George's top 10 Tasmanian things to see or do

Well, seeing as I've been to Tasmania twice, Karen asked me to recommend some of my favourite things. So I woke up very early this morning, thinking about it, and scrawled down a list, in an effort to get back to sleep. But alas, no sleep was to be had. But the list is still there, so here it is:

10. Mount Wellington. This enormous mountain towers beautifully over the city of Hobart. It, of course, makes you want to go up and see the view. So 3 years ago in September, my friends C and A and I drove up there. It was a cold and miserable day in September. About 5 degrees outside, and as we went further up the mountain it got colder and mistier, until we hit the cloud itself. It was beautiful. So quiet, so misty. We got out and threw snowballs at each other. We did glimpse a bit of view on the way up, but not really much when we got there. It didn't matter. It was magical. It was very silent and very cold.

9. Battery Point: Prior to driving up Mount Wellington, we wandered around the Salamanca Markets and then around Battery Point. They had beautiful old houses and gardens. Almost like you were back in the 1800's, and taking a stroll in your long gown and parasol.

8. Richmond: A small historical town on the way to Port Arthur. We had wonderful brunch in this old cafe. Just some beautiful old feature buildings and a lovely old Catholic church. I especially enjoyed viewing the Richmond Gaol, with the stones worn down by the passage of many feet.

7. Strahan: Situated on the west coast of Tasmania, it is truly quite an isolated and beautiful place. In addition to the miles of beaches, we saw a great play that is on every night of the year called The Ship That Never Was.

6. King Solomon and Marakoopa Caves: Located in the middle of Tasmania, these caves are open to the public. I love caves, so I enthusiastically embraced the opportunity to see them. We went in the King Solomon Cave, which had a Cathedral cavern that I got to sing in. It also had beautiful glow worms.

5. Sheffield: The town of Sheffield was looking for a way to revitalise their tourism so they became a town of Murals. This is a photo I took of one of the murals. Worth it just to wander up and down the main street and see all the amazing paintings located on every conceivable possible wall.



4. Launceston Roman Baths: I went here by myself because the others didn't have swimming costumes. It's been set up to mimic an authentic Roman baths experience, with warm pools, including the Trepidarium, very warm pools, the Calderium, cold and hot showers, sauna, etc. It was a truly relaxing way to spend an hour or 2. No kids too. You have to be 16 or above.

3. Freyssinet Peninsula and up the East coast: We had missed the East coast up from Port Arthur because we ran out of time and energy. Lots of people asked me if I had been when I got back, so when I got a chance to go again last year, and I only had a few days, I went up the East coast. And it was so worth it. The Freyssinet peninsula was truly gorgeous. I was there in the middle of winter, but I'd love to go back one day in summer and take a kayak around the water. I climbed 600 steps up to the Wineglass Bay lookout and then there was another lookout close nearby. It was all so beautiful. And all the lovely seaside villages right up to the Bay of Fires, which I didn't quite get to, because I headed inland.

2. The Devils and The Dolphins: I went to Boonorong Wildlife Park and saw Devils so close that one of them jumped up at me about 50cm away. It was awesome. They make such amazing sounds. And on a ferry to Bruny Island I saw dolphins play with our boat. I have videos of both of these. Unfortunately, they're all on the work computer. I need to get them on this computer.

and drum roll..... the number one best Tasmanian experience was:

1. Port Arthur. It's an incredibly sad place, steeped in history, almost like you are treading in the paths of the convicts, which you literally do. Beautiful and well worth a full day. Even in several hours we had a great time.

So there you go, Karen, there's my top 10. Other things people like which I found disappointing were Cradle Mountain, Launceston Gorge, and Queenstown. Not that they weren't a bit interesting. I think they were hyped to me so I expected a bit more.

The other thing that is great is the many "Great Short Walks" - I have walked the Nelson Falls walk, Dove Lake circuit, St Columba Falls, Wineglass Bay Lookout, Russell Falls, Tall Trees, and Pandani Grove. These were always worthwhile and I'd look out for the "short walks" signs. That's how I found St Columba Falls and Nelson Falls.
xxx