Tuesday 2^nd February 2016

The road out of the peninsula took us through the town of Coles Bay, and as we needed to post Maisie’s birthday card (having forgotten to do so in Hobart!)  we took a detour into the town in search of a postbox.  Typically, the only collection for the day had been made an hour earlier, so that meant it would have 10 days to get to the UK in time for her birthday. From the mainland it would probably make it, but from Tassie? We would just have to keep our fingers crossed!  While in the town we drove to the jetty from which there was a brilliant view of the five peaks of the Hazards Range, and from whence we had just come.

From the jetty in Coles Bay, the peaks of the Hazards Range were clearly visible.

Off we set again in a northerly direction along Coles Bay Road until we rejoined the Tasman Highway, where we turned right and continued our drive north.  At Bicheno we stopped at a rest area for lunch, just off the main road and overlooking the foreshore.  A definite improvement on yesterday’s lunch spot!  After lunch we went for a stroll along the foreshore, before resuming our journey towards the Bay of Fires.

A very pleasant place to have lunch.

And a post-lunch stroll along the Bicheno foreshore.

An hour or so of pleasant driving later, we came to a sign for the Iron House Brewery, and decided to take a break.  This brewery, which is also a winery, is situated in a beautiful spot on the coast called Iron House Point.  Sitting out on their verandah we took in the views of the coast as we sampled some of their beers. 

We tasted six of their beers.  Steve would probably not say “no” to any of them, whereas I found most of them too heavy.

As we made to leave, Steve was tempted to try some of their wine, but was only allowed a couple by the passenger of the van he would soon be driving, aka me!  Having bought a bottle of their Chardonnay, I finally got him back to the van and we continued on our way.  It was already mid-afternoon and we still had another 80 km or so to go to our campsite for the night, endearingly called ‘Cozy Corner’. 

We arrived at the campsite late afternoon and were thrilled with it.  Completely free, it was directly alongside the beautiful sandy beach and orange rocks in the Bay of Fires conservation area.  Having settled the van into a good spot, we went for a stroll along the beach.  We thought the bay got its name from the bright orange lichen that covers the rocks, but not so.  It was given its name in 1773 by Captain Tobias Furneaux, who saw the fires of the Aboriginal people on the beaches from the decks of the “Adventure”.  Whilst there are no longer fires on the beaches, the natural beauty and colour of this bay are spectacular.