Hobart to Tasman Peninsula,then Freycinet Penisula
Trip Start
Jan 19, 2006
1
12
20
Trip End
Feb 23, 2006
Freycinet National Park, Tasmania,
Australia
Monday, January 30, 2006
There are some beautiful bays around the peninsula, as well as some unique and amazing rock formations. Eaglehawk Neck is a good place from which to see the beautiful coastal rock formations of the Blowhole, Devils Kitchen, Tasmans Arch, Tessellated Pavement and Waterfall Bay. It is situated at the entrance point to the Tasman Peninsula.
The view of Pirates Bay and the coastline from the lookout just before Eagle Hawk Neck is stunning. There is a beautiful beach with white sands, blue water and rugged rocky cliffs. Eagle Hawk Neck is a thin strip of land with water on both sides that separates the Peninsula from the rest of Tasmania. This was a barrier to any convicts trying to escape from Port Arthur.
Tessellated pavements are some interesting rock formations formed by years of erosion from the ocean.
A few kilometers further we saw the Blow Hole. It is a cave-like hole formed in the cliff by years of erosion from the ocean. When the waves are large water is forced through the Blow Hole and the display is spectacular.
01) Overlooking Pirates Bay eating yogurt!
People have been washed away to the ocean by the force of the waves from the Blow Hole, and there is a plaque there in memory of newlyweds who died there on their honeymoon!Nearby we found Devils Kitchen and Tasman Arch which are also natural rock formations that have been formed because of the rugged coastal conditions of Tasmania. These 2 spectacular formations are located high above the ocean at the top of rugged cliffs.
We continued down to Port Arthur which is famous for its history of being a harsh penal colony but did not feel like paying over $20 to view the grounds. We turned around and made our way back north along the coast to Freycinet Peninsula. After over 200km of very narrow windy one-lane non-divided highway we arrived on the peninsula and make our way to Coles Bay and the Freycinet National Park visitor's centre. The sky had cleared up beautifully after being grey in the morning. We discovered that there was free camping on Friendly Beach, 10km north on the highway from the start of the hike, and we were amazed at how beautiful the beach was! The sites were in the low shrubery along the beach, and the white, white fine sand beach was only 20m from our site and was gorgeous! As we pulled into an empty site we saw another echidna, burrowing along the side of the road, a bit less timid than the one we had seen on the Overland Track. We set up our tent and brought our dinner down to the beach, and ate with wallabies and seagulls all around us, curious about our food! We slept without the sound of possums as our food was in the car for the night!
