Hobart, Bruny Island, and Cygnet

January 31, 2016
Adventure Bay, Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia















(That's Blaze out in the rain watching the waves crash ashore.)

The rain started getting stronger and I needed to get my tent up...but where? Day Use picnic area by the beach looks good. Who's gonna tell me No? The wind picked up. The tent is whipping around. I'm getting wet. Keep working at it. Put your bike shoes on the ground cloth end into the wind to hold it down. Quick get your poles assembled and into the grommets. It's up. Now hold it from blowing away while you clip it to the poles then get it staked. Throw your gear in. Cover your bike seat with plastic. Dive in yourself. Ahhh. Not too wet. Done before the rain got worse. Snug as a bug. I love my tent! My Big Sky Revolution 2 P with Porch. The best "rain" tent ever! The inside stays dry because the fly and the mesh are pre-attached. And the porch keeps the inside dry in the rain with the vestibule flaps open. I rarely am closed up inside, which I love! And I have a line permanently strung inside to hang wet stuff on. Sometimes it even dries at night.

In Hobart, Jane and I stayed at Warmshowers host's Eric Bergemann's house. What fun! He's not a biker, but his son is cycling the Pan American Highway right now using Warmshowers so Eric is reciprocating back home. And he has quite a few cyclists there. An easy flow. Everyone pitches in with food and cooking. People were scattered about on the patio (me), in the back shed, and in the attic. Wherever we could find space to lie down pretty much. It works! He's walking distance from the CBD (central business district, for Americans), the weekend markets, and the outdoor stores.


Eric started fire with a magnesium stick!

The big attraction in Hobart is Mona, Museum of Old and New Arts, a privately owned museum of arts this guy won gambling. Most interesting exhibits and stories. Do google it because I can't do it justice. It was a treat to the senses: a library with white books and no words, a digestive machine that eats and poops, the death gallery of black water, white marble, a mummy and an MRI of the mummy, and on and on... Fabulous! So worth it!



Digestive machine...they feed it and it digests food and then poops hours later.



MRI of a mummy.

After 5 nights at Eric's, Jane and I headed to Bruny Island south of Hobart. And got rain delayed 36 hours in our tents. Tassie needs rain. And it came down! I'm sure just a drop in the bucket in this drought, but we can't complain. Yesterday we were able to pack up and high tail it down to Kettering and the car ferry to Bruny. There's actually 2 islands with a neck joining them. Mostly farm land on the north and wilderness on the south. We stayed last night at a camping reserve for $5. Quite busy with car campers and campervans. This morning I couldn't sit still another day and Jane wanted to, so we split. It had to happen sooner or later. She had time to kill. I have distanced to cover. So I headed to Adventure Bay, a no horse town with some houses, a store with everything including food, a museum, a town hall, and a Bruny Island Cruise company that lets you tour the island from the water. I met a guy at one of the beaches I stopped at that was collecting seaweed to add to his compost. He invited me to "call in" at his house when I'm going back up the road to see his straw bale house. And he told me about a 3 hour hike at the end of the road here in Adventure Bay. Great hike up and around the steep cliffs!

I'll stop in and see Paul's house tomorrow when I head out.

February 5, 2016
On my way to Cignet, Tasmania
On a rocky coastline...ahh!

So I did stop in to Paul's straw bale house...er, mansion! So beautiful! And the view! OMG! Overlooking "The Neck", the narrow causeway between the north and south islands. They are totally off the grid: rain tanks, solar panels, gardens too. I've never seen a house this big that was off grid. I expected something much smaller. Was I surprised:))






Mt Wellington from the deck.


My room:)



And what sweet folks Paul and Michele are! First they offered me a shower and since it was afternoon, I said yes. I figured I wouldn't cycle much further that afternoon. Then they invited me to tea (dinner) and of course I said Yes! Then as we got discussing things further, they offered a bed. And after the discomfort of my air mattress, I said Yes to that too. Poor Michele had an evening commitment and a morning ferry to catch, but I wasn't exactly in the plan. No worries. Paul entertained me. That evening he took me for a drive up to a mountain lookout. Actually it was a road that cut across the middle of the South Island and I had contemplated taking it instead of coming pass Paul's house. Now I got to see what I missed. Rainforest. Coming down the other side was totally different foliage. So cool to see it. It's the first rainforest I've seen in Australia.

