead of beside the gorge. A very nice half day walk.

After our picnic lunch we continued on to Devonport where we got a room in a converted nurse's residence for our last night in Tassie. It was just like staying in a college residence but you couldn't beat the price and the people were friendly. At $30 it was the best value room in Oz.

Sunday morning we took the day ferry back to Melbourne. It was a relaxing day, sitting in comfortable chairs, reading, watching some Davis Cup matches on TV and playing cards. The ten hour trip passed quickly.

In Melbourne we are staying at a YHA hostel in North Melbourne. We left Tassie in the rain and it has cleared nicely on the mainland. Ray walked downtown this morning to explore while I wrote this latest episode.

We will stay in town another day to explore some more and then it is off again. We are coming to end of our trip, just one month more in Oz. We have invitations to stay with people in Wagga Wagga, Canberra, Sydney and we hope to take them all up on their offers.