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Published: March 3rd 2014
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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, and a few rosellas grazing around the van. The free camp is between the golf course and the race track, so we did see some golfers having a swing throughout the day.
Still a bit of TV, internet and reading books with our feet up was all good.
Monday morning showed promise with cloud breaking, so we headed down Elephant
Another Rolls Royce
We saw this one on the Spirit when we travelled south. Pass (seemed easier to drive down) and we stopped by a few beaches and the little town of Bicheno before getting down to Freycinet National Park late morning. We went to the info centre in the park and fluked a powered camp site but only for one night. The limited number of sites are well booked up. Only two sites to choose between, and the other went a few minutes later. That couple are heading down to Port Arthur next as we will also.
Bicheno is a cute town on the coast with a sheltered harbour one side of town and a more exposed coast on the southern side. The southern beach has the same rust look on the rocks as in The Bay of Fires, but it also has a great blow hole. We were surprised that the flume of water and spray was quite dramatic even on a quite calm day.
We stopped at the servo for fuel at Bicheno, and came across a couple of Rolls Royce Silver Cloud vintage cars topping up as well. We had seen the red car on the Spirit of Tasmania.
Once we had secured our camp site at
Freycinet NP, we headed further south to the Wineglass Bay car park before climbing up to the lookout adjacent to Mt Amos. This is a great walk, plenty of steps as well as good paths all the way. By lunch time the cloud was largely clear, so we had warm temperatures and very pleasant views both across Coles Bay and Wineglass Bay.
Our camp site here is almost beach front, the bay being almost dead calm as it is on the eastern side of the peninsular. The hills/mountains here are a pinkish granite, with many shear faces and huge chunks of rock perched precariously. The bay is picturesque, and for the locals a popular swimming place.
Bird life here is predominantly small varieties. Lots of fairy wrens who are so tame they just about walk over your feet. Marg photographed a spotted pardalote sitting on the fence. We have also seen but not able to get a picture of the scarlet robins.
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Dancing Dave
David Hooper
BANKSIA
Nice find...a lime green Banksia...gotta love the unique fauna and flora in Tasmania