It's a beautiful and sunny late afternoon with Nadia and I sitting in foldout chairs in the shade of the camper van we've rented to tour around Tasmania. We're along the banks of Coles Bay on the East coast of this rugged and unspoiled island and are really enjoying the natural scenery and incredible wildlife all around us.
We flew in 4 days ago in Launceston, north Tasmania and were met at the airport by our camper rental guy who took us to our new home on wheels for the next 10 days. After a half hour introduction of how everything works we headed out to a camp ground about an hour to west. After arriving, we parked along a small creek and quickly set up (i.e. plug the thing in and set out the fold out chairs). I then went for a small walk and within just a couple of minutes saw a platypus swimming along without a care in the world. Sitting out having coffee the next morning I saw a couple of wallabies (small kangaroo types animals) hop by - not a bad start to our adventure.
The next day we went to an animal park and saw and learned about Tasmanian devils. They're small black animals with sharp teeth, reddish ears, and a white patch on their chests. The hiss a lot at each other and bare their teeth but rarely fight. Maya and Mira really enjoyed feeding kangaroos while there.
Two nights ago we camped in Cradle Mountain National Park but didn't arrive to our campsite until after dark. We were only there a few minutes and starting to prepare dinner when we were visited by some friendly wallabies and a beautiful bushy tailed and sturdy looking possum. Yesterday, inside the park, we hiked for 4 hours to a mountain pass and had lunch overlooking beautiful mountains and lakes. On the way back we saw a juvenile wombat which Mira fell in love with and which Maya and Mira were able to pet while the chubby little guy chomped away on grass shoots.
Now we're at Coles Bay where we'll hike tomorrow to a lookout over a place called Wineglass Bay. From everything we've read it should be a nice hike. If lucky, we may even see some penguins on the beach. Until now, South Africa had been the most southerly latitude we've traveled to. We me get even further south, depending on what route we take once we get to New Zealand, but for now Tasmania is the most south we've ever been.
Last week we enjoyed spending time with friends and great hosts Carol Ann and Tim, in Coffs Harbour. The beach there is beautiful, as are the hills with massive old growth trees and hiking trails. Tim took us on a short hike one day through the forest, which aside from being beautiful ended up being quite eventful. After only 5 minutes in the woods I had to pluck a leech off my ankle. I kept looking down after that to see if any others were trying to get my blood and, low and behold, I picked 26 more leeches off my shoes in less than an hour. Luckily for me, I kept them all off. Nadia wasn't so lucky because after returned home she took her sneakers off to find lots of blood spots on both her socks. Once she had her socks off she pulled 4 leeches off her feet. She's still scratching the bites, which itch like crazy for days.
At the end of our time in Melbourne (Feb 26th-27th) I also had the chance to attend the men's quarter finals at the Australian Open tennis tournament and watched Novac Djokovic beat Nishikori from Japan.
Cheers, Rob
We flew in 4 days ago in Launceston, north Tasmania and were met at the airport by our camper rental guy who took us to our new home on wheels for the next 10 days. After a half hour introduction of how everything works we headed out to a camp ground about an hour to west. After arriving, we parked along a small creek and quickly set up (i.e. plug the thing in and set out the fold out chairs). I then went for a small walk and within just a couple of minutes saw a platypus swimming along without a care in the world. Sitting out having coffee the next morning I saw a couple of wallabies (small kangaroo types animals) hop by - not a bad start to our adventure.
The next day we went to an animal park and saw and learned about Tasmanian devils. They're small black animals with sharp teeth, reddish ears, and a white patch on their chests. The hiss a lot at each other and bare their teeth but rarely fight. Maya and Mira really enjoyed feeding kangaroos while there.
Two nights ago we camped in Cradle Mountain National Park but didn't arrive to our campsite until after dark. We were only there a few minutes and starting to prepare dinner when we were visited by some friendly wallabies and a beautiful bushy tailed and sturdy looking possum. Yesterday, inside the park, we hiked for 4 hours to a mountain pass and had lunch overlooking beautiful mountains and lakes. On the way back we saw a juvenile wombat which Mira fell in love with and which Maya and Mira were able to pet while the chubby little guy chomped away on grass shoots.
Now we're at Coles Bay where we'll hike tomorrow to a lookout over a place called Wineglass Bay. From everything we've read it should be a nice hike. If lucky, we may even see some penguins on the beach. Until now, South Africa had been the most southerly latitude we've traveled to. We me get even further south, depending on what route we take once we get to New Zealand, but for now Tasmania is the most south we've ever been.
Last week we enjoyed spending time with friends and great hosts Carol Ann and Tim, in Coffs Harbour. The beach there is beautiful, as are the hills with massive old growth trees and hiking trails. Tim took us on a short hike one day through the forest, which aside from being beautiful ended up being quite eventful. After only 5 minutes in the woods I had to pluck a leech off my ankle. I kept looking down after that to see if any others were trying to get my blood and, low and behold, I picked 26 more leeches off my shoes in less than an hour. Luckily for me, I kept them all off. Nadia wasn't so lucky because after returned home she took her sneakers off to find lots of blood spots on both her socks. Once she had her socks off she pulled 4 leeches off her feet. She's still scratching the bites, which itch like crazy for days.
At the end of our time in Melbourne (Feb 26th-27th) I also had the chance to attend the men's quarter finals at the Australian Open tennis tournament and watched Novac Djokovic beat Nishikori from Japan.
Cheers, Rob
Kookaburra, Coffs Harbour - what a sound these birds make
Tasmanian Devil
Mira making a friend
Maya feeding roos
With young wombat - cutest animal ever according to Mira
Cradle Mountain National Park
Nice spot for lunch on our hike
Nomads at Crater Lake
Maya balancing in the forest
Melbourne, a beautiful city
On top of the Eureka building overlooking Melbourne
In the clutches of a street artist in Melbourne
Mira helping a street magician who kept calling her "Kevin"
Djokovic at Australian Open
No comments:
Post a Comment