Water
Sports
Boat or sailing
cruises are well known ways to explore the port cities
of Launceston and Hobart, as well as the outlying islands. Tamar
river cruises offer short morning, lunch, afternoon and evening
tours on Tamar River in Launceston.
Companies functioning around Hobart include Port Arthur Cruises
and Hobart Cruises to Peppermint Bay, and Derwent River Cruises.
Gordan River Cruises operate out of Strahan on the west
coast, where the World Heritage listed South West Tasmanian coast
can be explored. These can easily be arranged on Tasmania’s
the Huon River, with its orchards and salmon farms; the Pieman and
Arthur rivers in the north west of the island, or the mighty Gordon
River which flows through the rainforest in the World Heritage Area.
Options for more active visitors are sea kayaking
(kayaks and equipment can be hired and guided voyages arranged,
this is possible in Hobart and Freycinet National Park on the east
coast and Strahan on the west coast) or rafting on the Franklin,
Derwent, Picton, Arthur, South Esk, Mersey and Meander rivers. Trips
can last from 1 to 11 days.
Jet boating,
on flat water or on the rapids, is possible on the Derwent, Huon
or King rivers. Speeds average 70 kilometres per hour (43 miles
per hour). Diving is a brilliant way to explore
the shipwrecks and kelp forests near King and Flinders Islands.
Professional dive operators around the islands and the east coast
all offer equipment for hire.
Outdoor Activities
Tasmania’s air is believed to be the cleanest in the inhabited
world. Its pristine scenery and balmy climate make it perfect for
lovers of the outdoors. Furthermore, the island
contains the biggest expanse of temperate wilderness in the world,
a unique landscape, rightly listed as a heritage site.
On land, visitors can experience the stunning countryside in a variety
of ways. Cycling can be undertaken independently
or on pre arranged tours. A preferred route is from Devonport to
Launceston via the dramatic Elephant Pass, and possibly all the
way south to Hobart.
Mountain bikers
can choose forest trails in the reserves, and those looking for
strenuous activity can ride ‘The Wild Way’ through the
World Heritage Area. All terrain touring to more isolated and wilder
areas can be arranged through specialist operators.
Transport is in 4 wheel drive vehicles or 4
wheeled motorcycles, well suited to the island’s
extensive network of off road trails. For aerial views, wilderness
flights can be booked in Hobart, these travel over the mountains
towards the south western wilderness.
Wildlife
Tasmania’s 20 national parks are home to
a wide variety of animals, many of them unique to the island. They
include possums, wombats, platypus, wallabies, fairy penguins and
the rare orange bellied parrot. The Tasmanian Devil, a small, black,
dog like marsupial can be readily seen at night in the Narawntapu-,
Mount William- and Cradle National Parks. Although they look fierce,
they are not usually harmful to humans.
The hunt still continues for the so called Tasmanian Tiger or thylacine,
which have not been sighted for 60 years and thought to be extinct.
This creature, actually a marsupial wolf, is the state’s official
mascot. |
