We drove the rural dirt road through the Sandspit Forest Park to the Tasman Peninsula, getting gorgeous views of the coastline before waiting for the turntable bridge in Dunalley to rotate back in road position in order to cross over into the Tasman National Park. We stopped at the Arch, walked to Waterfall Bay, which sadly had no water running in the waterfalls on the seaside cliffs, and viewed the area's blowhole (which was not as impressive as the one in Bicheno but it did have a cool tunnel leading out to the open ocean).
After walking the east coast a ways (though not the 8 hr trek), we headed to Port Arthur, bypassing our original plan of a 5 hour hike to Cape Huay. We made it to Port Arthur, and discovered that all the sites were only available to those who purchased tickets to see the ruins. Not in the mood for wandering around old ruins, we followed signs for a "remarkable cave" and were greeted with gorgeous costal views, including views of both Tasmania's southern tips Cape Pillar and Cape Raoul (both which had really neat rock formations) in addition to a hike into a water carved cave. We then drove by some lovely beaches (just begging to be enjoyed) and stopped to check out some black swans up close. We then drove the rest of the loop of the Tasman Peninsula, seeing a yard filled with hundreds and hundreds of gnomes and then stopping to meet Ash's auntie and see her aspiring eco village before heading back to Hobart for a delicious family dinner to celebrate our last night in Tasmania.
Our last morning, we woke up bright and early - ready to hike Mt. Wellington with Susie. We hiked across the "organ pipes" portion of the mountain. It was extremely windy on the way up the mountain but once we got close enough to be hugging the boulders and hiking amongst the low shrubs, we were well protected. After walking the organ pipes, we headed to the summit where the wind was amazingly strong but the views looking back over the city and the coast were beautiful. It was an awesome way to stretch our legs before getting on a plane and get one last view of Tasmania. We made such good time that we even had the time to go check out Mt. Nelson for brunch with the Susie and another last look at the landscape before returning our camper and heading to the airport to fly to Sydney.
To view all of our photos from Tasmania, view the 2014 Tasmania Album.
Driving through Rheban Beach south to the Tasman Peninsula
The Arch
East coast of the Tasman Peninsula (with Waterfall Bay in the distance)
After walking the east coast a ways (though not the 8 hr trek), we headed to Port Arthur, bypassing our original plan of a 5 hour hike to Cape Huay. We made it to Port Arthur, and discovered that all the sites were only available to those who purchased tickets to see the ruins. Not in the mood for wandering around old ruins, we followed signs for a "remarkable cave" and were greeted with gorgeous costal views, including views of both Tasmania's southern tips Cape Pillar and Cape Raoul (both which had really neat rock formations) in addition to a hike into a water carved cave. We then drove by some lovely beaches (just begging to be enjoyed) and stopped to check out some black swans up close. We then drove the rest of the loop of the Tasman Peninsula, seeing a yard filled with hundreds and hundreds of gnomes and then stopping to meet Ash's auntie and see her aspiring eco village before heading back to Hobart for a delicious family dinner to celebrate our last night in Tasmania.
View of Cape Raoul
Black Swans on the Tasman Peninsula
Our last morning, we woke up bright and early - ready to hike Mt. Wellington with Susie. We hiked across the "organ pipes" portion of the mountain. It was extremely windy on the way up the mountain but once we got close enough to be hugging the boulders and hiking amongst the low shrubs, we were well protected. After walking the organ pipes, we headed to the summit where the wind was amazingly strong but the views looking back over the city and the coast were beautiful. It was an awesome way to stretch our legs before getting on a plane and get one last view of Tasmania. We made such good time that we even had the time to go check out Mt. Nelson for brunch with the Susie and another last look at the landscape before returning our camper and heading to the airport to fly to Sydney.
Mount Wellington before our ascent (organ pipes are the brown part at top)
View of Hobart from Mt Wellington
Mt. Wellington
The Mt Wellington Organ Pipes
Mt. Wellington Summit
To view all of our photos from Tasmania, view the 2014 Tasmania Album.
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