Southern Tour Day 9: Departing Tasmania

By the numbers

1 bus

1 ferry

17,598 steps

13.45 kms

 

With the return of clock going backwards and daylight saving going away for another couple of months, I was awake early on a Monday and unable to get back to sleep. Today was the day I would be embarking on an odyssey with bus transport to Devonport and then the ferry that would take me to Melbourne, where I will fall off after getting back to the Australian mainland. I headed down stairs for breakfast, although I think I should stick to having light breakfasts as I tend to have a funny tummy that I don’t seem to learn my lesson about during my trips like eating small and having a decent meal at dinner. If I see something I want to eat I will eat it obviously. I had everything put on my tab so the day I checkout was when I had to pay for the food, so I wasn’t too worried as I knew what I was in for, but I probably shouldn’t be eating two continental style breakfasts two days in a row. I had been happy with sandwiches, but I didn’t know who sold those in Launceston. If I knew like a convenience store or Supermarket then I would have had several in the fridge. Not really a complaint at all.

 

Once I had sorted out everything that I had needed to and checked out. I headed around the corner to where the transit centre was. The reason I tend to book places close to where I am leaving from is so that I don’t need to walk very far and even if the room is expensive I am near the hub and not carry a heavy bag too far. I have done it before and is not much in the way of fun at all. Some places I have made an exemption for like Auckland and Wellington as I know where the decent locations are to stay. The transit centre for the local bus service to Devonport said I had to check at the counter and then they wanted my bag as I don’t take it to the bus. I got a little worried my bag wouldn’t make it and when I was boarding, I had a look to make sure even though I was likely just paranoid.. The bus would take at least two hours to Devonport and then I can go from there to the ferry, even though the ferry was doing a night run. I had made sure I was doing an early evening trip instead of something like a 10pm journey. Since we have to wear masks on public transport, some passengers couldn’t see that I was laughing at their comments. A bunch of older ladies were chatting away and one of them said she would happily let a talk dark and handsome someone sit next to her and then said she wouldn’t mind if it was a lady as some of them could be handsome.

 

It really didn’t take too long to get into Devonport, although I was busting to use the toilet even though I could have used the one on the bus if I wanted to. Make sure the door is locked and all that jazz. I ended up at the information centre, which I was happy that I had ended up being opposite. I was able to leave my bags with them at the info desk. Not always the best policy, but it was something I was willing to do as the ladies would be keeping an eye on my gear and I would be walking without bags on my back. I spoke to them about transport options to the Spirit of Tasmania as I had two like walk an hour or catch a bus. I was given a third option that surprised me. I could get the ferry service over as it was an on demand thing. I went to check it out, but had to double back as there was construction in the way and I wasn’t walking on the side of the road. I found the ferry and what it looked like and the main ferry to Melbourne was in Devonport as well, so I got to see what it looked like. Pretty sure it is bigger than the one between Wellington and Picton.

 

My walking plan was to head towards the Mersey Bluff lighthouse for reasons other than it was a lighthouse and could be a good walk. The weather was clear and it was a hot sunny day and i was working up a sweat as I barrelled along at a good pace since I had nothing holding me down. I had told the info desk that I would return around 2pm. I followed the walking trail that would take me all the way round to the lighthouse. I passed the local war memorial for the First World War and also a museum that I had thought to visit, but I left that for the next time I was in the city. The water was clear and there were no waves when I reached the entrance of the river. I made my way up to the lighthouse and experienced an annoying buzzing sound of a drone as some tourists were using it to take pics of themselves in front of the lighthouse and trying for the best light. I mean all I do is point and shoot. I was following my Google maps, but for some reason throughout my trip to Tasmania it needed to be calibrated. I have no idea why it keeps losing signal. Down the hill was a pioneer cemetery for Mersey Bluff and I was expecting something of a decent size, but it was a bunch of headstones in a fence behind the caravan park. The original cemetery was located nearby, but they were unsure and there had been quite a few burials. I thought at this time I should be returning to the town. On the way back I heard tooting and those were getting closer. First time in Tasmania I had come across the railway lines being used for freight.

 

Once I was able to get into the info centre again, I picked up my bags to make my way to the ferry terminal. A brief stop to eat two muesli bars for lunch and off I went. The Spirit of Devonport was waiting for me when I walked down the dock. It only cost $4 to get to the other side, but I was happy to be able to do that. I asked the skipper what the ships were bringing in as there was a cargo ship coming in. She said it was a petrol ship as thats what 40% of the Tasmanian fuel arrived here as. It was a little bit of a hike to the ferry terminal and I was starting to feel the sun, so thought I had gotten a little too much sun since it had been hot. I arrived at the terminal not long after 2pm and checkin was around 5pm. I was happy to sit and read a book with a drink. I had also arranged my bags so that I had a spare pair of clothes so I could have a shower in my cabin. I had gotten a private one. Also I had my chargers on my person. I had to drop my bags off to the people as I was boarding and I soon learnt my ticket was what I used to enter the room as it was my key, so had to make sure it was flat. The ship had plenty of things to see like a games room, several food courts and movie theatres. They even had a quiet area for reading books. I had dropped my bag off before exploring and once I had finished eating I had forgotten to put on my mask and was most apologetic to the customer service guy. He knew I was genuine as I was shocked really as I had placed it in my pocket. Once I had done my souvenir shopping I retreated to my cabin for a shower and relax. I soon found I had gotten sunburnt in Tassie, thats unheard of. I will be arriving in Melbourne bright and early. I had my travel card ready for use.