Then in the morning Paul offered to shuttle me down to the lighthouse with all my stuff so I could cycle back. Yes! It seemed to far to go down and back, but this would be perfect. I had decided not to tour the west side of the South Island but this enabled that. And I'm so glad I went. The views from the lighthouse were breathtaking! I can't capture on film the expanse of ocean and cliffs - the feeling inside that has no words.









Paul and me.





And then he took me to Mabel Beach. No signs. No one there. Another dose of serenity.

The day was wearing away and I wanted to get a bit of cycling done so we unloaded my stuff from the back of his ute, I loaded up Blaze, said goodbye and much thanks, Paul left and I started northward up the island on the gravel road. Got as far as the lagoon and it was too hard to resist staying there.



But I didn't pay close attention to where I set up my tent and it rained again...and I was in a swamp! But sunny days dry everything out.

The next night I camped on this windy point and had to tie Spacey to Blaze.




The following day I took the ferry back to the mainland, meeting Dave and Anne as they were parked next to me. They kindly offered to buy me a cuppa and of course I took them up.




I decided to cycle the Channel down and around to Cygnet, a famous hippy town here. The first night I was camped in a reserve with RVs...nothing special. But in the morning I had probably my shortest ride yet...6 kms:). Because I came to a beautiful spot and just couldn't resist stopping. After reading and walking and wading, I started to set up my tent on the point. And...the wind came up. Argh! So I walked around to find a more sheltered spot...and did! Yup perfect. Just gotta pack up again, but what else do I have to do?











And I had company...






Livin' the dream,

BagLady

Facebook: Kathryn Mossbrook Zimmerman

Maria Island and Before

January 17, 2016
Maria Island, Tasmania, Australia

I'm camped on an island that is a National Park off the east coast of Tasmania. No cars here other than Rangers' utes and trucks for hauling big stuff etc. that makes it pretty quiet...ahhhh! This place has had many lives, starting with it being a convict station in the early 1800s to a cement factory in the early 1900s. There were even farms on this rough, steep land over the years...and a school. The land has been allowed to recover itself back to native bush. And they also use it to restore the Tasmanian Devils population as there are few predators here. There's quite an array of wild life that go-exists with the people in Darlington, the "town" here (a ranger station, fairly primitive campground, some houses for the Rangers, some buildings as museums, a penitentiary that provides accommodation in the form of about 10 rooms with 6 bunk beds and a table and a wood heater, and a mess hall where you can prepare your meals....no cafes, no stores, no food provided.)


The oldest building on the island.


The Miller's cottage and rock foundation from a windmill.



Funnel web from the most dangerous spider in Australia!


Ruby Hunt's cottage. She lived here until the 1920's

When I finally ferry back to Triabunna on Tuesday (today is Sunday), I'll have been here a week. Jane's idea. I'm not complaining. Jane is a cyclist from Melbourne that I met on the road over a week ago. We were both headed south and just hooked up. She's got quite a tour under her belt. Her first and only other cycle tour was from Bejiing, China to Melbourne, Australia (home). 19 months. She's currently a student at Uni studying primary education. And on her summer break. And she's glamping! She's got a trailer attached and in there is everything imaginable! Except a camp chair. We hope to rectify that omission in Hobart:) And I'm the benefactor of her work pulling this gear around Tassie! Her intent was to cycle and then camp or extended periods. And it's working.

Soon after meeting, she came down with a bug that caused fatigue and nausea so she got a room for the night in Swansea. I found out how feral I've gotten when I camped along the base of the open sliding glass door for the night just to still feel breezes blowing over me and to smell and hear the rain. I'm having a harder and harder time being inside anywhere. Tough for me to regulate my temperature. Tough for me not to feel suffocated. I need AIR!! A fetish that's just getting worse and worse. I rarely even close the flaps of my tent (you remember My Big Sky Revolution 2 P with the Porch feature). I can leave the vestibules open in the rain most times and do!! Oh the air through it at night is delightful! This has to have some past life reference or sure.

