At Last! A Devil, and Perhaps Platypi! – Georgie and Rod's Grand Adventure

Hobart was our destination for the next day. Then, having first arrived in the capital of this island state, we meandered up the winding road that took us to the very top of Mount Wellington, a high mountain that overlooks the city. The views were amazing, but the freezing Antarctic gale nearly swept us off the edge as we huddled into our warmest jackets, beanies, hoodies, and double gloves against the bitingly cold rain. The bonsai-like stunted snow gums that we observed struggling to survive at the top contrasted with the much taller trees growing vigorously lower down the slopes.

Then we drove further southward into the hills, through vast areas of depressingly burnt out forests (standard forestry practice), before climbing up into the more protected hillsides. We then took a freezing walk down to the pretty Arve Waterfall in the icy rain, enjoying viewing the weird plant life that somehow manages to survive there, despite the uncomfortably frigid conditions.

On the return journey we became quite excited when we spotted a Tasmanian Devil on the side of the road! Our first (and only) one! Unfortunately he did seem badly beset by the facial tumours that are plaguing the poor species, but we did get a good look at him before he took off into the bushes.

The accommodation that we booked for the next three nights was the poshest and most comfortable for this trip, and with a most decadent breakfast on offer each morning. Sheer luxury. In the morning we caught a bus to the famous Salamanca Market from almost outside the door. The market was most impressive, as almost all of it was real local Tassie produce, with very little (if any) imported junk. There were some great buskers and street performers as well. Luckily the rain held off. Then on to Hobart Museum and Gallery, which was interesting, but not as ground-breaking as what we would experience the next day at the rightly famous MONA (Museum of Old and New Art).

To do the full experience we caught the ferry up the Derwent River to MONA. That Museum is so full of amazing art, everything from Picasso, Pro Hart, Brett Whitely, Sidney Nolan and heaps of new and brilliant artists’ paintings, drawings sculptures and installations, as well as ancient Egyptian artefacts. The whole flamin’ structure was an art piece in itself, spanning multiple floors, spaciously carved out of the beautiful sandstone, and filled with incredible and uniquely original works throughout. There are whole rooms, passageways, and tunnels that are brilliant art gems in their own right.

On the return journey, as we exited the ferry, we saw and heard a pro-stadium rally in the park near the docks. This is a very contentious political issue in Hobart. The AFL (Aussie Rules Rugby) is holding Tasmania to ransom, forcing them to spend billions of dollars on a stadium, when the state can’t afford to fund their own hospitals, housing, and infrastructure due to massive debt.

We had intended on wandering about the Botanical Gardens in the afternoon, but the rain put paid to that idea. Tasmanian rain is so COLD! So we popped in to visit a friend of Georgie’s for a yak, then went back to our comfortable digs to relax.

The next morning, after a sumptuous breakfast, we departed our luxury BnB and went off in search of those ‘big as a wombat’ platypuses again. No luck.

Heading in a generally eastward direction we visited Pirate Bay and the ‘Tessellated Pavement’. Oh my goodness gracious me it was beautiful! What a natural wonder to experience. We will let the photos describe it for you. On the way back to the car we realised that we’d had perfect timing, because over a hundred noisy students passed us on their way down. Rod exclaimed to the accompanying teachers that it was a fantastic Science Excursion, and that he could have constructed a good week’s worth of Science lessons from it. One of the teachers looked at us with a slightly pathetic look on his face and mentioned that they were on Day One of a school camp. Poor bugger! Rod knew only too well how he felt.

After that the Tasman Arch, Blowhole and Devil’s Kitchen were all within cooee of each other there, so we investigated them all.

Continuing on, we drove around the Tasman Peninsula and checked out a quite remarkable cave called Remarkable Cave. It was remarkable, which is why we bothered to remark upon it.

We settled in to the Port Arthur Inn, which we suddenly realised was right next door to the infamous and gruesome Port Arthur Convict Penal Colony. That popular tourist attraction has been the scene of historical bloodshed, murder, sadism, torture, misery, deprivation, untold cruelty and violence. Crikey! We certainly hoped we could get a good night’s sleep!

We read in the news that Hobart has just officially had its coldest start to summer since 1942! What a time for two soft northerners to choose to visit! Brrr!

It was serendipity that allowed us to chance upon a remote Tasmanian Native Plants and Sculpture Garden way up in the hills somewhere north of the Tasman Peninsula. We meandered about the beautiful gardens that volunteers had created, grooving on the fabulous sculptures (we DO like sculptures) that were littered randomly about the hillside. We spotted beautifully coloured honeyeater birds that we had never seen before, petite creatures flitting amongst weird flowering plants that seemed familiar, yet strikingly different. The whole place was filled with rare and obscure plant species that grew alongside weird sculptures. What a treat! Unexpectedly special moments like that make all the expense and effort of travel worthwhile.

Prior to that we had stopped beside a river to watch ripples on the surface of the water that COULD have been those wonderful giant-sized platypuses that we had been searching so diligently for. They may have been fishes, but we can not rule out the possibility of the fabulously enormous and elusive southern monotremes disturbing the calm of the river. Who knows?

Atop Mt Wellington