The Phoenix Tour

Back on the road today, looking for some beauty. I was planning on visiting Mt Field National park yesterday, one of the areas I was really hoping to see. Unfortunately, the weather, after being so kind so far, decided that I needed a dose of reality and the forecast for Mt Field was rainy and 45km/hr winds. So I had to give it a miss. Another reason for a return visit, I guess.

Rode through beautiful Richmond with its gorgeous old houses and the iconic Richmond Bridge, built in 1823 – Australia’s oldest bridge still in use.

Then on to Oatlands, which I rode past on my way into Hobart but didn’t get a chance to stop. I stopped today which turned out to be a great decision. What a lovely town. Established in 1821 it is one of Tasmania’s oldest settlements and has the largest number of colonial sandstone buildings in Australia, many built by convict labour.

It was initially developed as a military base for management of convicts due to its central location between Hobart and Launceston.

I visited the Callington Mill, an historic site of an old flour mill which has been beautifully restored.

Everything in Oatlands seems to have been well thought out and is obviously lovingly maintained.

Oatlands sits on the shores of Lake Dulverton. There is a wetlands area which has walking trails winding through and the lake shore looks to be a popular overnight camping area. Close by, I finally found where all the Grey Nomads have been hanging out… an immaculately mown, grassy free camping area, 200 metres up from the lakeshore was packed to the gunnels with caravans and campers.

I could have spent a lot longer in Oatlands, taking 100s more photos. Every where you looked, it seemed like there was another beautiful sandstone building, all with glorious gardens.

It was like stepping back in time.

On towards Bicheno, my stop for the next 2 nights. Turned off to have a look at the Great Oyster Bay lookout. Magnificent view across regimented orchards to the bay with hazy blue mountains as a backdrop.

Bicheno. On the East coast. A cute beachside town with a really nice ‘feel’. Walked to have a sqizz at the blowhole. Such a stunning part of the coast. The rocks are vibrantly coloured in shades of orange, brown and grey. Geometric structures are piled around the water, again, looking like they were put there on purpose, just to look amazing….

The blowhole wasn’t a massive one but it did its thing a lot.

It was such a picturesque place. I spent a lot of time looking out to sea. This is a part of the coast that sees a fair bit of whale traffic so I was hopeful but it is quite late in the season. It is so peaceful just looking out there, regardless.

Walked to have a look at Waub’s Beach, so pretty with sparkling white sand.

Tonight was an exciting night! I headed out for a 9:15 appointment with some dapper lil friends;

Little blue penguins! the smallest penguin species. A great tour with lots of opportunities to see a lot of penguins. It was also a great time of year as they are in the middle of breeding season so we saw penguins from week old chicks up to adults.

I had another lucky experience (like with the dolphins and whales the other day) where 2 penguins decided to walk right up to our group and in between my feet! The guides said that it very rarely happens, so I was very lucky once again 🙂

I couldn’t take a photo when they walked between my feet, unfortunately because I had to stay completely still.

These were my little friends;

It was very hard to get good photos. The penguins are very sensitive to light. The lights that are used are red as they cannot actually see red. They also camouflage very well. When they are coming up from the water, they waddle along at a cracking pace as well.

It is funny to watch them gather near the rocks on the shore, bustling and shoving. Apparently, they need to have a ‘leader’ before they will walk up to the rookery, in the dunes. The way they decide on a leader? By pushing and shoving each other until one unlucky penguin gets rumbled to the front…

They have built 150 artificial nests for the penguins which the penguins actually prefer as it saves them the bother of having to dig one themselves, a process that takes the male penguins up to three weeks to complete. It also allows the rangers to monitor how the population is fairing and provides more protection from predation and flooding.

Saw lots of fluffy babies but could not get a decent photo at all, they just came out as floofy smears…

Another amazing wild life experience to finish a busy day.