Day 64 - Launceston to Devonport and some reminiscing

We had a white out this morning and could barely see 100m in front of us.  The fog diminished somewhat as we said goodbye to Hadspen and Launceston and headed for Devonport, our port of embarkation for our return voyage to the mainland.

It was a fairly quick 88km journey, crossing roads that we had previously visited on our second day in Tasmania.  We had now completed our tour of Tasmania.

In some respects sadly, we arrived in Devonport in rain and heavily overcast skies, which ironically were not too dissimilar to our first few days in Tasmania.  Later in the day the wind arrived.  We must add that for the last two and a half weeks, the weather has been terrific, with cold mornings and lovely sunny days, so we are choosing to ignore todays weather event.

020515 Devenport on our penultimate day in Tasmania, cold and wet

Here are some details to give you some idea about the distances we have travelled over the last nine weeks.

Distances                                                                             km

Brisbane to Melbourne to catch the ferry:                        1761

Devonport to Devonport, caravan km:                             1620

Distance travelled in Tasmania by car:                            5974

Distance travelled by car alone (sightseeing):                 4354

In summary

• It took us a greater distance to get to the ferry than to drive around Tasmania with the caravan.  As remarked previously, it is a long way to travel to catch a boat.   
• The distance to travel around Tasmania is not that great
• There are plenty of things to see in Tasmania, which require you to head off the main roads
• The highways are quite good but some of the lesser roads leave something to be desired.  We can forgive some of the mountain roads as they are not maintained for public use, rather for forestry use.
• Signposting left something to be desired at times but we only got lost in the mountains once, so we are not really complaining.  The fact the distances are small, means one never gets lost for long.

Tasmania is an island of mountains, rivers, lakes and varying coastlines.  It is also a place where photographs are demanded, in our case 2251 of them, not all of which were included in the blogs.

Mountains: For simple beauty, Cradle Mountain was the pick.  For the view, Mount Wellington behind Hobart was wonderful, but one should not forget the South Sisters, Ben Lomond and Mount Barrow.  For the thrill of the chase, Ben Lomond and Mount Barrow will not be forgotten.

Rivers: Mountains beget rivers and the wild rivers of the west were beautiful and the Gordon River lived up to its reputation.  While hydro electricity generation is inevitable in a place like Tasmania, we did not think the presence of the power stations was overwhelming and they are indeed clean.  The Derwent River was memorable for its meandering passage through its valley, with poplars and other deciduous trees lining its banks and showing off their autumn colours.  The South Esk River too, demonstrated similar qualities.  The Tamar River was different.  Tidal and sluggish, it provided such a contrast to the faster flowing rivers, yet was beautiful in its own way.

Lakes: Mountains also beget lakes and there are plenty of these.  They are impressive.  Lake Gordon and Lake Pedder were outstanding and the Gordon Dam itself was memorable, not only for its size and beauty, but also the 230 steps down to the top of the dam wall and the 230 steps back.  The Great Lake in the centre of Tasmania was not misnamed either.

Coastlines: The southern coast of Tasmania is not accessible by car but we understand it is wild and rugged.  What we did see of the east coast could equally be described as wild and rugged, including Bruny Island, Tasman Peninsula and the Freycinet Peninsula. The wildness of the west coast and its temperate rain forests is to be marvelled at. We can understand why people go to extraordinary lengths to protect it.

Conclusion

Tasmania has such a lot to offer.  We have seen much, but not all of Tasmania in the eight weeks we have been here.  The weather has been at best, mixed, and we have rationalized that when the clouds are about, the rain is falling and the wind is blowing, we have seen Tasmania in a different light.  We have loved every minute of it and can recommend a visit to Tasmania.  It will, in many respects, transport you back to earlier times with its small cities, little villages beside babbling brooks and a quieter and more relaxed lifestyle.  Weather wise, it will also amply demonstrate “four seasons in one day”. Tomorrow we head back to what the Tasmanians refer to as “their big island to the north.”

Dino’s Travels’ will cease as of this blog.  We trust those who have followed our travels will have enjoyed Tasmania as much as we have.