One off the Bucket List

I was trying to figure out what to get my Mum for her birthday, and then remembered us chatting about going to the west coast of Tasmania sometime.  I've never actually been and either has Mum. As a child I remember Mum always saying 'I hate the west coast' which is why we never went, but now that we talk about it, she says she hated the idea of the long drive to the west coast.  We are very spoilt with everything being so close in Tasmania so anything longer than a 3 hour drives, seems too far! 

I rang her last week to tell her that I'd booked a night in Strahan and a cruise on the Gordon River for her and the four of us, and she was very excited, as it's something that she's had on her bucket list to do. 

It was a 3 1/2 hour drive from Mum's house and I was amazed at how beautiful the drive was as we got closer to the coast. We were oohing and aahing the whole way down at the mountains and forests we were driving through. We were happy when we finally got to Strahan. 

We couldn't check into our accommodation for a couple of hours so we had lunch and then went to Ocean Beach which was so beautiful. 

Jay and Kobe were keen to get in even though we had no towels in the car! 

Mum was tired even before we went on the cruise which was an afternoon/evening cruise. 

I decided to do the World Heritage Cruise after researching both companies that do them, and just after I decided which one to do, there was a pop up on the website of the other company, saying they weren't doing cruises for a week because of Covid restrictions (I'm assuming they had no staff to run it). It made me nervous that our cruise may also be cancelled, but we were lucky. 

I'd been telling the boys that it was a six hour cruise and Mum thought I was joking until she saw the sign outside the cruise office and then said 'on it really IS six hours!!'.  The cruise started at 3:15 pm. 

When we got to Strahan it was really cloudy, but just before the cruise started the sun came out and it was a beautiful warm day. We had allocated seating inside the boat, but were able to go out on the deck whenever we wanted. We went straight up to the top deck (there were three).  

The cruise took us to Hells Gates first which is a narrow entry from the Southern Ocean to Macquarie Harbour.  There were absolutely beautiful beaches. 

Then it went to Liberty Point and stopped close by the aquaculture pens which were full of Atlantic salmon and ocean trout. 

Inside the boat they had a commentary and information on TV screens about the area and its history. They talked a lot about the aboriginal communities and convicts. 

The next stop was at Sarah Island where we got off the boat for about 45 minutes for a guided tour. You also have the option of doing a self guided tour, but I wanted to hear about the history from someone who knew it well. 

Our tour guide was a guy called David and he was very funny and enthusiastic. He taught us a lot about Sarah Island which was the harshest convict settlement in Australia and one of the largest ship building yards. 

Once we got back on the boat we were served a light dinner of fresh Tasmanian produce including salmon, meats, cheeses, and salads.  Kobe was disappointed to get the child's option but happy when I shared my salmon with him. 

Just after dinner, the cruise reached the world heritage wilderness area, which was absolutely beautiful.  It just went on and on and on, with incredible forests on each side of the river. 

The boat then stopped at Heritage Landing where we got off for a short walk around a boardwalk within the forest. 

One of the workers from the cruise came off the boat to tell us about the flora and fauna within the forest. 

There was a small black tiger snake just behind the fence near the boardwalk which everyone was excited to see (and I was glad it wasn't moving!). 

The boat headed back up the Gordon River very slowly to Strahan until it hit the harbour and then it picked up speed. 

It started to get cold so we headed back inside just as the sun was setting.  We got back into Strahan about 9:15 pm and were so tired even though we sat for most of the day. It was a big day of driving and cruising, but it was incredible and so worth it.  Mum had a wonderful time and I'm glad we were able to cross something off her bucket list for her birthday. 

The next day we headed home through Queenstown.  It was such a cool little town with lots of awesome old buildings.  

At the top of the lookout a local told us about playing footy on the gravel oval and told us lots about the mines there. It was like having our own tour guide! 

I loved the west coast more than I thought I would, and it made me realise even more how lucky we are to live in Tasmania and just how beautiful it is. I want to go back and do the West Coast Wilderness Railway next. 

On the way home to Mum's we made another quick stop at Guide Falls which is a quick 5 minute walk from the carpark. 

The last time we went there it was winter and there was a lot more water, but it was still beautiful. 

I'm so glad that we could cross something off Mum's bucket list for her 69th birthday.  I can't wait to go back down again and discover more of the west coast.