Our trip to Tasmania was very eventful. Wombats are very cute, and we saw a few in the wild. This particular one kept sticking just its head into a hole and eventually fell asleep.
The bird life on the beach was also very impressive. These peculiar birds called Oyster Catchers were particularly cool, and buried their beaks completely into the sand to search for food (but not oysters).
We had some adventures with the bird life as well. We came across a penguin on the shore that we thought was stuck in the rock. Eric put on his gloves to try to rescue it, but the penguin did not appreciate this very much! Eric got bit (just a flesh wound). The penguin was gone the next morning and so we assume it was able to get out by itself.
The beaches in Tasmania were outstanding. White sand and beautiful clear water without all of the plastic trash that washes up on Northern Hemisphere beaches. The only negative was that the water was frigid! Isabel did dip her toes in though.
We took a trip out to Maria Island which was a former penal colony, since converted to a national park that is a refuge for various species including the now-endangered Tasmanian devil. The ferry ride out there was a bit choppy, but generally uneventful.
However, bad things happened in the afternoon. A front approached that caused the wind to swell to 60 knots and the waves to build. We were warned that we might have to spend the night stranded on the island with limited food and no place to sleep (although Eric thought this would be pretty cool).
Captain John and his small boat decided to come extract us at the last possible time, right at sunset. The trip across the strait was rather memorable with the boat being bounced to and fro in the large swells and waves crashing over the boat. Somehow we made it back though, much to the happiness of the many nervous island goers.
We did have some more mellow days too without penguin bites and near-shipwrecks. We enjoyed sampling some wine at the many vineyards, and also took a trip to a major former penal colony at Port Arthur, to the south of Hobart on the Tasman Peninsula.
The bird life on the beach was also very impressive. These peculiar birds called Oyster Catchers were particularly cool, and buried their beaks completely into the sand to search for food (but not oysters).
We had some adventures with the bird life as well. We came across a penguin on the shore that we thought was stuck in the rock. Eric put on his gloves to try to rescue it, but the penguin did not appreciate this very much! Eric got bit (just a flesh wound). The penguin was gone the next morning and so we assume it was able to get out by itself.
The beaches in Tasmania were outstanding. White sand and beautiful clear water without all of the plastic trash that washes up on Northern Hemisphere beaches. The only negative was that the water was frigid! Isabel did dip her toes in though.
We took a trip out to Maria Island which was a former penal colony, since converted to a national park that is a refuge for various species including the now-endangered Tasmanian devil. The ferry ride out there was a bit choppy, but generally uneventful.
However, bad things happened in the afternoon. A front approached that caused the wind to swell to 60 knots and the waves to build. We were warned that we might have to spend the night stranded on the island with limited food and no place to sleep (although Eric thought this would be pretty cool).
Captain John and his small boat decided to come extract us at the last possible time, right at sunset. The trip across the strait was rather memorable with the boat being bounced to and fro in the large swells and waves crashing over the boat. Somehow we made it back though, much to the happiness of the many nervous island goers.
We did have some more mellow days too without penguin bites and near-shipwrecks. We enjoyed sampling some wine at the many vineyards, and also took a trip to a major former penal colony at Port Arthur, to the south of Hobart on the Tasman Peninsula.
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