Bruny Island Wildnerness Adventure
Trip Start
Dec 01, 2009
1
17
36
Trip End
Ongoing
Where I stayed
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
It is the island, off an island, off an even bigger island. That's how some people describe it. One of the 600 locals of Bruny Island described it like this; Bruny Island is an island, Tasmania is the "Mainland" and continental Australia, well, that’s just Australia.
My family and I decided that Robert Pennicott’s 3 hour wilderness eco-cruise would be our big ticket outing while we were visiting Tasmania. The tour has been advertised across Australia, probably even worldwide, and the word of mouth advertising puts a glossy advertising campaign to shame. It is the type of tour that everyone raves about, before you even mention that you might be interested.
The day of our cruise arrived and I was like a kid on Christmas morning. This autumn morning was brisk (welcome to Tasmania) so I figured that warm drinks and hot porridge with honey was the order of the day. We left the kids in bed until the last possible moment because we knew this was going to be an epic day on our epic journey across Australia. We left camp on time and got to Kettering for our ferry pick up before just about everybody. It seems to be that with young children you tend to end up being extremely early or extremely late, in this case, being late just wasn’t an option.
Once we boarded our tour bus, and told Faith to stop kicking the seat in front of her about 34 times (we did wise up and got her and Layla to switch seats) we drove onto the ferry, for a very short boat ride over to Bruny Island. The bus ride to Adventure Bay was about 30 minutes, and we got the educational spiel, most of which I couldn’t listen to because Faith was getting a Chupa-Chup stuck in her curly (okay, dreadlocked) hair. What I did catch was the view out of the window; white sand and crystal clear blue water to one side, and the same on the other…As it turns out there are only 600 residents who permanently reside on Bruny Island, and it is very apparent that this place is unspoiled probably for that very reason.
At Adventure Bay we get to relax and have morning tea, and Robert Pennicott himself got up and gave everybody the run down of what to expect on the boat. In ten years since he started the business has grown to employ 35 of the locals, no small feat considering the hop, skip and a jump it takes to even get here! It is no surprise then that 4 boats are going out today, each with dedicated and passionate skippers to look after us on our journey to what seems like the edge of the earth. However, it is a surprise that the tour has still managed to be a very personal and friendly affair, and especially with small children in tow (and one who enjoys performing her own brand of tantrums), a little kindness goes a long way.
We board the yellow boats, don the floor length red jackets and wait until we are ready to go. The waiting almost kills Faith until our lovely captain opens a packet of Tim Tams (as if from nowhere, they appeared) and offers them to the young children, most probably in exchange for the peace and quiet that giving a kid a biscuit always surely gives.
At this moment the adults are offered a ginger tablet, a natural relief for nausea. Precautionary of course, but the staff highly recommend that you take them as they know what sort of boat ride we are about to take.
The coast line is spectacular, it was very right to have high expectations. I don’t think you could be disappointed, as even if you know what’s coming, nothing can prepare you for what it feels like to have this point of view on the world. The sea cliffs tower above us and rolling sea kelp looks big enough to eat you alive. We stop at many sea caves, and enjoy Breathing Rock (what our captain lovingly refers to as “Sneezing Rock”) and The Cathedral, whose vista you can only appreciate fully by hanging out backwards out of the boat like you were star gazing. When we stop to appreciate The Monument (which is not unlike gazing upon one of the 12 Apostles on the Great Ocean Road) I notice we aren’t getting too close, and didn’t think much of it. That is, until our captain turns around in a circle and starts speeding to get us through the gap between The Monument and the sea cliffs! When we make the pass a big cheer from everyone on the boat is enough to get our captain to do it again. What an adrenalin rush, especially when you can just enjoy it!!!
Layla was absolutely loving it, standing up, looking out at the water and probably feeling very small, as you do when you are out in the ocean. Faith was having a nap. When she did wake up she smiled at the 'big rocks’ and ‘oooh, big plants’. It is lovely thing to see your children awestruck and amazed at the beauty of nature. Nathan could not stop smiling and hanging out of the boat. Grandma and Poppy looked like they were still trying to find their sea legs, and the skipper gave Gran a bit off advice for trying to shake off the sea sickness. Me, well, I couldn’t believe that I was finally here.
Next we are taking a 10 minute stretch into the Southern Ocean to the seal colony, so the staff throw some extra beanies out and give us some extra polar fleece to keep the kids warm. The entire tour had been a bit chilly, but crossing into the Southern Ocean it turns into a whole different kind of cold!!! You can smell the seals before you see them, but that doesn’t stop this attraction from being the most popular one for my kids. The kids could honestly not get over them. They liked watching them lying down, going for a swim, going for a dive, sliding around on the rocks, and I have to admit, so did I! From here it is a mere 2500km to Antarctica. And I would say that fact alone is probably the reason why I felt like I was on the edge of the earth.
From here we turn back and have a good run back to Adventure Bay. There is something about being on the water that makes you feel so alive. The wind and the sea spray in your face, coupled with the seemingly never ending stretch of water before you, and the vastness and the mystery that comes along with that makes for one of the most unique experiences I have ever had in my life.
Back at the bay we are thanked personally by the staff members for coming out to share the beauty of their 'office’ with them. The man who started it all even hopped on every bus to say ‘thank you’ for our support. It is rare to find a group of people like this, and I am happy to add these wonderful people to my catalogue of memories.
On the bus back to the ferry the kids fall asleep, and start snoring. Bliss.
Comments
Wow, sounds amazing, other-worldly!
Yeah, Tasmania definitely has that edge of the earth feeling, especially when you're out on the water or close to it.