We continued meandering south along the east Tasmanian coastline, through the fishing town of Bicheno and heading towards Freycinet National Park. We stopped and checked out Cape Tourville Lighthouse and it’s spectacular ocean views. The weather was now reasonably mild and we were beginning to feel like explorers.

We set up camp at Coles Bay. This was to be our base for the next 3 days. It was a very comfortable caravan and camping park overlooking the waters of Coles Bay. It is the entrance point to Freycinet National Park.

Wineglass Bay was our mission for the next day. A steep walk to the lookout was made all the more worthwhile when we spied the most beautiful sandy beach bay with the bluest water lapping the shoreline. If I had been a sailor explorer on the tall ships back in the 1700’s, this is the piece of land I would have chosen to discover. It was quite obvious why it was named Wineglass Bay although if I had discovered it, it would have been named Kristal Bay.

We weren’t done yet! There was a walk down to the beach. If anyone knows the 1000 step walk in the Dandenongs, they can relate to what we were about to embark on. There were signs at the top of the stairs saying “ please turn around if you don’t think you can return up these stairs”. That was like a red rag to a bull for Ruthie. After already having climbed to the lookout, it was quite an effort for these two oldies to get down the steps to the beach. Again well worth it and I was surprised to see how many people were already down on the beach. Surely there must be a chairlift? We had packed some supplies for sustenance and were beginning to think about the long haul back up the steps. Surprisingly it wasn’t as bad as we had imagined. We must be fitter than we think.

Dinner was at the Coles Bay Tavern. I would have liked to have said what a beautiful starlit night it was but the days adventure had made sure my heavy eyes were asleep early.

Ruthie and I had both previously been to Port Arthur and decided we needed a different convict experience. So the the next day we travelled through Swansea to Triabunna. From there we caught the ferry to Maria Island. Darlington, located on Maria Island, is recognised as the best Australian example of a convict probation station (1825) and is heritage listed.

The old buildings still contain many of the furnishings of the day which give a fascinating insight into life back in the 1800’s. There are several walks or cycles around the island and wombats, kangaroos and cape baron geese are abundant. We came across other convict built cottages and remnants. Parts of the coast line displayed fossil and painted cliffs. All in all an enjoyable day.

As I unzipped the swag the next morning, I was shocked to see it had rained overnight and there were puddles all around us. It was comforting to know that all our camp had remained water tight. The worst part was having to pack up camp amongst the wet weather.