If you’re planning to drive straight from Hobart to Port Arthur like a bat out of hell, think again. Adjust your watch to “Holiday Time” and prepare yourself for a very stop-start journey. Perhaps, even more stop than start. Otherwise, you might as well just get out your pencil and ruler and play join the dots.
“The creative process is not like a situation where you get struck by a single lightning bolt. You have ongoing discoveries, and there’s ongoing creative revelations. Yes, it’s really helpful to be marching toward a specific destination, but, along the way, you must allow yourself room for your ideas to blossom, take root, and grow.”
Carlton Cuse
At the same time, Port Arthur is a destination you don’t want to miss. More than an education, it’s an experience. You do need to get there.
So what did we find along the way?
Dunalley Bay
Dunalley Bay, Tasmania.
I’m a sucker for a great beach and another photo opportunity. What can I say? I’m an absolute addict but at least my photography addiction isn’t hurting anybody (just don’t ask the rest of my family!) We really loved the streaky ripple effects in the sand here. Of course, it also helps when the weather cooperates so nicely.
Father & Son at Dunalley Bay.
The Tessellated Pavement State Reserve
The
Tessellated Pavement State Reserve is located on the
Tasman Peninsula near Eaglehawk Neck.
However, before we get too bogged down in geological explanations, let’s just pause for a moment and fully absorb the stunning view before we tackle the stairs. I assure you that you don’t need to be a photography addict to go absolutely crazy here and wish for something with far more grunt than your phone camera.
Now, getting back to the tessellated pavement…
Unless you’ve been here before or you’re a fully-fledged geologist, you could well be asking…
“What on earth is a tessellated pavement and why should I stop here, especially when time is short?”
Well, here’s a brief geology lesson…
A tessellated pavement has nothing to do with concrete footpaths. Rather, it’s an inter-tidal rock platform. Tessellated pavements are a common coastal landform. However, on the Tasman Peninsula an unusual set of geological circumstances have resulted in something truly amazing.
The kids also enjoyed exploring the rock crevices for anemones, little black crabs and more.
The flat-lying siltstone was cracked by stresses in the Earth’s crust, possibly between 160 million years ago and 60 million years ago. The resulting cracks (joints) are seen as three main sets, one aligned to the north-northeast, a second to the east-northeast and the third to the north-northwest. This jointing, exaggerated by processes of erosion, has created the ‘tiled’ appearance.
When seawater covers the rock platform, fragments of rock are carried away. Near the seaward edge of the platform, sand is the main cause of the erosion.
When combined with wave action the erosional process causes ‘loaf’ or ‘pan’ formations.1.”
Anyway, that’s enough geology. You can read more about it
here. I’m more interested in getting down those stairs and getting seeing what I can see through the lens.
The Tasman Blowhole
The Tasman Blow Hole.
In case you hadn’t worked it out by now, I have quite a thing for photographing intriguing rock formations. Add surging water and kaboom!! You have photographic magic. Time to fiddle with the settings on my camera to experiment a bit…fast, slow. Thank goodness for digital photography where you can experiment to your heart’s content without going broke. Our honeymoon in New Zealand had some hefty financial after shocks processing 50 rolls of film. Ouch! That could’ve paid for a backyard wedding.
Doo Town
Located 79 km southeast of Hobart,
Doo Town is a holiday village in Pirate’s Bay where the house names contain “doo”. This “phenomenon” began in 1935 a Hobart architect, Eric Round, placed the name plate
Doo I 99 on his weekend shack. A neighbor, Charles Gibson, responded with a plate reading
Doo Me then Bill Eldrige with
Doo Us. Eric Round later renamed his shack
Xanadoo.[1][2]
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I first visited Doo Town on my first trip to Tassie in 1995. I’ve never forgotten the bus driver introducing us to Doo Town. Being a procrastinator, I’ve never forgotten “Gunnerdoo”. Indeed, it would be a very apt name for our current home, which is a renovating dreamer’s homage to an endless list of unfinished projects. Indeed, it has way too many applications to mention!
Tasmanian Devil Unzoo
We didn’t have time to make it here but I wanted to give it a mention. You can read more about it
here.…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Although I advocated taking your time and stopping rather than driving straight to Port Arthur, you will need plenty of energy to cover the vast distances at Port Arthur. So, you’ll need to pace yourself to ensure you don’t come to a grinding halt. We very nearly did.
xx Rowena
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your beautiful pictures remind me of the Oregon coastline…I would of been stopping all along the way….what fun….xxkat
It’s just as well we all love nature and photography.