Touring Tasmania - Our Last Hoorah

HOBART — Saturday 18th Nov. Today is our last day in Tasmania.  We headed into Hobart early and spent the morning wandering around the Salamanca Market.  The market is undoubtedly one of the best street markets going—much bigger than the market along the Esplanade at St. Kilda.  The variety of goods sold is remarkable, a lot of it hand-made crafts and other goods.  The stroll around the market was a welcome relief from sitting in the car–even for me–and I detest all forms of shopping.

At lunchtime, we took a cruise on the Lady Nelson—a square rigger sail boat–up the Derwent River.  When we set sail, there was very little wind and it looked like we were going to have to do most of the 1.5hr journey under power.   However, once out in the open waters of the river the southerly picked up and we managed to sail around the river, albeit not that quickly.

Whilst I sat on the boat and the calm waters of the Derwent, I couldn’t help but think of my friend Nick and the massive undertaking that he will shortly make on his quest to sail solo all the way to Australia from Southampton in England in a boat much smaller than the one we were on and through much more treacherous waters.  I hope that his passage is as safe as our short trip up the river.

After the cruise and a quick bite to eat, we headed up to Mt. Nelson to check out the view from atop.  We were a little concerned that the view would be hindered by low cloud—and had avoided Mt. Wellington for the same reason–but it turned out to be clear and we had a magical 280-degree view of Hobart and the surrounding area.  It really is a nice city.

So, after six days and some 1,750 kilometres following winding, hilly roads and the occasional dirt track, our journey comes to an end.  All that’s left tonight is to use up all the leftover food in the pantry and to pack our cases for the trip home.  We’ll do some clean-up in the morning and head off to the airport just after breakfast and be back in Melbourne around lunchtime.

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