Day 8 (14-Mar-15) Strahan - Hobart (316 km)

As expected the weather had turned for the worse overnight, and we departed on the long, exposed and lonely drive over the ‘Great Divide’ that separates the wet, wild and fertile western half of Tasmania, from its semi-arid eastern half. The first port of call was Queenstown, which is the complete antithesis of its namesake in South Island, New Zealand. While the latter is a ski resort set among stunning pristine landscapes, the former is a now a rundown copper mining town, set among some of the worst environmental damage I have ever seen – entire mountainsides devoid of foliage and then laid bare by the subsequent loss of all top soil. This was entirely unexpected, and given the gloomy weather, left both Astrid and I feeling very depressed. Frankly, we were glad to leave town as quickly as possible, though this meant having to travel up through the mountains that had been so badly scarred by the mining boom. 

We then continued along then Lyell Highway to Derwent Bridge, where we exited left to enter Lake St Clair National Park. The visitors centre at the park marks the end of the famed Overland Track – a four day hike from Dove Lake at the foot of Cradle Mountain that is rated as one of the best in the world of comparable distance. In order to revive from the arduous driving we elected to go for a brisk hike, linking three separate routes – Watersmeet, Platypus Bay and Larmairremene Tabelti. Platypus Bay is so named as it not uncommon to spot these animals along the shoreline of Lake St. Clair. Alas, despite our best endeavours, we failed to spot any, leaving us seriously ‘miffed’. Nonetheless, the rest of the outward journey was very enjoyable, and afforded us glimpses of the entire lake, which is very sizeable. We also encountered a number of hikers that were completing the final stage of the Overland Track, and were clearly relishing the prospect of a hot shower and dry clothing. Their appearance was a stark reminder that the western half of Tasmania has very high rainfall - indeed on average it rains for 8 days in every 10.  

As if to remind us of this fact the heavens poured forth on the return leg back to the Visitor Centre, soaking us to the skin. However, given the oppressive heat that we’ve had to endure in Queensland over the past four months, we found the experience very ‘refreshing’, and it certainly seemed to invigorate the lush green forest around us, with the lichen and moss soaking up the rain to reveal their brilliant green and red hues. Once back at the car we continued our journey towards Hobart, encountering a handful of other vehicles at most during this 175km stretch.

On arrival in Hobart we dumped our gear at the hotel, which turned out to be a bit rundown, but ideally located close to the harbour. After traipsing around Battery Point we decided to retreat to a restaurant specialising in seafood and gorged ourselves on the 'catch of the day' – all of it going by the ‘selfie’ photos of the many dishes we ate. As is customary in such establishments, the entire feast was accompanied by copious wine. Astrid and I then staggering back to the Hotel, with bloated stomachs, and feeling decidedly light-headed.