Campervan adventure in Tasmania

Okay, long story short, this Campervan adventure in Tasmania started with a birthday note for Josh hinting him about going on an adventure and it involves a boat. After a bunch of wild and unusual guesses, he eventually landed `on the correct answer! A few days later we had picked up our relocation campervan and parked it on the Spirit of Tasmania boat that left the Port of Melbourne and made its one stop journey to that little broken off part of Australia we call Tasmania.

I cannot stress enough how much I’d love to tell you we enjoyed floating over the ocean but it just wouldn’t be telling the absolute truth. In fact, it was 9 hours of boring, unsteady walking and upset stomach adventures. Well at least we took UNO! Thankfully our campervan was the third vehicle off the boat, so we got an early departure off on to the roads of Tasmania that seemed to roll through an untouched region of the planet. The sun had just begun its golden hour shift and we were backlit driving toward forests which were illuminated as if they were on fire. As darkness started creeping in we began seeing more wildlife, particularly paddymelons. These cute little creatures are like minature kangaroos though they hop quite slowly so we had to keep our speed in check for the night. After about an hour and fifteen minutes we found ourselves entering a dirt road. Dirt roads and campervans don’t sit well with us based upon our New Zealand trip though night had descended and we were not actually supposed to drive the campervan at night. We had no choice but to take the dirt road. It kind of reminds me of Lord of the Rings part 1 where the hobbits choose to go over the mountain instead of through mines because some bad dude was waiting there to hit them with a fire whip. Not that the image of that had anything to do with choosing the dirt road of course but I am glad we took it because thirty minutes later we found ourselves back at the coast line parked just at the entrance of Briggs Regional Reserve. The sky was full of stars twinkling uninterrupted by any artificial light. We knew then that this was a good feeling place to set up base camp for the night.

Just as we had gotten comfy in bed, Katie looked out the curtains and saw a huge full moon rising over the east coastline. It was too good to pass up so off we went outside again in the low temperatures of the coastal night in just our pyjamas to have a better look!

We must have slept very deeply because it seemed like a blink of an eye to wake up just before sunrise completely refreshed. We decided we needed to go for a walk through the national park before eating. We set off on this beautiful journey with mystery around each corner. Now it really was starting to feel like Lord of the Rings. We were being pampered by fresh ocean air, warmed by the beautiful morning sun and inspired by the serene magic of the landscape.

After a good half an hour trot we decided to head down the road and find another nice spot to cook up breakfast. We found a peaceful spot by the River Tamar to fuel our bodies for a while. It was a pretty nice place but not much was happening and we were excited about going to the next two places for the day. First up was to head east toward Bridestowe Lavender Estate. This place is a huge lavender farm which is in full bloom during the December and January months. It still looked incredible even without the flowers. We wandered to the store just near the fields and were amazed by how purple it was inside. Nearly every product was purple. The three women who were working there were very friendly too. The woman running the gift shop told us that the cafe just beside the store was trialing vegan scones. Well that was enough to keep us there another 5 or so minutes! We made our way around to the cafe and spoke with the chef about this important topic. Unfortunately, they were not close enough to being ready so we decided to give it a miss. Thankfully, we got the recipe for lavender scones anyway and decided to make them back home, which we did and which we loved!

The days really go fast when you’re on the road. It was already the afternoon and we had left our base camp just after sunrise, so strange. Well, we continued to the east side of the torn off state to find the Bay of Fires! Now this place was a true highlight for us. We arrived during a cloudy sky so we were not able to see the full tranquil richness of the water here though it still looked incredible and the rock formations are something you wouldn’t think would exist outside of a book. The sand was almost paper white and the feeling of the place felt nourishing to the soul. That could be said about the morning walk earlier too by the way! Walking through a forest of the giant orange and beige rocks felt like we were walking amongst gods. The beautiful compositions were endless as was the feeling of being ecstatic to be here.

The afternoon light was dimming and we wanted to set up camp for the night somewhere further south. The campervan stopped at a beautiful lake called Diana’s Basin. We were the only campers there for the entire night. It was super peaceful, little to no wind and only one light shower of rain which brought on a very cosy feel as we ate and listened to the gentle tapping sound of water droplets hitting the campervan. Once again, falling asleep was incredibly easy.

We woke up fresh to a flaming red sky, went outside for a stretch and had a thought to watch the sunrise over the ocean. A quick drive down the road revealed a driveway to a beach carpark. We made it right on time! The golden rays began sparkling over the watery horizon as we watched in awe. The calming effect from the sun was only being balanced out by our excitement for being the only people in sight on this beautiful beach watching waves lapping themselves over a few rocks and reflecting the golden light into our eyes.

Now it was time to head off on our second full day of adventure down the east coastline of Tasmania! That is a story for another day/post though. 🙂