It’s taken us twenty years but the time has finally arrived to head back to Tasmania for six weeks of touring. We spend a windy night at Werribee South before heading into Port Melbourne to board the Spirit of Tasmania to Devonport.

We get to experience the sunrise over Port Phillip Bay as we line up on the dock at Port Melbourne. The whole check in and loading process is simple as the staff here perform their roles twice a day so its a breeze to get the Jeep and Van onto the boat. Once parked up we head for the comfort of our recliner seats and wait for our departure.

Stacey is concerned about the travel as our last major cruise saw her suffer severe sea sickness but this time she has come prepared with pressure point wrist bands to see if they make a difference. We settle in as the boat performs the biggest three point turn I’ve ever seen then heads for the open sea. Nine hours later we arrive in Devonport with Stacey not the slightest shade of green. She’s made it without any illness to speak of. It was a very smooth passage with light winds and small swell so hopefully we have the same for our return trip at the end of February.

After disembarking we head to our spot in Devonport for a few nights. The town itself is smallish but the constant movement of passengers on and off the Spirit of Tasmania makes the volume of people seem much larger. We quickly realise that the convenience of Victoria is behind us as the shopping hours are much shorter. Finding life’s necessities, like a bottle of wine at 7:30pm on a Sunday evening, presents a small challenge. Thankfully we are able to stock our supplies for our first night even if the staff at the local are turning the lights out as we leave.

The morning delivers a beautiful day so we head out for a walk on the foreshore and some time in the town centre. There is plenty to see with the maritime centre offering great coffee and scones, then a walk to the lighthouse and some time wandering the town mall.

In the afternoon we decide to head out on a drive into the countryside doing a loop down through Latrobe then onto to Deloraine, across to Mole Creek and finally Sheffield before returning to Devonport. The drive is very much a country farming experience with stops at a dairy for cheese, then a berry market and a walk through Deloraine’s high street before wandering the streets of Sheffield. Murals are painted on many of the buildings but its the mountain in the distance that sets the scene. Our drive does allow me the time to take a photo of farming land and a dam with Mount Roland in the background.

Our next day of touring is spent wandering the Northern shoreline up to Greens Beach via Beaconsfield (remember the mining rescue from 2006?) then we loop back down to Batman Bridge (yes that’s it’s name) to cross the River Tamar before heading up to George Town and Low Head.

On this drive you see the lot. Ocean, rugged shoreline, sandy beaches, fast flowing rivers, forests, farming land, lighthouses and even a small rook of young penguins hidden in the undergrowth. So much variety in such a short distance.

Our next move is further west but staying on the northern coastline. We’ll stop in at a town named Penguin for a few days before heading onto Stanley. During this time we hope to make the trip to Cradle Mountain for a few of the walks there and some photo opportunities.

With the school holidays still in full swing in Tasmania we’ve decided to tackle the north and west coastlines first before heading east.