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Can you visit Tasmania in just a short week, you can, but you will very fast find out that you need more. So on this blog entry...we touched few places, and we already know that we will need to get back.
This blog is about a night in Launceston, the long drive around to reach Hobart and finally two nights in Hobart plus two dives at Eagleneck next to the Tasman National Park. The golf is done...the wine tastings are done, but trust me, those two we could do a lot more too!
Driving from the two main cities of Tasmania, I name Launceston and Hobart, by Highway 1, is only just over 2 hours drive. This would be way too easy...and we would not see much of the wonders of this amazing island.
So instead, we are heading first back West on a long driving day. My goal is simple, I want to reach Hobart before nightfall, anything else is going to be driven by how we feel today. The first 60 minutes of driving are actually by the highway on the way back to Burnie, but soon we leave this highway to head on the small,
and super sinuous little roads to Cradle Mountain National Park.
The only plan today is the drive...we will see how it goes! First unexpected stop, a truffle farm! Yes they do it here too. It's not the season, so there is nothing fresh. They do not either process them into glass jar like the Italian do. Oh, and it's super expensive. We know truffles are expensive. It is somewhere the same kind of exercise you find with caviar. You can buy a jar of 30grs for 30usd...or 300usd...all depend of what you want, and as a side note, all depend too of your budget and what you truly want. So we left with some truffle salt...
Next stop, Cradel Mountain National Park. We are heading there through the small roads. The road is truly not straight, and massively up and down! But wow, it starts to be impressively beautiful. Made it to the visitor center of the National Park. Queues are massive...you need at least 4-5 hours to enjoy this place as a bare minimum. Yes we are slightly frustrated, yes we will be back...but no we will not rush inside as there is
way more to see on the road.
We stop left and right for few walks, here to a waterfall, there to a superb view point. Lunch will be a simple affair in Queenstown. This is a derelict mining town. Do not even try to compare Queenstown Tasmania with Queenstown New Zealand. For info, Queenstown South Africa is today in an even worst position than the Tasmanian one! I haven't found a Queenstown in USA yet, but they do exist for sure!
The ride is simply beautiful. We are slowly getting closer to Hobart, and we are even in the timing to reach our destination before sunset!
The next two nights will be at a Mantra Hotel by Accor, right at the edge of the CBD. This is not really a hotel, but rather a glorified service appartement. We land a nice kitchen, and a super big flat. Once the bags are dropped, it's straight to the supermarket! I did try to find oysters, I failed...the local fishmongers are also pretty poor on their offerings. So once again, it's Tasmanian Salmon...and local lamb...not bad after all! And we have the wine and bubbles to
complement those!
Next morning, I'm book 75kms away for 2 dives next to Eagleneck. The plan is two kelp dives to try to spot the elusive Sea dragon. It's not the season. The kelp dive was truly fun, but i'll have to be back in 2024 to South Australia for a second attempt at spotting those rare creatures! Hope you enjoy the diving pictures! I was, due to unforeseen events (fun to write isn't it) my own guide and diver for those 2 dives...18 degrees water (not bad), and a tranquil depth of 9 to 17 meters.
We did enjoy a nice walk in the small city center of Hobart. This is somewhere a cool little city...could be San Francisco or Auckland, but on the very tiny side!
Will we be back to Tasmania, for sure! It was a first visit. We loved it...
Hope you enjoy the pictures...more blogging coming soon!
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