October 30
Took the scenic way back to Hobart cruising through Richmond – another little town with convict history and with the oldest bridge (1823) and Catholic church (1836) in Australia.
An Anglican church (1834) and the ‘gaol’…
Stopped for lunch at a winery, Meadowbank Estates – Jordy you must ask Dad how impressed he was with the food – with a lovely view of the Derwent River.
Then on to the Cadbury Chocolate Factory in Claremont.
October 29
Set off for a 3 hour cruise!
Travelled by bus to Eaglehawk Neck to get in the boat & go out into the Tasman Sea to Tasman Island, around Cape Pillar and back up to Port Arthur in Stewarts Bay. Sounds easy enough, right?
We had a very knowledgeable tour guide (who we found in the ‘Saturday Markets’ in Hobart).
The Tasman Sea was pretty calm – waves were only 3 meters as compared to 7 meters the day before.
That only lasted until we rounded Cape Pillar and then the ride got bumpy! Guess two oceans coming together can get a little angry!
Then as we entered Stewarts Bay it got smooth again & it was over – too soon.
October 28
The convict settlement historic site in Port Arthur looks quite pretty until you hear what it really was all about. It was definitely NOT a nice place to live!
We were toured around the site after dark with a couple of kerosene lamps and saw the insides of a few buildings – the morgue, the church, the solitary confinement part of the prison and a couple of homes. All the while listening to stories of ghostly sightings.
Landed in Hobart (3 1/2 hour flight from Brisbane), rented a car and headed for Port Arthur.
Did some touring along the way – lots of history here. Drove the ‘Convict Trail’ highway stopping at the ‘Dog Line’ at Eaglehawk Neck – a very narrow strip of land. It was the only way that convicts could escape from the prison at Port Arthur so the guards chained a number of dogs along the strip with lanterns at each post. They crushed cockle shells and laid them down the path so they would reflect light. If the dogs heard a noise they’d start barking and the guards would check out the action.
First views of the area…
Also checked out
(Some of these places we also saw while on the Wilderness Cruise – see tomorrow’s photos.)
Saw a little wildlife – an echidna in the wild and a couple other quite tame creatures.
Checked out Brisbane by bus up to Mt. Coot-tha,
and around and back down to King St. wharf where we hopped on a ‘City Cat’ to see the sights from the Brisbane river.
Lots of history, old buildings (and new),
bridges,
as well as an interesting freeway system that extends out over the river.
