Devonport to Hobart and surrounds.

 630 the alarm sounds, and you awake onboard the Spirit of Tasmania, that is if you havent already risen. 

I know I take a while to get organised, so I set my alarm for 530. 

The cabin was small but adequate for what we needed, a good nights sleep before tackling our first day in Tassie. 

by 7am we were reversing the D-Max out of our very tight parking spot and heading off the ferry. 

When we hit street side, it was still dark out. We were hungry, you could eat on the ferry but we chose to find something along the way. We headed towards the highway, which would take us to the Midlands and Hobart Beyond. 

About 15 minutes out of town we came across a truck stop at Sassafras, and as anyone on a road trip knows, this is where you will find the good grub. 

there were a few  truckies and early risers inside, and we could see and smell why. 

Coffee and roast beef and gravy rolls for breakfast, dont mind if I do. Infact, I wish I had ordered 2. they were THAT good. 

We ate in the car and off we headed. 

The sun was just coming up by this time, so we could see the incredible beauty that surrounded us around every bend.  Through Elizabeth Town and just bypassing Perth, the Tasmanian one, not the WA one. I could see Cradle Mountain to the South West of us, and we skirted this mountain range for a while as we headed towards Symmons Plains, we made a quick detour into the racetrack, home of Supercars when they visit Tassie.  

A mutual decision was made that if we saw a brown sign, which usually denotes a tourist attraction that we would stop.  Tasmania is FULL of these signs, we would spend the next 10 years and never see everything.

Campbelltown was the first of these. OMG, what a gorgeous village this was. We stopped and walked, took pictures of everything, in awe at the history and beauty. We have already fallen in love with this state and we only just got here. 

Churches, old stores, sandstone buildings, the Red Bridge, and while it is a quintessential midlands town, its history is that of massacres and unrest when the colonial settlers came and 'conciliated' the last members of the local clan the Tyerrenotepanner. 

On the hills outside the town there are metal sculptures that catch the eye. 

Our next stop was Ross, a small town located on 78 kms south of Launceston, but an entire world or should I say century away. 

It was established in 1812 and lies in the lands of the Tyrernotepanner Nation, whom I mentioned before. The colonials gave them the name Stoney Creek nation.

Ross is also the home to a Female Factory, part of which still stand. Between 1848 and 1854 approximately 12,000 female convicts passed though its doors. 

It is filled with heritage listed sites, and I urge you to take the time to drive off the main highway instead of bypassing this town. 

 

Oatlands was next detour was Oatlands.

Windmills, lakes, ducks and drakes, these were all part of this visit. 

On the edge of Lake Dulverton lies this village straight out of the 1800's.

150 predominantly convict built sandstone buildings still stand in this village that time forgot. 

87 of these along main street. 

https://www.churchesoftasmania.com/2018/11/no-283-st-pauls-at-oatlands-very-humble.html

 

Oatlands was developed around a military precinct late 1820's. 

The  courthouse was the only Supreme Court in regional Tasmania and delivered 18 exclusions inside the towns jail. 

While these structures are impressive in design, their past holds the ghosts of the past with their walls. 

From the Callington Mill with its huge sails, to the Oatlands coach house and the surrounding village of sandstone homes, some still lived in, we felt like we had stepped back in time. It was freezing out, but we were grateful for the walk, and the main tourist attraction of the Mill, art gallery and distillery are a photographers dream. 

we made a few more little detours, Melton Mowbray and Kempton were each as magnificent as the last.  

Just after 1pm we were on the outskirts of Hobart. With snow on the top of Mount Wellington we knew that this was going to be a special place to spend a few days.

Our Air B n B was at a place called Million Dollar Views Sandy Bay, and I do not have to tell you, they description did not lie. It had everything we could possibly need, and we opened the from French doors to views across the harbour and Wrest Point Casino.

Million $$ Views.
They sure are. 

Over the next day and a half we explored Rosny, Bellerive, Taroona and its incredible Shot Tower, tried to take a trip to the top of Mount Wellington, only to be met by road closures due to huge snowfall up the top. 

The Shot Tower Taroona

I have to say, Hobart was everything we thought it would be, and we get to spend a couple more days there next month when we cruise and stay overnight. 

I hope you enjoyed our recount of our first few days in Tasmania. 

Sue and Brian, we are cruisin roosters and we are living our best life.