An eye on the road in Tasmania

By GRANT BRADLEY

Perhaps the best way to get close to Tasmania's abundant but elusive wildlife is on a bike. What you will see is in varying thicknesses and levels of decomposition but the plentiful road kill along the pleasant lanes and secondary highways of "the Natural state" gives a good insight into the state of fauna.

While road kill horrifies European and American visitors, for a New Zealand bike tourist the odd squashed brush tail possum, blackbird and Tasmanian devil provide a welcome distraction, particularly on the long hauls into the teeth of a brisk headwind with its origins in Antarctica.

My cycling journey in Tasmania begins in Launceston, Australia's third-oldest city, formerly a pub-on-every-corner frontier town at the head of the Tamar River, a navigable waterway which stretches 60km north to Bass Strait.

"Launie" has done well out of the name it shares with Launceston, England, also on a River Tamar. Plans for the Albert Hall mistakenly found their way to Tasmania.

The ever-practical town fathers seized on this and built a hall there not far from where a fountain, destined for the Launceston, England, also found its way to the colonies.

Launceston (Tasmania) now has a better sense of itself and where a big part of its future lies - tourism. With an eye mostly to mainland Australia's weekend travellers, many of the pubs and worker's cottages have been converted into heritage accommodation and cafes.

Many of the apple orchards which used to stretch up the Tamar Valley have been replanted in grapes, while fledgling wineries and cafes offering local cheese and berries make a meander through the area well worthwhile.

I cycled south from Launceston with Tasmanian Expeditions, which has run guided tours through the state's National Parks and back roads for the past 11 years.

My guides, Simon Barnes and Bronwen Wilson, laid out a three-dimensional map of the state with vaguely Himalayan topography in places to the south-west but reassured me that the ride was a fairly mild one for a reasonably fit commuter cyclist. Our route would take us down secondary roads and lanes, following the Macquarie River to Campbell Town and the following day on to Freycinet National Park, a condensed package of a five-day trip which would normally continue to Hobart.

Day one was a fairly straightforward 60km ride through gently undulating farm and prairie country of the Norfolk plains.

We took a 90-minute break at Woolmers Estate, built in 1816 and the oldest property in Australia to have been in the ownership of one family, the Archers. At the heart of what was once a 850ha sheep station, it's a rambling mansion with changing tastes and architectural styles through the ages perfectly preserved. As with most of Tasmania, clues to its convict past are easy to spot, with sturdy locks still on doors dividing the main house.

Cycle enthusiasts should visit nearby Evandale in February for the Pennyfarthing World Championships. It's a hard-out criterion event which this year attracted 90 entrants on solid rubber.

I was in the area around Easter. A biting southerly headwind meant it was no-gain-without-pain cycling and through the endless fields of potatoes (Tasmania provides McDonald's throughout Australia with all its fries) I was beginning to wish I had done what some others on tours did and brought my own bike seat.

Digs in Campbell Town at the faithfully restored Foxhunters Return provided welcome respite. The old coach inn was built in 1834 with convict labour. After their day's toil they would be caged in drafty dungeons beneath the pub, an arrangement that remained for several years while they also completed the nearby Red Bridge.

The next day we headed further south-east and cheated slightly by riding in the backup vehicle to the 640m summit of Hobgoblin, one of several charmingly-named hills. Further south, towards Hobart, cyclists can try Bust-me-gall Hill or Break-me-back Hill.

From the top of Hobgoblin it was a 27km coast to the sea through a forest park. Not all wildlife is squashed on the road and overhead you'll see green rosellas, sulphur-crested cockatoos and flame robins. In the bush, particularly at dusk, watch out for the Bennetts wallaby and, depending where you are in the state, the eastern quoll or insect-eating native cat.

Much of the east coast of Tasmania has white sand beaches, far from the wild, rocky beauty of the west coast. The silica sand and clear waters are thanks to a huge tongue of granite which marched south from Victoria 50 million years ago to surface in a range of peaks at what became the Freycinet Peninsula, now a national park.

We were able to save 60km hard riding by getting a lift in Kirk Dalwood's immaculate tin boat across the entrance to Moulting Harbour to the foot of the peninsula.

Like many Tasmanians, Dalwood is shy about sharing too much about his little patch. The state has a population of around 470,000, while tourist numbers have hit half a million a year. While he's doing his bit - for $A10 ($12) a bike - like other locals he is worried about people staying.

Dalwood and wife Joan found Hobart too hectic 25 years ago and moved north to Coles Bay to get away from it all. But then Coles Bay ballooned to 200 so he packed up his rusting but craftily maintained Land-Rover and trekked 5km north to Swanwick, population 110.

"There were bugger-all people around then. Now this place is well and truly on the map."

On the Swanwick jetty the nuggety odd-job man recalled days of formidable metal roads and a cluster of very simple holiday shacks at Coles Bay. Then, just as quickly as he had rocked up in his boat, he was gone.

Freycinet, named after a French explorer in 1802, was a whaling base in its early days but is now a whale watching launch pad. Southern right whales pass by in the middle of the year.

Freycinet Lodge is a model of low-impact luxury accommodation for the Australian national park system. The rooms lack telephones and televisions but not much more. Nearby Coles Bay has more affordable accommodation and is close to one of the main drawcards of the area - Wineglass Bay. It's a gorgeous crescent of white sand which often pops up in the world's best beach lists.

To get a good view it's a 45-minute hike to the top of the main range and more than double that down to the beach itself for a soak in the clean, clear and typically bracing Tasmanian waters.

* Grant Bradley travelled courtesy of the Australian Tourism Commission.

Casenotes

GETTING THERE: From April 22 Qantas fares start at $969 for return flights to Hobart from Auckland. Watch out for specials.

WHERE TO STAY: Prince Albert Inn, Launceston, rooms start at $A120 ($145), ph (00613) 633 17633; Fox Hunters Return, Campbell Town $120 a room depending on the season, ph (00613) 638 11602; Freycinet Lodge $185 a room, ph (00613) 625 70101

GETTING AROUND: Tasmanian Expeditions guided cycle tours start at $A352 ($410) for two days including accommodation and all meals. Ph (00613) 633 43477 or Tasmanian Expeditions

BEST TIME TO GO: Spring, early summer and, of course, now are great times to visit. Temperatures in January and February can hit 40 deg C and winters can be harsh.