Coles Bay, Swansea, Triabunna, Dunnally, Port Arthur, Hobart, Hamilton, Tarraleah, Derwent Bridge, Queenstown and Strahan

We've not had internet for ages so this is a big entry. Hope you enjoy it.

We cycled from Bicheno to Coles Bay in the pouring down rain as we couldn't spend any longer in our cabin in Bicheno. We spent the night in the oldest caravan in the world but at least we could get dry.

The next day was roasting hot and we went on a very busy but very lovely walk to see Wineglass Bay. In the afternoon we cycled a short distance to our 'ferry' and Kirk took us over a very small stretch of water to save us from cycling all around the bay. We had another hot day and we were very thirsty when we made it to Swansea.

Over the next couple of days we cycled to Port Arthur. We cycled on some unsealed roads which were really hard work but very very quiet.

On the way we stopped at the Tasmanian Devil Sanctuary and had a wonderful afternoon. Between 80-90% of the devil population has died in the last few years due to a strange cancer that is passed on from devil to devil through biting. The few sanctuaries that exist are therefore imperative if the devil population is to survive into the future. We got to see a couple of feeding sessions and it was pretty gruesome but also very amusing. They eat all parts of the animal including hair, fur and bones - lovely! They also fight like crazy.

Here's the mum with 3 or her 4 babies:

The sound of the bone being crunched was horrible:

Here's one of the 4 babies sun bathing:

Big Yawn!

We also saw some joeys that had only just started coming out of the pouch. Really cute:

Nic and me acting our age:

We also saw a fab bird show. This clever Corella collected a dollar coin from my hand and took it to its trainer and then it brought it back to me.

We had a couple of days in Port Arthur and went around the original town. In 1830 a penal station was established here using convict labour and in 1833 it started to be used as a punishment centre for repeat offenders. By 1840 more than 2000 convicts, soldiers and civil staff lived here and in 1853 they stopped the convict transportation to Van Diemens Land. The history of this place is both shocking and amazing and it's also very beautiful.

We got the bus from Port Arthur to Hobart and had 3 nights at a YHA. It felt weird staying in a hostel again and watching people have strange food e.g. coleslaw for breakfast!

On Saturday we visited the very popular weekly Salamanca markets and then had a picnic in the park, where there was a hippie festival on and we got to have a go at spinning plates (as you do!)

We also went to the oldest brewery in Australia and tasted some of their offerings.

We also went on 'Louia's Walk' which is strolling theatre which tells the true story of a lady who is arrested in London for stealing a loaf of bread. She is then convicted and sent to Van Diemens Land. The female convicts were sent to the Female Factory Women's Prison in Hobart. She had to leave behind her 3 children even though she was a widow. There were only 2 actors and it took 2 hours. It was very moving and a great experience.

We left Hobart and had 5 days of cycling to get to Strahan on the west coast. We climbed to over 800 metres and it was very hard work but very rewarding. We had a 10km downhill that was awesome. We've met some lovely people on the way and one evening a German man provided us with beer and food.

The scenery in the last few days has been stunning and we really felt like we were in the wilderness.

We've had possums in the tent on a couple of occasions trying to steal our food and we've also heard them growling a lot!

Today we had a day off and had a cruise on the Gordon River. It rains here on 300 days of the year and today it was sunny all day. Very lucky. Here is a view of a light house that they normally don't get to see as it's generally too rough:

We got off the boat and had a guided walk around Sarah's Island. This is were they used to send the convicts before they decided to send them to Port Arthur instead. It has a shocking history of terrible brutality.

The rain forest in this whole area is ancient and dense - very beautiful.

Well that's it for now. We have another week in Tassie and then we get the ferry back to Melbourne.