Cycling Tasmania

[crog]

Hi all thinking of catching the ferry across from Melbourne to Tasmania and cycling the area for a week, likely staying in hotels / motels as need to tow 18month old and wife will need to tow the bob with clothes etc

Any body done it and any suggested routes??

Would be doing this around christmas.

Other thoughts are riding the great ocean road to Portland but Tassy seems to be the favorite

che

[Tale]

Does the ferry mean you start in Devonport, Launceston or Hobart?

It's 12 years since I went around Tassie on a bike, but the east coast was my favourite bit. Going from Launceston to the east coast involves crossing big hills, but once you're on the east coast it's mostly flat riding through relaxed beach towns. Freycinet National Park was beautiful.

Other good cycling areas were west of Launceston to Devonport (rolling farms like England) and immediately north of Hobart (historic towns). Going to Port Arthur was a trip in itself - a long way south and back on the same route.

The Cradle Mountain area is stunning, but there are steep climbs to get there. On the west coast, Strahan was a bit odd - nice scenery, but a dead river feeds into the silted up bay thanks to mining. East of there, Queenstown is an alien desert, with vegetation unable to grow due to the mining history. A shadeless landscape is not good for cyclists.

In central Tassie, one thing to watch out for was logging trucks. Huge, heavy, common on country roads and give no quarter to cyclists - best answer was get off the road if one was coming. Ultra-stinky roadkill is another memory - squished Tasmanian Devils in particular are very smelly. East of Hobart, the main road went across bays on causeways which in 1996 had no cycle lane - quite scary, especially as I crossed them in a storm.

[Matt_Matt]

This may help

http://members.iinet.net.au/~jdekter/Ta ... _2007.html


Matt

[il padrone]

Some piccies of our tour of Tassie a couple of years ago

http://family.webshots.com/album/558472730VpaQAX

[heavymetal]

The ferry comes into Devonport, you could take the coast road west through Ulverstone, Penguin to Burnie. The road is good in most places.

Depending on your time, you could continue west to Stanley, or head south towards Cradle Mountain and loop back to Devonport.

Kev.

[Matt_Matt]

The ferry comes into Devonport, you could take the coast road west through Ulverstone, Penguin to Burnie. The road is good in most places.

Depending on your time, you could continue west to Stanley, or head south towards Cradle Mountain and loop back to Devonport.

Kev.

Hey, welcome back !

How's tassie treating you?



Matt

[John Lewis]

We've ridden in Tas twice. Took our LoGo trikes.
The first time we carried all our own gear in panniers. Never been away before and most distance we'd ever done was about 20km, mostly fairly flat.

We flew into Devonport. The bikes went to Launceston on a different flight but were delivered by a helpful courier. We camped at Mersey Bluff caravan park and spent a couple of days checking out Devonport, visiting Tim Smith of recumbent building fame and getting up our courage.

First days ride was 57km or so to Deloraine where we had friends to visit. Then we rode on to Launceston , took in Festivale and then down the Midlands Highway ,Evandale, Oatlands and so on until we arrived in Hobart. Usually only did 40 to 50 km a day and spent a lot of time looking around.

Our ave speed with the loaded trikes was only in the order of 12 kmh.

Needless to say we had a great time and met a fantasic bunch of people. Oh yes, nearly forgot, we went back (by car) to Evandale with Richard Hoad ,another bent rider builder, for the Penny Farthing Ch'ships.

We returned last year for the Bike Vic ride down the East Coast. Longest day about 90km. That was a good ride but I think we prefer doing our own thing and not being tied down.

We will be going back again. Perhaps the West Coast.

I think what ever you decide you'll have a great time.

John Lewis