Queen Elizabeth Cape Walk

Bruny Island was so good yesterday that we decided to go back today and attempt the Queen Elizabeth Cape walk - a day walk of 12kms along the beach and up to the cape atthe end. After going along a track through the scrub, and past a big lagoon and a small lagoon (both empty because of the drought), we finally came to the track toward the beach. This path can only be taken at low tide because the rocky bluff extends three fingers out  towards the bay, and two of them can’t be walked past at higher tides. The beach is near the neck, so it was the one we were on early yesterday, and looks much the same.

You then find a hole in the rocks and walk through it.

The rocky fingers of the bluff are eroded.

The last part of the rocky fingers is an arch.

We walked to the end of the last beach then went up to the cape.

On the way we saw a Bassian Thrush.

We walked back to the beach, then went back over the bluff as the tide was too high. At the beach we saw some giant kelp that had broken off.

As we went back, we met several people who had given up on the walk because it was too difficult. We were very pleased with ourselves.

Fluted Cape Walk

To get to Bruny Island you catch a ferry from a beautiful bay full of yachts.

We went to Truganini Lookout, which is up a lot of steps, but gives an expansive view of the south part of Bruny Island and The Neck.

We went down to the beach and watched the surf.

We drove around the island for a little, and found many of the roads weren’t paved, so we couldn’t visit the lighthouse. Eventually, we ended up in Adventure Bay and found a walk to Grass Place and Fluted Cape. From Grass Place we saw Fluted Cape, and were sure that the walk couldn’t possibly go to the top.

We walked up a very steep path, and saw several rock needles on the way.

Including the ones that we decided were the flutes on Fluted Cape.

When we got to the top, there were other people who we got to take a photo including the island in Grass Place where we came from.

We were both quite amazed that we had succeeded in doing the entire walk when we finished, and found it was grade 3 (of five).

To celebrate, we had some incredibly delicious fresh oysters. Bruny Island definitely is justified in being advertised as having some of the best oysters anywhere.

 

Port Arthur

Possibly the most known part of Tasmania is the Port Arthur peninsula, where the penal colony for the worst convicts was located. No part of the peninsula is more infamous than Eaglehawk Neck, which divides it from the mainland. The surf was so loud, that escapees couldn’t be heard, so a row of chained dogs guarded the neck. 

The coast of most of the peninsula is very jagged, and the surf pounds it, making it very difficult to escape, but also breathtaking.

There are a number of interesting rock formations. The Devils Kitchen.

The Tasman Arch.

The most impressive we found was the Remarkable Cave, where the surf pours through a keyhole arch. There is a platform a metre or two above the sand otherwise you would be engulfed. The rock is almost covered.

The last formation we saw was the Tessellated Pavement. I’ve never seen one before that was sandstone - usually they’re basalt.

Rainforest and Waterfalls

Today was extremely windy, so we visited Mount Field National Park which is mainly rainforest. It was raining by the time we got there, so we decided to take the short walk to the Russell Falls first.

You can continue up to the top of the falls, and on past a cataract to the Horseshoe Falls.

Although we were somewhat wet, we then drove to another short loop track to see the tall trees. This is a remnant forest of old Eucalyptus Regnans - known as Mountain Ash in Victoria and Swamp Gum in Tasmania - the tallest flowering tree in the world, and possibly the tallest growing tree, but the biggest ones were all chopped down.

The area was full of moss and tree ferns. We then decided that we wouldn’t get much wetter going on the longer track to Lady Barron Falls, and we were having a wonderful time, so we went through more large trees and tree ferns and moss to the falls and back.

Then we visited Lake Pedder - probably an icon of the conservation movement. Of course, now that it’s dammed it’s enormous, but it’s still in the middle of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage area.

On our way we saw some of the recent fires.

Maria Island

As it was a sunny Sunday, we decided to visit Maria Island, where we would be walking all day (there aren’t any cars on the island), and it might be a bit less popular than other places. This was an excellent choice. The ferry trip was relatively smooth, and much of the island is very exposed, so it could have been unpleasant if it had been very windy.

This was a convict settlement, then a mixed farm with concrete works, vineyard, wheat and sheep. You can see the whole European history in the buildings currently here.

Currently it’s a National Park, used as a site for protecting very vulnerable species. For instance, they brought Tasmanian devils here, and have a ulcer-free population that they’re using to booster other populations. Similarly, the Cape Barron geese and the Flinders Island wombats have also been imported.

The fossil cliffs are an amazing site. Everywhere you look, there are many fossils. They were used as a quarry for Portland cement.

Late in the day we walked to the painted cliffs. On our way, we saw some wetland, with native chickens.

This walk brought us into the more natural vegetation that covers most of the island. And we headed around the bay to the cliffs.

Unfortunately, we arrived just before high tide, and the moon was almost full, and at the closest it will be to the earth for some time, so the tide was higher than normal. This meant that much of the painted cliffs weren’t exposed when we visited, and it was impossible to walk around to the main parts. We left our visit until last so the tide was as low as it could be while we were there and we were happy with what we saw.

On our way back, we had tea at a place that overlooked Maria Island, and reflected on how good the day had been.

Walk Around Hobart

Originally, Hobart was one of the two major settlements in Australia. Later, Brisbane was developed, then free settlers came to Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. Hobart developed into a significant whaling settlement, but Tasmania doesn’t have much farmland, and didn’t have the goldfields that drew settlers later to the mainland, so despite growing rapidly early on, Hobart has been the smallest state capital city for probably almost 150 years. This has meant that more the early buildings are still around in Hobart and Tasmania than in Sydney.

This morning we walked to the major Saturday tourist market in Hobart - the Salamanca market, through Sandy Bay and Battery Harbour. There were people everywhere, obscuring the old sandstone buildings surrounding the square, so I didn’t take any pictures at the actual market. The walk was through an old part of Hobart.

We then walked back along the sculpture walk. It didn’t have many sculptures, but showed the history of the area - whaling, boat building, sailing, and Errol Flynn (who was born at Battery Point). This is a place where the whalers boiled down the whales.

The platform where the judges of the Sydney to Hobart race mark the end of the race.

Harbour views 

The hill where Errol Flynn was born.

This afternoon we visited Mount Wellington. While the sleet and rain obscured most of the organ pipes and the views of Hobart, it was quite an astounding piece of geology, and what we could see was spectacular.

Arriving in Tasmania

Leaving Canberra, the terminal has changed considerably - it even has a truck on display.

The flight in was all clouds, but Tasmania is good at welcoming.

You can also go in to hug arrivals.

The view of the Derwent river from where we are staying is lovely.

And we had a nice time on the beach.