Day 16: Carlton and Hobart
27 October 2016
It was a cold day with occasional showers; a car needed to be transported; and its heater was very welcome.
Day 17: Carlton to Hobart via Tasmania Peninsula
28 October 2016
Click on the image for a detailed map
We were staying with my mate Graham and his wife. Graham is a long-term rider. When I last wrote of him, he had bought a Ducati Monster 695 which he was enjoying. His pleasure did not last all that long. A dealer at the other end of the island, repeated problems, and a neat procrastination until the warranty period was over lead to him selling it and replacing it with a Honda CB500X. Not as glamorous perhaps, but dependable.
Graham’s son recently had a nasty off and was still in hospital. He may not ever completely recover from the damage done to his pelvic region. Not unreasonably, Graham was pretty shaken by this and hadn’t spent much time on his bike. I made no suggestion of it, but he suggested a morning ride to blow out some cobwebs. We would ride a loop around the Tasman Peninsular and then meet his mate for a coffee.
It was a glorious day, so off we went.
The road out to the highway from Carlton is pretty good, and the highway’s not bad either. Indeed, except for the difficulty finding places to overtake legally, the road to Eaglehawk Neck is excellent. It all seems so much shorter than it did when I was a child.
On the way to Eaglehawk Neck
On the way we passed through the small town of Dunalley which was devastated by bush fires in January 2013. Dunalley is also the home of a canal which allows smaller vessels to cut off a good deal of sailing time between Hobart and Tasmania’s east coast. There’s swing bridge which is opened on request and you motor through it either with or against a very strong current. At the other end, the exit to the Mercury Passage can be exciting.
Eaglehawk Neck — Pirates Bay to the left and, in the centre of the picture on the right you can see Eaglehawk Bay
I’ve included this map as, aside from riding across the neck, we visited Tasman Arch and the cubed espresso bar
Eaglehawk Neck, seen in the picture above, is the isthmus attaching the Tasman Peninsula to the mainland. It was a deciding factor for the British to establish a penal colony at Port Arthur as it was easy to guard. Authorities discouraged swimming Eaglehawk Bay by peddling the rumour that it was shark infested and a line of half-starved dogs across the neck made sure there was no escape that was. I thought I had a photograph of the statue of the dog on the neck, but, if I do, I can no longer find it.
There used to be a community hall on the neck. As a teenager, I remember they used to back a projection truck up to it in the summer months and show films to holiday makers. I saw John Wayne in The Sons of Katie Elder there. I have no recollection of it.
We stopped at the Blue Seal Café which is set up in the old Post Office. The woman was very kind and helpful, but the coffee was not worth going back for.
We rode on in an anticlockwise direction around the peninsula, enjoying the glorious day and the scenery. As I think I mentioned, I don’t recall seeing Tasmania so green and well watered as it was on this trip.
We stopped at Nubeena because you do after coffee and because we could. It was an opportunity to admire the scenery and the machinery.
We then made our way back across the peninsula turning north at Port Arthur which is now a national park and Tasmania’s major tourist attraction.
In its heyday as a prison, between 1833 and 1877, Port Arthur was the home to Britain’s worst prisoners; criminals who had reoffended after being transported to Australia. And yet, it was, in its day, a model prison.
In 1996, it was the scene of an appalling massacre when a young man ran amok killing 35 people and wounding another 25.
In spite of its troubled history, it’s a lovely place, set in a very picturesque surroundings and with a well-protected harbour. It’s a favourite stopping off point for sailors cruising around Tasman Peninsula.
Returning to Eaglehawk Neck, we turned right and rode around Pirates Bay, stopping at a food van at Tasman Arch. My friend Graham, although thin, seems to need to eat a good deal. We had, as I recall, a pleasant sit in the sun and a scallop pie.
Pirates Bay
There’s a blowhole at Pirates bay, but it was very quiet
After inspecting the blowhole, we remounted and rode a few minutes up the hill to cubed espresso bar, which plies its trade in the warmer months. A young couple make excellent coffee and little cakes and pastries for which it is well-worth stopping.
Part of the attraction of stopping on a good day is the spectacular view down the south-east coast of Tasmania.
After barely enough time to take a photograph, we were joined by Graham’s mate who has recently made a return to riding. He and his partner had been doing a jet boat ride along the coast you can see in the picture above.
On the riding front, he’s doing it tough.
We sat in the sun, talked some talk and then headed off towards home. Graham’s mate and his partner left us just before Dunalley to have a late lunch, while we rode home.
Having arrived, I packed my bag, collected Mrs Cormanus and we set off for the suburbs of Hobart to stay with my brother.
