On leaving Melbourne we flew to Hobart in Tasmania (incidentally the domestic flight between the two cities had the quickest formalities I've ever experienced. We arrived at Melbourne rather late and the ticket machine gave us front row seats. Security was fast because they don't check water bottles. And because we had front row seats we were first to board. Time from arrival at the airport to being sat in our seats in the plane: 22 minutes!). Although we landed in Hobart we just spent the first night there, then hired a car and set off south-east to the Tasman Peninsula to see Pirates Bay and Tasman Arch.
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| lookout over Pirates Bay, Tasman Peninsula |
Tasmans Arch was created by wave action over many thousands of years and is all that's left of the roof of a large former sea cave or tunnel.
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| Tasman Arch |
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| view of idyllic Freycinet Lodge from across the water |
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| view from Cape Tourville Lighthouse, Freycinet National Park |
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| walking in Freycinet National Park |
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| Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park |
We then headed up to Launceston, in the north, Tasmania's second largest city with a population of 100,000. Here we visited
Cataract Gorge, which is very close to the city centre.
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| at Cataract Gorge |
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| Cataract Gorge |
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| at Cataract Gorge |
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| wild wallaby? at Cataract Gorge |
The next day we drove back down to Hobart, taking the scenic route through the centre of the island. We passed through the historic town of Oatlands and also saw a wild eagle.
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| Callington Mill, Oatlands, Tasmania |
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| eagle, Tasmania |
On arrival back in Hobart we headed up to
Mount Wellington, which is at 1271 metres above sea level, and where we had patches of snow and a temperature of -2°C in the early afternoon!
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| it was cold on the top of Mount Wellington! |
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| Hobart from Mount Wellington |
In Hobart's port the icebreaker
Aurora Australis was berthed. It was first launched in 1989, and is owned by P&O, but is regularly chartered by the
Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) for research cruises in Antarctic waters and to support Australian bases in Antarctica.
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| the Aurora Australis in Hobart port |
In the evening we headed to the area of Salamanca Place, a picturesque row of four-storey sandstone warehouses. Behind is Salamanca Square, an area which has been redeveloped with shops, restaurants and businesses.
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| Salamanca Place, Hobart |
Then it was time to fly to
Sydney!
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