Day 8

Day 8
Wednesday
September 14
Swansea to Richmond to Eaglehawk Neck
204km
Cloudy and super windy with a little rain 9 degrees to 14

Feeling like I need to see some people

Bye, bye empty Swansea.

First stop ‘Kate’s Berry Farm’ which is closed – even though we can see the people in the shop – but we still get the great view of the Great Oyster Bay and the distant Freycinet area.

Then on to the convict built Spiky Bridge.

Next stop, Richmond. Great place. Strolling around town checking out the old buildings and shops. Settled in 1803 has the oldest church and intact gaol in Australia. This shot is looking through the one of the arches of the historic Richmond bridge to the 1837 Catholic church.

This cemetery is amazing. Most of the headstones are on the side of a steep hill. Not sure how they dug the graves. We found a headstone dated 1804.

The pie shop was crowded – always a good sign. Pat had a very filling curried scallop pie and I had a lamb, pea and potato pie. Yum, yum, yum.

We arrived at Eaglehawk Neck and checked into the historic Lufra hotel. We were quoted $145 for self-contained unit or $110 for a room. After we told them that we were going to go and camp or go to the backpackers they offered us a room for $60 – and it is great. Lovely hotel with a great feel. Big comfy lounge area overlooking the bay with warm fire. This is the view from the front of the hotel.

Shame, Shame, Shame!!!!!!
My big gripe about Tassie is how we keep seeing these pristine or historical areas getting cut up for cheap development. This is the area just next to the oldest remaining military building in Australia and the Isthmus which was the site for ‘The Dog Line’. So they divide the foreshore into these blocks surrounded by the ugliest of colourbond fences.

The dog line had 18 savage dogs permanently chained across the narrow isthmus between the two pieces of land. Each dog had a barrel to sleep in and a light above so that guards could observe them. If convicts escaped from Port Arthur this was their only path of escape from the southern peninsular and they couldn’t get passed the dogs without detection.

Out to Pirate Bay to see yet another blow hole and Tasman Arch.

I love the graphic. Don’t hold back.

Back to the hotel and dinner by the fire. Chicken and corn soup and Escalloped pork pan fried with mustard and gherkin sauce, vegies and chips.

And today we found that there are people still left in the world. We are not alone.