Tasmania Archives - Destination's Journey

27 July 202127 July 2021

Tasman Peninsula Tasmania Australia

Tasman Peninsula

The Tasman Peninsula has an wonderful array of historical and natural locations explore. Containing some of Australia’s oldest convict sites, it tells the story of early colonial life while being surrounded by amazing natural beauty.

During our stay here, we visited the sites below. This is by no means all there is to see and do, as there are many more bush tracks to walk, and places to visit. We spent three days here, but could easily have taken a whole week.

Geological Sites
Historical Sites
- The Dog Line
- Coal Mine Historic Site
- Port Arthur Historic Site
Walking Tracks
- Cape Raoul Track

Port Arthur Historic Site

Tasmania’s best known historical site, Port Arthur was once a penal settlement for convicts. For the Full blog of our trip here, click this link.

Geological Sites of the Tasman Peninsula

Tasmania is full of natural beauty. The wind, rain and sea have combined in places to produce wonderful geological features. For the Full blog of our trip here, click this link.

Tasman Arch

The Blow Hole

Remarkable Cave

Tessellated Pavement

The Dog Line

To prevent escaped convicts leaving the Tasman Peninsula, a dogs were placed at the narrowest point. These vicious dogs are commemorated with a full sized bronze sculpture. Tasmania is full of natural beauty. The wind, rain and sea have combined in places to produce wonderful geological features. For the Full blog of our trip here, click this link.

Coal Mine Historic Site

Although not as popular as Port Arthur, the Coal Mine Historic Site is also an important relic of the convict past. The first coal mine in Tasmania and a place of punishment for repeat offending convicts, its ruins are worth a visit. Unlike Port Arthur, entry here is free. For the Full blog of our trip here, click this link.

Ruins at the Main Settlement Tasman Peninsula — Ruins at the Main Settlement

Cape Raoul Track

Bushwalking and hiking tracks range from under an hour to several days. We chose a five hour return walk to Cape Raoul because it provided temperate rainforest, coastal views and wildlife in the one walk. For the Full blog of our trip here, click this link.

Dolerite at Cape Raoul Tasman Peninsula — Dolerite at Cape Raoul

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24 July 202125 July 2021

Wineglass Bay Freycinet Peninsula Tasmania

Wineglass Bay

One of Tasmania’s most popular destinations, Wineglass Bay was our first stop on a recent holiday to the Apple Isle. Arriving at Coles Bay early in the evening, we stayed two nights in Coles Bay, giving ourselves the whole of the next day to explore.

Access to the Freycinet National Park is by a Parks Pass, which can be purchased at the Visitor Centre or the carpark. If you decide to ride a bike, rather than drive, access is on a per person basis, rather than per car. A bike rack at the top of the car park shaped like a whale is conveniently placed to leave your bikes.

Rated at Grade 3, the track to the lookout is 2.6km return, with an estimated time of 1 to 1.5 hours to complete.

Whale of a Bike Rack Wineglass Bay — Whale of a Bike Rack

The Track Going Up

Starting as a gravel track the, path winds through beautiful Tasmanian bushland as it goes uphill. Many sections have steep steps to navigate the steepest sections, making the going easier than climbing over rocks. In one place it passes through a narrow gap between two boulders.

Extremely well maintained, you can see where your entry fee is spent, because the upkeep of the track must be huge.

Large visitor numbers in the peak season has resulted in the National Park Authority turning the lower section of the track into a one way loop. Although we went in winter, this was still a great feature, as you don’t meet people coming the other way and have to step off the path to let them pass.

The Views

Although the track is steep, the views make up for it, being amazing even on a cloudy day like we had.

A viewing platform half way up gives views back over Coles Bay.

The main attraction though is the view of Wineglass Bay, which is breathtaking. A one-way metal walkway provides different views of the bay, with several large platforms to look out from.

The views still looked great, even though it was cloudy. The low cloud clinging to the surrounding hills looked really good, adding a great feel to the area.

Cloud Covered Rocks From the Viewing Point — View Looking Back Over Coles Bay

The Track Going Down

The first section of the return walk retraces your steps until you arrives at a junction off to the right. This takes you on the return loop, so that you do not hold up people on the upward leg. Once again there are many steps, although this time you are going down rather than climbing up.

The only wildlife we saw was a small wallaby that jumped off the track before we could take a photo. However, we were lucky, as another decided to visit our accommodation and sit on our veranda.

Two Boulders on The Track Going Back Down

Two Boulders on The Track Going Back Down

Bennett's Wallaby Outside Our Accommodation — Bennett’s Wallaby Outside Our Accommodation

What Did We Think?

This was a great walk, even with the clouds because the views are amazing. Designed for tourists, the path is well maintained, so with plenty of rest stops the climb up is fun. Don’t rush, take breaks and admire the views and surroundings as you go.

14 July 202114 July 2021

Cascade Brewery Tour Hobart

How to Get There

Only a five-minute drive from Hobart’s CBD in the foothills of Mount Wellington, the Cascade Brewery Tour is a must for lovers of beer and cider.

The Cascade Brewery

Having operated since 1824, the Brewery is Australia’s oldest, and a tour is a history lesson as well as beer making. Originally a sawmill but converted to a brewery because of the mountain water onsite, the building is still in use. The dates on the front of the building refer to the extension made in 1927 when new equipment required more height. This is still visible in the façade, where the material for the lower three floor differs from the upper levels.

In addition to tours, the brewery offers meals and a bar in the old manager’s residence, where you can relax after the tour, or just enjoy a meal or drink.

Lounge at the Cascade Brewery — Cascade Brewery

The Cascade Brewery Tour

Several different tours are available depending on age (16 years old and over can go on the extended factory tour that we did). An all ages tour caters for everyone, but does not enter the factory, nor does it offer beer and cider samples afterwards.

A safety briefing and protective equipment (hard hat, glasses, gloves and hair net and fluoro vest) are given at the start of the tour. This not only ensures your safety, as your are touring a working brewery, but also keeps the beer making process safe from you.

Unfortunately, no photos are allowed on the tour, so the secret of Cascades beer and cider process is still safe.

The comprehensive tour follows the whole process from grain delivery to bottling, packaging and distribution. We found it all very interesting especially the brewing and malting part.

We also found out that all waste products are used either on site or as animal feed. Nice to know that beer is environmentally conscious, as well as tasting great.

There was also a look at cider production, which uses some of the apples Tasmania is famous for.

Finishing the tour is a tasting platter of four beers or ciders. As we had a platter each, we were able to taste all of the beers and ciders on offer.

Beer and Cider Tasting Platter Cascade Brewery Tour — Beer and Cider Tasting Platter