On the fifth day we went for a 5 hour hike in the Freycinet Peninsula, which passed by Wineglass Bay and Hazards Beach. The path to Wineglass Bay consisted of a series of somewhat steep rock steps which scaled and descended a mountain, passing by large rounded rocks and vegetation which reminded me of Magnetic Island (further North in Australia). Wineglass Bay had a beautiful long, white sandy beach and turquoise waters, similar to Abel Tasman in New Zealand. The next stop, Hazards Beach, was less calm and pristine, but nice nonetheless, and was covered in seaweed and shells, including large oysters broken open by seagulls. The next 3 hours consisted of a fairly flat loop around the mountain and back to the starting point, which was somewhat dull due to the fact that the trail led through the bush and views of the ocean were seldom, but we made it more exciting by stopping to climb some of the large round rocks off the trail.

That night we drove up to Bicheno, which is home to a large colony of penguins. About 1 hour after sunset we walked along a path through the woods, just above the rocky shoreline. We were really excited to find a few penguins here and there, up on some rocks or waddling along the path. We followed a few down the path until we reached the end, which met the rocks along the shore, and were stoked to see a very large group of penguins gathering on the rocks! More and more gathered as we watched motionless from the path, and then they started to make their way up towards us! We made sure to make no sound and move no muscle, but we didn’t realize we had formed a wall across the path! They came right up to us, looking quizzically (I’m sure they were thinking “What?? When did these trees sprout here? What is going on???” or something like that). A couple even pecked at Henry and Geoff’s shoes! They stood in front of us for about 10 minutes looking confused, while others went back down towards the ocean to stand with another group. I counted 17 penguins at one point. They were less than a foot tall and mostly black (including their beaks), besides little white stomachs. They were CUTE! Finally, I decided they probably were waiting for the path to clear before returning home, so I stepped to the side and Henry followed. Sure enough, a small line of penguins started to slowly edge their way past us, and then scurried into their nests in the bushes. It was an AMAZING experience.

The next day we drove up the coast to St Helens, and then further North to see the Bay of Fires, which disappointingly wasn’t as exciting as it sounds, although it was another very nice stretch of long, white beach. There were a lot of free camp grounds along there, so I can imagine it’s great in the summer. Then we followed the “Trail of the Tin Dragon”, a VERY windy road (so fun to drive on) which wound up through the mountains and pastures in the interior. The sights were GORGEOUS, and views were plentiful. The road was surrounded by forests of large fern trees and other jungle-like deciduous trees. Very green sheep pastures filled the valleys between rolling hills covered in forest. Along the way we stopped at a dairy farm to taste a variety of delicious cheeses, and hiked to a waterfall.

Late afternoon we arrived at our final destination, Launceton, the second largest town in Tasmania. It was a bit strange and industrial, but had a gorgeous gorge surrounded by green forests with nice walking trails right through the middle of the city. We walked along the river and across the suspension bridge for a while, and saw a ton of kangaroos and wildlife. The hostel we stayed in that night had some really strange characters staying in it…3 of which were living permanently in our 8 bedroom dorm. Upon entry it smelled like dirty socks, and sure enough to the left were piles of one old crazy dude’s laundry (and picture frames of his son, and other belongings) and to the right were about 12 pairs of socks hanging to dry on another guy’s bunk bed. Weird. We were thankful to leave the next morning, to catch our flight out of Tasmania. So…a bit sad to be leaving Tasmania. Our close encounters with nature on this island really made for an unforgettable trip, and I would love to return one day in summer season.