Touring in Tasmania

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This isn't our first trip to Tassie, and definitely won't be our last. The last time we were here we rode adventure bikes, this time we are on road cruisers. We are here for our bike clubs bi-annual roundup. Branches from all over Australia meet up for a meeting to discuss the club and generally have a good time amongst friends.

We left Adelaide at 6:00 AM for the ride to the Geelong terminal. The forecast was for a sunny day with temperatures reaching into the low 30's. For those of you who ride, you will know the warmer it gets, the harder the ride is , especially on long hauls. Aside from a few stops for fuel and rest breaks the ride was pretty uneventful. We met up with one member of our branch and the remainder were about an hour behind us. Arriving at the Spirit of Tasmania Geelong just on check in time, it was now a matter of "Hurry up and wait" for the actual boarding. There were quite a few already in front of us, and sitting out in the sun was having an effect on us all. Fortunately it was short lived and we were moved forward to check in and then into a shaded terminal for quarantine inspections. Like other states,you are forbidden from bringing certain fruit, vegetables and other items into the state. 

We finally boarded and had a row of around 20 bikes lined up ready to be secured by the crew. From here we could make our way to our cabin if we had them or the lounge areas where they had a bar and some food areas. After spending some time with our club mates, we retired ro our cabin for a well deserved rest.
Arriving in Devonport the following morning at 6:00AM we were greeted by a member of the Tasmanian branches who would lead us to St Helens on the east coast. We could have just ridden there ourselves but having a guide with local knowledge proved to be a bonus as he took us along some great roads and to a quaint little pub in a town called Weldborough. The trip fro Devonport to St Helens using the direct route would take around 2 1/2 hours. Having the local guide we got to see more than just the road and took us the better part of the day. This also gave those of us who had not ridden in Tas before in introduction to the type of roads we would encounter.
We finally arrived at St Helens at the Big 4 Holiday park for our weekend of fun and frivolity with our comrades.

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