Bargain Beanie

We quickly drove west of Launceston today along highway one to Deloraine before taking the old highway back through Westbury, Carrick and Hadspen. There were plenty of old houses to be seen and here is just a small sample:

We were particularly impressed with the Red Feather Inn at Hadspen - a series of buildings and beautiful grounds:

Once back at Launceston we drove north to Grindelwald.  Many of the houses have some quaint Swiss features and beautiful gardens and worth a look if you find yourself in the general area. We weren't too fussed on the 'Swiss Village' at the resort - it was a bit tired and twee:

We had lunch at the Bistro there - fairly ordinary pub grub.

Whilst at lunch, the blue skies disappeared and grey clouds closed in. We were lucky not to get rained on, though we could see plenty of water about in some of the places we visited in the afternoon.

Cataract Gorge in Launceston has plenty of walking paths (not that we had time to do them):

The outdoor lift up the hill to the car park took my fancy as it was operated by the user.

We were lucky to make Hillwood Strawberry Farm just after 4:30pm - plenty of time to pick 750g of their strawberries before closing time at 5:00pm. We had no time for a coffee but the sweet goodies in the cabinet looked delicious.

After a quick dinner, we rugged up and drove up towards Low Head lighthouse for a penguin tour. At $20 a head, it is excellent value and you wander through the rookery and on to the beach with a guide for about an hour. You get very close to the penguins and non flash photography is allowed. There were about 40 people split into 3 groups so everyone had the opportunity to see clearly. This is a very different experience to Phillip Island.

The wind had risen, the sun had set and obviously PD was feeling the cold. Luckily beanies were on sale for $5 at the penguin tour office:

The clouds had mostly cleared and the twilight sky almost looked like a rainbow:

And then the highlight of the night:

It was PD's first wild penguin encounter and she thoroughly enjoyed it, despite the wintery conditions!

Tamar Touring

Today was a day for wandering on both sides of the Tamar, visiting Low Head, Georgetown, Beauty Point, Beconsfield and Rowella. We're leaving Launceston till tomorrow.

The Pilot Station Reserve at Low Head was restored in the 1990s:

The main lighthouse at Low Head (we counted 4):

Some of the old houses in Low Head have been beautifully renovated:

Nearby Georgetown is of historical significance as it was here that the British landed and claimed northern Van Dieman's Land for George III.

Chainsaw sculpture at Georgetown:

Georgetown:

We crossed the Tamar on the Batman Bridge:

Before visiting Rowella for yet more lavender products:

Lavender loving bee:

We saw plenty of vineyards throughout the day but weren't in the mood to visit:

We then drove through Beaconsfield to Beauty Point to visit Platypus House and Seahorse World (which was far more interesting).

The venomous fang of a male platypus (sorry, it was too dark to get clear photos of a live platypus):

There are echidna as well as platypus:

Seahorse World:

Sea dragon:

I even held a seahorse (they can survive out of water for 4 hours):

We returned to Beaconsfield for some provisions shopping and to look at the mine (now closed). I was amazed to see that the mine shafts have impressive red brick facades:

With quick stops at the Tamar Wetlands (the grey cygnets were rather large):

And Brady's Lookout:

We skirted Launceston to return to our van park at Low Head.

Holy Cow

We left an almost deserted St Helens this morning for Low Head. Sundays are pretty slow in Tassie and many shops are closed.

We turned off the Tasman highway to see St Columba Falls (one of the highest in Tasmania) and to visit Pyengana cheese. The walk to the falls is quite short, but the 600m back to the start is all uphill.

Our next stop was Bridestowe Lavender Farm for a lavender infused lunch. The lavender was close to being in full bloom and a visit in the next week or two would see great colour.

We had time to have a look see at Bridport before heading to Low Head - our base for touring the Tamar over the next 2 days.

I only drove about 250k today - but total driving time was close to 5 hours. The roads were all bitumen, but the up and downhill sections and tight bends slowed the motorhome down.

The walk down to St Columba Falls was filled with tree ferns, dappled light and moss covered trees and rocks:

I even managed to spot what I think was a Rose Robin:

This was one sign we didn't ignore:

The Pub in the Paddock can be found between Pyengana Cheese and St Columba Falls. It was too early in the day for us to stop - even to see a beer drinking pig.

Before rejoining the Tasman Highway, we stopped for coffee at the Holy Cow - the Pyengana Cheese cafe. Pyengana will let you taste their wonderful cheese and both PD and I left with our favourites.

We travelled through much lush and green dairy country:

Before arriving for a late lunch at Bridestowe Lavender:

Bridport:

All to Ourselves

Today was all about the Bay of Fires, starting at Binalong Bay and ending at Gardens Point. Binalong Bay is only a few kilometres from St Helens and the road to it and to Gardens Point is all bitumen and mostly two lane - easy driving for the motorhome. There are some gravel roads on the points past Binalong Bay which we found an easy drive if you went slowly - there were a few corrugated spots. 

Photo opportunities abound in the Bay of Fires, so named because the first European sailed by at a time when the aborigines had a few fires lit. We'll let our pictures do the talking.

Binalong Bay:

Skeleton Point (reached by gravel road and a 15 min return walk):

Lunch stop near Gardens Point (note - we recommend the St Helens bakery for great bread rolls):

The view at lunch:

Gardens Point:

A beach all to ourselves (near Gardens Point). It is hard to imagine a beach this beautiful on the mainland being deserted:

On our way back to St Helens, we called into Mohr & Smith for great coffee and even nicer cake before taking a walk near St Helens marina. East Coast Village Providore is next door to Mohr and Smith and it was recommended to us for its range of Tasmanian food producers. Unfortunately it closes at 2pm on Saturdays, so we won't have a chance to browse.

There were around 30 black swans on the water near the marina: