Fri 31 Jan 2025: Launceston to Sydney - Day 8

Friday 31/01/2025 Launceston to Sydney 

8:30am wakeup. No glucose test strips. 

9:00 breakfast- boiled egg lettuce ham sandwich 

10:00am check out 

NC puts luggage in car. 

Drive via Beaconsfield to The Lavender House.

JT gets horse rub and tiger balm

Drive back to Beaconsfield to use loo. 

NC buys caramel drumstick icecream

12:50pm Lunch at Exeter bakery 

Chicken carbonara, curried scallop, chunky steak pies and spinach ricotta roll, can monster juice. I pay. Eat in bakery. 

1:00pm back on the road.

Stop at Bradys Lookout. 

KC buys mixed berries icecream cone. So big. We were going to get 2, but it’s big. Girl is kind enough to not make another one. Instead she gives me a cup and spoon, so I can have some of KCs.

Have a look at the lookout. NC and JT already up at lookout.

Back down JT buys a kilo of premium cherries $30/kg.

They are big, juicy and sweet. Eat them while driving into Launceston.

Drive to Launceston city. NC wants to go to Shopping Arcade. Drive around looking for parking. Pull into outdoor car park but it’s $5/hr. Decide to go to another car park just up from it. $2.60 for first hr. 

Park in parking lot $3.90 - 

Walk street and shops

Elm, Cotton On, Pandora, Target, Harris Scarfe.

NC buys boba drinks- Mango passion fruit popping soda - really really sweet. 

Drive to Office Works/JBHifi. Eat in car.

Have mince beef with salad. Raspberries.

Drive to KMart. Others go down. I’m tired 🥱. Rest in car.

Drive to Subway but no parking. End up parking in Woolworths parking. NC goes to buy Subway. Pack fruits in baggage. 

Drive to airport. Stop at United petrol to refill car. 

Drop NC and JC with luggage and drive to Avis return. Drop key off inside counter. 

They have checked in and putting on luggage tags

NC eats his subway outside 

We go to toilets 

Go through security- full body xray

7:30pm in lounge- check out shop

7:50pm boarding via Gate 3

8:00pm on board Jetstar flight 750

8:25pm in the air

8:44pm serving food.

Pie/sausage roll x2 1/2 price $6

Pringles x 2 $5

Water x 2 $4

Soft drinks x 2 $5

Have mini pie and sausage roll with sauce. 9:08pm have medication.

Will arrive early 

10:00pm out at Baggage claim. walk to express pickup and Lily arrives at same time.

11:00pm home and unpacking 

Shower and set washer

12:18am in bed

Thu 30 Jan 2025: Devonport/ Taste Trail - Day 7

Thursday 30/01/2025 Devonport/Taste trail 

9:30am out of bed

Devonport KMart

Buy $17 USB drive and $15 duffle bag

Filled up petrol

Burger King. NC orders online- go through drive through to pick up.

1:00pm Stop at Parramatta Creek to eat burgers.

Chicken burger and fries - MT

Whopper burger and fries- KC and NC

Cheeseburger and fries- JT

Pee stop 

1:50pm The Truffle Farm - Doug the dog is out working. 

Taste test oil’s and honey 

Buy 3 pack for $100 - truffle balsamic truffle honey and truffle cream. Drive 10 min up the road. Dirt road to store front.

2:16pm Truffles of Tassie. Friendly ocker guy. 

Gives history and how truffles are grown in roots of oak trees - 2 different types of oak. But both are winter truffles. Dogs sniff out the truffles. 

Buy gift packs at $60 each (pepperberry truffle salt and black truffle oil) 

Melita Honey. Still same as 5 yrs ago. Honey tasting. JT buys lip balm.

KC buys honey ice cream. I have 1 scoop Honey Chocolate in cone.

Drive down road to toilets. Information board and park.

3:40pm 41 degrees south

$5 tasting plate (smoked salmon, salmon rillett, pepperberry salt gingseng spice

One island sauce $12

Pepperberry sea salt $13

Ginseng Spice $ 15

4:00pm closing. We skip ice creamery across the road. Drive to farm.

4:19pm Raspberry Hills Farm

Raspberry Ice cream $6 -MT

Raspberry chiller - NC

Raspberry hot chocolate- KC

Freshly picked raspberries $11 for 300gm

KC pays

Sit in garden to eat raspberries, ice cream, drinks 

Garden is being landscaped. Cannot walk to bushes.

4:45pm leave farm to drive back to Shearwater 

5:26pm Shearwater beach. Park on side road and walk down to beach. Walk out and around rock formations. Lots of soldier crabs.

6:00pm Woolworths- NC buys sausages 

6:30pm back at resort 

7:00pm NC and JT bbq chicken and sausages 

7:45pm dinner- lobster noodles with salad and chicken wing. Cheese and gerkins.

Too tired- nap on couch 

10:00pm pack. Glad we got the duffle bag. Can fit the Braun mixer into a hard case with my Reliquare purchases and puffer jackets. 

2 NC and 2 KC packing cells go into duffle bag with 1 JT packing cell. Food is in 1 hard case and smaller hard case.

Watching Madonna special 

Shower and continue packing 

Will finish packing tomorrow 

12:12 in bed

Wed 29 Jan 2025: Cradle Mountain and Sheffield - Day 6

Wednesday 29/01/2025 Cradle Mountain and Sheffield 

Up at 7:30am 

Prep stuff for lunch 

Have pancake 🥞 

Out the door at 8:50am

10:20am arrive at Cradle Mt Visitors centre.

Toilets. Very chilly. But hot in sun.

Buy day pass and shuttle bus tickets- KC paid

No need to display NP pass in car - only need it if driving through and visiting NP.

10:30am shuttle bus to Dove Lake

11:00am Dove Lake

Walk trail to Glacier Rock. 

11:12am Glacier Rock

Walk back and head to the boathouse. 

11:45am The Boathouse 

Back to catch bus

12:30pm bus back to Ronny Creek

12:40pm lunch at Ronny Creek - wraps with ham, salad, tomato, carrots. The blow flys are huge.

1:03pm walk part of the overland track .

1:30pm KC checks out Walheim Chalet on her own. 

2:00pm back on bus

2:18pm Ranger Station 

2:30pm Pencil Pines Falls

3:24pm spot echidna on the side of the road as we are driving back to Sheffield 

4:18pm Honey at Sheffield 

4:30pm Sheffield Visitor Information Centre

4:40pm Murals on display 

4:50pm walk streets looking for murals

5:10pm head back to resort 

6:00pm back at resort 

6:10pm update diary eating cheese and crackers with pickles 

7:00pm lobster noodles with chow and lettuce 

8:00pm shower, wash hair - my face is really sun kissed. 

Jigsaw 

Watch TV : Jelena Dokic

Tue 28 Jan 2025: Smithton Stanley - Day 5

Tuesday 28/01/2025 Smithton/Stanley 

11:00am out the door 

Drive to Devonport to fill up petrol 

Drive to Smithton

1:09pm Information Centre has cafe and displays as well as cheese tasting.

Use toilets

1:33pm Tarkine oysters. Dine in

Dozen natural oysters $34

Mixed seafood entree $25

2x Seafood chowder - mini combo (smaller serve of chowder with choice of any 3 oysters and a small warm slider bun) $26 

- tomato salsa with raspberry vinegar

-salmon with creme fraiche & thai dressing 

-kilpatrick

-garlic butter bacon 

-sweet chilli bacon

-lemon lime & mint granita

Small fries with aioli $6

2:58pm lookout 

3:18pm Stanley 

3:30pm Climb the Nut. 

Nathan does the circuit, we meet up at lookout. 

Over 13 million years ago, lava shot through the Earth’s surface, cooled and formed basalt. Aboriginal people called it Moo- Nut-Re-Ker. Matthew Flinders in 1798 compared it to a Christmas cake. By 1851, other sailors knew it as the Nut, and the name has stuck. 

5:08pm Hursey seafood.

7:00pm back at Woolworths and Fish and chips from 16/11 Poyston Drive, Shearwater TAS. 

Fish (flake) x2 $10.95, fish bites (3) x2 $6.00, calimari (3) x1 $7.50, potato scallops x2 $2.00c medium chips $6.00

7:40pm Back at resort 

Make salad

8:00pm dinner

Fish, chips, salad, oysters, sweet chilli octopus 

8:35pm feeling better after food. JT cooks the lobster ready for tomorrow's dinner.

Coconut drink 

11:30pm sleep