Wineglass Bay

 With another busy day ahead of us we were up early and walking to the pickup point the another Pennicott Cruises we had booked for today. Even the walk to the jetty gave us glimpses of what were had in store for us today. 

This one is a little different to the last as it was a much bigger boat and this one included lunch. We set off from Coles Bay and around the point to Hazards Bay. The cruise captain, who also gave us the commentary for the day told us that he thought that this beach was even better than the more famous Wineglass Bay.

This beach was at the bottom of the Hazard Mountain range which is named after whaler, Captain Richard Hazard. The range consists of five mountains; Mayson, Amos, Dove, Baudin and Parson.

These ranges are made from pink granite. In 1934 two young Italian brothers, Mario and Biagio Zanchetta, came to Australia to work on the Sydney Harbour Bridge but by the time they got here the bridge was finished. The young stonemasons found themselves in Tasmania and saw an opportunity to commercially quarry Freycinet’s pink granite. This was all done manually taking days to drill into the large rocks the using wet wood to expand the holes. This was back breaking and dangerous work and one of the brothers lost an eye when they started using explosives in the later years. The pink granite they mined can be found in a number of prominent buildings around Tasmania and also the rest of Australia.

Like the coastline on the Tasman Peninsula, this coast line is equally stunning although quite different. There are many interesting caves and again the captain was very skilled at making sure that everyone on the boat had the opportunity to get a good view.

The wildlife was abundant again with the familiar seals sunning themselves or floating around in the water. I’m sure they put on a show for the tourists because it sure looks like they are waiving to us.

A bit further around the coast we came to Waterfall Bay. This is very aptly named as there are numerous waterfalls cascading down the cliffs. This was a bay where ships stopped to refill the fresh water on their ships.

On next stop was Wineglass Bay. This bay is included in the top ten beaches in the world. However, it comes second to Whitehaven Beach in Queensland. Although I couldn’t walk on this beach, I don’t know how you choose between the two as they are both stunning beaches and just as beautiful in reality.

We spent almost an hour in the bay as this is where we were served a delicious lunch. Lunch quite a surprise because we all thought we would get a salad roll or something like that but we were all served individual boxes with a mixture of salad, meats, cheese and biscuits as well as fruit and a delicious piece of chocolate hedgehog for dessert. All this was also served with a glass of wine.

With the trip drawing to a close we headed back to Coles Bay. We thought we had been spoilt with the scenery and the wildlife but to our surprise the captain spotted a pod of dolphins.

We were able to get up really close to watch splashing and feeding all around us. There were dozens of them and it was hard to know where to look. After watching them for a while, the boat sped up and some of the more inquisitive ones start to follow the boat. It’s incredible how fast they can move.

Seeing the dolphins made our day so we were happy to head for home.

After returning to the caravan park, we decided we this would be our only chance to walk up to the Wineglass Bay lookout to see the bay from another view. None of really felt like doing it but knew we would be disappointed if we didn’t. As we headed up the hundreds of steps, I felt like it would never end and at one point I didn’t think I was going to make it until I realised that I had just overheated. So, I took off my hat, had a quick rest and a drink and I was good to go again.

Everyone that was coming down would say “not far to go, but it’s worth it”. I’m sure that’s code for you’re nowhere near it. Once we reached the top it was worth it, the views are spectacular and I’m so glad I kept going.

After spending a bit of time and taking heaps of photos, we headed back down.

To make the most of the rest of the afternoon, we decided to call into Cape Tourville lighthouse and although it’s not the most impressive lighthouse I’ve seen, the views made up for it. It would be a great viewing spot for whale watching.

 

We finished off the day with a delicious meal at the Coles Bay Pub.

Another fantastic day…it just keeps getting better and better!