So, since Jane, we've camped a couple of nights in Bicheno at a campground, then on the edge of a golf course overlooking the Big Oyster Bay at Swansea (with permission of the grounds keeper), then a motel room in Swansea with a killer view while Jane recuperated, then behind the pub in Triabunna awaiting the ferry the next day. Here in Maria Island we stayed at the campground in Darlington 2 nights and then pedaled out to Encampment Cove for 3 nights. The roads are gravel and sand. Sometimes good. Sometimes require pushing through deep sand. That's not fun with the trike. Nope. Not fun at all. I damaged my dereilleur in deep sand outside Perth so now I'm doubly nervous about re-injuring in it's fragile state. (Yup, a Rohloff hub for my next tour...enough of this!)

January 18, 2016
Same place. 7:30 am

Sitting down by the shore watching the water twinkle with cloudy sunlight. So calm. Utter tranquility. Similar to last night's sunset only different lighting. This morning is more greys. Last night was pinks and blues.



Over the weekend the campsites out here have filled a bit. Some people come in for just a night, others for a few days like us. There's a dad with his tween daughters, a family with tween boys, and a group of 5 backpackers (the kind that go from city to city with their backpack not hikers) that are all traveling solo but grouped up to buy a car and tour Tassie for a month. Then there are some coming in by mountain bike, a few solo guys. We're about 15 kms from Darlington. Done arrive by private boat, or walk or cycle from Darlington. Then there are the sailboats that just anchor in the cove for the night. Sure wish I could sail. Looks like such fun. Wonder if that patch really works for motion sickness. Maybe I'll get it while I'm home so I can give it a try sometime. What fun would that be to bop around through SE Asia by boat?!?



There are 3 kinds of kangaroos on the island: pademelons are the smallest, think small dog...wallabies are next, medium dog, then the kangaroo which is the size of a large dog.




And there are wombats. I want one as a pet! The look like cuddly bears walking on all fours, but the size of a medium dog and quite stocky.





And then there are the birds. Lots of kookaburras here to serenade us with their laughter song.


And seagulls. And then there are these long billed white birds that dive straight down into the water. I don't think that it was a seagull. I'm so bird illiterate:(

Been struggling lately with planning. I have to be out of Australia the end of February. I've decided to fly to Sydney for a week and visit my dear friends there (Carina I met on the Camino) before flying out. Out to where has been the question. I know I'm going to the states sometime this year but how long do I need there? Lots of people to visit, for sure. Gear to replace. Body parts to fix. And then back on the road, no question about that. I'm truly happy out here. A simple life, few stresses. I've toyed with going to Vietnam for a bit. Or cycling back to the states from Mexico. I fear I've had my fill of sun for awhile. My skin is parched. Maybe just go home and enjoy that for a bit. I do miss my daughters terribly. I sometimes find it challenging to decide what to do next. So many places to see. This is quite a big world at 50 kms a day!

But I still have a month left in Tassie!!

January 19th
Triabunna, Tasmania

Yesterday we meandered our way back to Darlington, the main spot with the Rangers station, campground, and accommodation. And feeling pretty grubby we were looking forward to showers. Too bad. The main tank on the island sprung a leak and they lost 90,000 liters of water. Everything was shut down. No showers, no toilets. We had water to drink from a tank at the toilet block and that was it:(. No showers for us.

I forgot to mention some of the prison ruins we saw out near Encampment Cove. There was a row of brick solitary cells, about 20 of them. 6x8 feet, I reckon. With only one window in the door facing out over the inlet. Solitary confinement. It drove many of them mad we were told. The camera I had with me had a dead battery so no pictures of that unless I can get some from Jane.

