On the Monday we packed the car and started our drive to Victoria for a night then jumped on the Spirit of Tasmania to explore the island state of Australia.
Tasmania is beautiful.
It actually gets a winter unlike here in Sydney. It was freezing! We packed prepared but I don't think I was ready for how cold it actually would be, I don't remember having a proper winter in a few years. Our first stop after we docked was Cradle Mountain, I loved the wildlife and the snow. It could have snowed a little more and rained a little less but it was still so lovely to get away to somewhere so different than what home is. We then worked our way west to Strahan and camped at Macquarie Heads. We bought a slab of raw Huon Pine that I want to turn into a chopping board as a keep sake - the smell is so powerful in the woodwork shops. Next was Lake St Claire where we were also meant to camp but ended up chickening out (there was torrential rain & we weren't allowed a fire in the camp site) so we bailed and called the local pub who thankfully had a room for us. We woke up to a snow topped car and white flecked gumtrees. It was magical.
Tris tried his hand at trout fishing when we found spots to pull over and ended up getting his fishing lure stuck on branches and went in the freezing water in his undies to retrieve it. I married a crazy man!
The island off an island, Bruny Island, was our next stop. This place was a favourite of mine, we ate some of the best oysters and cheese I've ever had and tasted some local delicious (expensive) wine and beer. I made Tristan walk 4km to see fairy penguins but I think we were too early for the season but as someone so nicely put it, I did see one fairy - the one I sat next to at sunset, in the freezing cold, for about an hour while we waited for them to waddle out of the water. Instead, we waddled our butts back down the beach to the car. We then headed to the only pub on the island and had the most epic chicken parama's I've ever had, washed down with local island beer.
Driving through the Huon Valley we had the best apples I've ever eaten - bought for $2, in a wooden shack, on the side of the road. We put in $3 as I felt they weren't getting a good enough deal. Tris also made a tradition for himself throughout our trip - he tried a dim sim at every pit stop not matter how small the town, no matter how dodgy the shop looked, no matter how old the dim sim looked and no matter what time of day it was. I tried one (ok two)... I kind of get it, when they are fresh! But when they've been sitting in the luke warm baine marie since the day before, mmm no thanks. Although, I'm told (by Tris) that it just gives it a more chewy texture... ew... and I married this man!?
We spent a few nights in Hobart doing the tourist thing of wine tasting, whisky tasting, gin tasting, MONA, Mount Wellington and the Salamanca Markets we were on to the east coast next. Wow. It is absolutely stunning. Bright aqua water with white white sandy beaches all up the coast and nothing but sheep around you. We camped in near Wineglass Bay for a night then headed to Bay of Fires for a couple and apart from some very fat possums, a couple of curious but skittish wallaby's and a very fast echidna we were the only ones there. I put my toes in the water for about a total of thirty seconds and they went numb it was so cold. Tris went diving and caught us dinner (crazy!!). We had abalone and some sort of white fish cooked up over the fire with paella and of course gin and tonics. We went to bed with cold toes but warm and full bellies.
I've come to realise a couple of things about camping... cooking outside is actually SO MUCH FUN and I really really dislike drop toilets (although it is better than peeing on your ankles). The thought of sitting over this very deep dark hole that you don't actually want to look down but at the same time you want to make sure nothing is going to bite your bum is not very nice at all and it doesn't help that my mind goes a little nuts and I start thinking of Steven King novels... *shivers*. But back to camp cooking - I wasn't very good at getting the fire going but once it was going it was gold. Tris left me in charge of the fire one night while he fixed our runaway roof top tent and I nearly killed it so I think I need to work on my fire-god skills. Our camp cooking set is top notch now and we've even mastered a couple of recipes, one pot chicken cacciatore and chicken, chorizo and local seafood paella. We need to work on the jaffles... if you like chargrilled aka singed then we're your team.
At this point it was time for us to start heading homewards. We had a night in Launceston where we both enjoyed one of the best hot showers ever had. I sudded up about three times just to get the camp fire smell out of my hair and we slept in a bed that wasn't getting battered by winds AND I didn't have to pee in a deep dark drop toilet. It was a night of bliss and indulgence. The hotel also had free new release movies so Tristan was in heaven with local thai takeaway, movies and trackies.
We then boarded the Spew-it ... sorry Spirit of Tasmania. The night is a haze after my buffet dinner, 3 travel calms and two sleeping tablets. Yes, my world was spinning slightly when we had to get up at 6am to get off the boat but nothing like good Melbourne coffee and smashed avo to fix a spinning head. Tris drove the whole slog home, no stopping except for a couple of dim sims and petrol. Dinner was sorted too, one of my new mother-in-laws gifted us (at breakfast) with a huge container of homemade family secret recipe dutch croquets and fresh bread. Just needed to pick Arty up and everything was back to normal. Like we'd never left.
What a first adventure!? Can we go back and do it all over again?
... it is nice being back in our own bed with our four-legged fur monster to cuddle, not just my two legged one.
... it is nice being back in our own bed with our four-legged fur monster to cuddle, not just my two legged one.
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