Sunday morning at St Helens was misty and wet, so we decided after looking at the weather maps to head south killing a day until the wet passed over this area before heading into Freycinet National Park. We wandered down the coast and then decided to head up to St Marys via Elephant Pass. Our impression was that the road rose steeply from the coast via a twisty road. The road came up through very pretty forest areas, and eventually came to a quaint little town on a plateau at the top of the pass. The hills were shrouded with mist, the rain we experienced earlier on the way south stayed away but the temps were coooool. The most exciting thing at St Marys was a trotter training on the track next to the free camp, ... read more

Todays journey continued north east from Lilydale to the coastal town of Bridport. This is a very attractive and sheltered port supporting maritime industry and fishing. The hilly land drops quickly down into the harbour with trees adorning the area. Adjacent to the boat ramp is the remnants of the pier that disappeared which makes an interesting photo study. The view north from Bridport looks out to Flinders island in the distance, the Strzelecki Ranges dominating the horizon. To the right of Flinders island are two smaller islands. From the beach they all look joined, but that is only an illusion. We moved south east from Bridport to Scottsdale. This is a small but active rural town with a variety of interesting things to see. One local has a rhubarb farm and has recently started a ... read more

I had never heard of Beauty Bay until a few days ago, though the neighbouring town of Beaconsfield will be etched in our minds after the epic survival of two miners trapped by a rock fall, 937 meters underground. We have stayed in the Beauty Point caravan park for three nights. A chance for a rest, bring the blog up to date after the day at Evandale Penny Farthing Races, and the use of the park laundry. Beauty is a very appropriate name for this point on the Tamar River. We see sunrise on one side of the point and sunset on the other, all about 50 meters from our site. There are beautiful flowering gums all around the area, and plenty of cheerful birdsong throughout the day. The river here is of course tidal, so ... read more

What a windy night! The motor home was tail into the wind, yet still rocked like a cork on the ocean. Our thoughts went out to Anne and Jim who were crossing on the ferry overnight with the same gale blowing. So we got up early to go and greet them and give them a cuppa while they regained their land legs. Our concerns were well founded with Jim saying that the trip had made him rather off! He didn't help the Tasmanian economy by feeding the fishes, and his inability to consume some of the worlds best food further after the sailing further affected the local economy. Once they were on their way we did a coastal loop which included food, more food and even more food. Yep, we did all that eating for under ... read more

Crossing Bas Straight Picking up from our last blog, we had a late lunch at Ashley Gardens Caravan Park and then drove into the ferry terminal as per the mud map provided by the park. We asked why it was such a 'Long way around?' The reason given is that there are several low bridges to pass under and many an RV has lost the air conditioner off the roof. While that isn't a problem for us, we heard of a visitor to Melbourne with a large fifth-wheeler caravan that cracked the top open much like you would a hard boiled egg, ending his Tasmanian adventure before even getting to the boat. Tommy did a good job of sticking to the route. Naturally, our plan was different from his, but by pinpointing a couple of way ... read more