So today we ferried back to Triabunna and the sea was calm and delightful. Sure beat the rough crossing we had going out. I was a bit fearful of a repeat performance. And we decided to stay around town this afternoon. I had gotten a shower this morning when they had pumped water from a reservoir into an old tank and everything was operational. But Jane didn't so she needed that. We need to restock groceries. (I'd gone with food for three nights and we stayed 6...I ate everything I had!). So instead of camping behind the pub like we did before catching the ferry, we found public grounds overlooking the inlet. Sweet! I can always find good spots, Jane...stick with me! She's quite good at finding them too! And finding power. We're charging up our iPads and power banks in the outlet at the fire hall nearby. There was a water tap there too. Tis a most interesting life when every day is a scramble for water, power, food, and a campsite. Then there's weekly showers and washing clothes to figure out. But somehow it all does work itself out. Just can't be too fussy about cleanliness:)

Some more Maria Island pics:




Painted Cliffs




Fossil cliffs




The air was cold with artic breezes but the sun was hot!



We learned to make rope from NZ flax plants and Toby showed us how strong it was.




Riding down the island



Our rigs parked outside a grocery store



Whale bones!

Livin' the dream!

BagLady

Other deleted photo from last blog post

Vickie's spanakopita with trike






Livin' the dream!

BagLady

Photo deleted

Robert Barnes self portrait



Livin' the dream!

BagLady

St Helens

January 7th, 2016
Little Beach, East Coast, Tasmania, AU

After 3 nights on my brook, I packed up and continued eastward on gravel roads all the way to the coast. Sure glad someone had mentioned I could take this fire road that cut over because it wasn't on Google Maps although the it was on Komoot, my new app I use for touring. It gives me profiles and I can drop way points telling it what route I want to take. Also when it's giving voice navigation, after a turn it tells me how long I'll be on the new road before I turn again. Love that. Just wish it would tell me during a tour I'm following, how much distance remains until I reach my destination. I don't know why that's lacking. So this day was Sunday and my new air mat was expected at the post office in the morning. I decided I'd continue on into St Helens and be a good girl and go to the campground. That way I could charge up all my devices and my power bank and get a shower (not that I needed it:)). So after stopping at the grocery store to get some dipper, I cycled through town and up the hill to the campground. $44 discounted to $35 for an unpowered site and 1 person? Are you kidding me?!?!? No thank you. I'll find some place to bush camp. And there were showers and power at the toilet block near the pier. All for free!

Check out where I got to sleep that night. Better then any campground!!









It was just outside of town up the lagoon. I found it on my way to the sports oval, always a good camping spot. So sweet!!

And then the next two days were so full of serendipity that i still get goosebumps thinking about it.

In the morning, I had a list of town chores to get done. One of them was to drop off a couple of books at an op shop and get a new one. I was camped near an op shop, but as I cycled by I heard someone say it was closed. So I continued down the street towards the center of town. There's another one, so I pull up onto the sidewalk. As I'm getting off my trike a gentleman comes over to chat with me. Turns out he's a trike rider! He's thrilled to hear of my adventure and asks when I'm leaving town. Today. Oh:( I'd love to have you come stay with me. At this point his girlfriend joins the conversation. As we continue to talk, I'm thinking, why not? Where am I going in such a hurry. When someone is eager to listen, I'm eager to talk. Besides, what were the chances of us meeting on the street at that moment? So I make plans to go there after my chores. It's up a hill. No worries. I'm tough. See ya later. Then I get my new mat, a gas canister, another power bank, etc. and stop for a coffee. And there I meet Michelle and Noah and dad (can't remember his name). Noah's about 10 and a great little talker. I share with them my belief about how good most people are in this world.

Then off I go to Robert and Vickie's place. When the street is named View Street, you know there's a reason! What a hill, but what a view!







And these folks are artists in fact Robert used to teach art at a University and there was art in all media forms throughout the house. But I love his self portrait the most! (I will post photo separately if I can...)
Not a good photo, sorry.

And Vickie made Spanakopita, my favorite Greek dish, for dinner with a trike on it:)(I will try and post photo separately...having upload issues...so what's new?!?!?)

I even got up my nerve to show them my drawings, as beginnerish as they are. They were so kind, but Robert also gave me some good advice to think about as I go forward with my art. I took notes, Robert. Your words did not fall on deaf ears:)

Robert was recently in a serious, nearly fatal, traffic accident so unable to ride with me. But Blaze ground a new boyfriend!!







Ok, I said two days of serendipity, so I'll continue. I cycled back down the hill on Tuesday after great conversations, a shower, clothes washed, and bags restocked with salt, vinegar, sugar, and freshly made apricot jam. (I failed to mention the result baked bread and freshly made yogurt...that's when I get homesick...I miss doing those domestic things...ahhhhh...thank you!)

So I went to the IGA for done grub: that $50 worth...one plastic bag...expensive, huh? It's got veggies, fruit, bread, peanut butter, butter, yogurt, and chocolate.



And then I hemmed and hawed about whether I'd go back up the street to the pharmacy for ibuprofen. I was getting low and hate to be without. Ya never know. So I did. Then hopped on Blaze and headed south out of town when this lady jumps out at me yelling " Do you know Paul Carr?" I had to think for a minute. I think I met him in a small town in the Outback one day months ago. We're Facebook friends do he'd sent me a note to say his in-laws were tea ruling around fine here. He'd tell them to look out for me. Sure, like we'd ever connect. This was them!!!! Tony and Helen! Can you believe the found me. And they weren't looking either. We could have do easily mussed each other. What if I hadn't gone for ibuprofen? What if they had been in a store when I passed? Creepy, huh? What fun folks? We hit it off instantly. So I suggested we get a coffee and chat. I found out they were camped in there caravan in a park about 20 kms south. My plan was to cycle up into the forest again and camp before this town. I said I'd call them in the morning, maybe we could meet up again.

So off to the woods I went. I love the forest roads. They take me longer, but they are so much quieter and so much more enjoyable. I was going to be back on shoulderless A3 soon enough. The next day on my way out of the forest, Blaze was dropping her chain off the back to the inside. I adjusted the limit screw as much as I could and couldn't stop it. I had to set the shifter and the chain off by one click and then remember not to push it all the way to the last click and everything worked okay on the low end...on the high end it now was stopping in the third to last gear. Not optimum. I wonder if Tony and Helen would be able to take me back to St Helens to have this dereilleur looked at. I've learned to at least ask the question. They can always say No. And if I can't get it adjusted I could ride it like I'd set it up. Next bike shop was probably Hobart, 200 kms away.

I called. They said Yes. Thank you!! So they picked me up by the bridge and back to town we went. And Mathew, owner of the new cycle shop Break O'Day Cycles, was ever so helpful in getting the dereilleur re-aligned and working smoothly. That's it. Before my next tour I'm getting a Rohloff hub...no if, ands or buts about it! This dereilleur rides just too low and hits every rock I encounter. I he's nothing but great things about them. I want one!!

And then Tony and Helen took me back to their place where we yakked some more. Helen loves hiking! And has a special love for Mt Everest although she's never been. I loved sharing my stories about when Bluebearee, Apple Pie and I trekked there.

Oh, and Michelle and Noah? Ya, I ran into them again the next day too on my way out of town! So kind! And giving!! Have fun in Japan you guys!! And thanks for the gifts!




Their bears wanted to take a spin.


Thanks Helen and Tony, for all the kindness and especially the laughs!!!

So I took off just after noon and pedaled further south until I found this free camping spot on the beach. Lots of various vehicles here but not too crowded. Have decided to stay an extra day and get my blog updated, get some sun (like I don't get enough)



Hard to time a jump when your self timer doesn't clue you in to when it's finishing:) Gotta love a biker tan!!




and do some painting...gotta go get they done. Robert told me to paint every day and write a poem to go with it. If I did it once a week I'd be way ahead of what I'm doing;)




From my New Years campsite:)). Grandma Moses had to start somewhere!!


Livin' the dream!

BagLady