Travel Theme : Above

The view from the lookout on the top of Mount Wellington, Hobart, Tasmania.

As I came down the mountain Hobart spread out before me on both sides of the Derwent River.

We house sat here for 3 months in 2013

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Another memorable flight was over the Bungle, bungles in the Kimberly area. This is the view from above.

This is the view as I walked toward these amazing formations.

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Travelling is great and there is so much to see, but after an extended trip this is the best view of all from above.

The best harbour in the world, Sydney. Can you see the iconic sails of the Opera House and the majestic curve of the Harbour Bridge, fondly known as “the old coat-hanger?

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This post is inspired by “ABOVE” Ailsa’s Travel Theme challenge for this week.

Lingering Look at Windows : From the summit of Mount Wellington

We are back….

What a week it has been. The dogs packed their winter woollies and went to stay with our friend Henny and her dogs so we could hire a car and explore this south-east corner of Tasmania.

How lucky we were because after a few days of rain, last Saturday dawned clear and sunny. Mount Wellington smiled down on Hobart. A perfect day for a drive to the summit. In our first week here Kimbra, a friend, took us up the 1270 metres to the top of the mountain, but when we reached the summit the clouds had drifted in and though it was very atmospheric the view was non-existent. (See the post about that day here)

What a difference the sun makes. It was stunning. What a perfect opportunity to showcase the views through the windows of the beautiful purpose-built building at the summit.

Jack taking photos

 

On a clear day you can see for ever

 

The beautiful city of Hobart nestled in the valley on the banks of the River Derwent. The 2 beaches in the top right corner are “our” beaches. Bellerive is on the left and Howrah on the right, these are the beaches I walk the dogs along.

 

 

 

The widows were very clean and I wondered who had the contract to keep them that way.

 

The Pinnacle, the very top of the mountain, surrounded by the alpine shrubs and rock.

 

So this was the start of our week. We looked up and saw that Mount Wellington offered fine weather and we weren’t disappointed.

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Each week on Thursday Dawn of “the day after” asks that we post photos of windows we have come across. Having this weekly challenge opens your eyes to the amazing type and style of windows you can find. See what you can find, you may like to show them off in this challenge

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This last week confirmed our opinion of Tasmania. It is interesting, distances are easily covered and a lot can be fitted into each day and it is incredibly photogenic. Over the next few days I will sort through the hundreds of photos and take you on a journey with us through this corner of Tasmania.

I can hardly believe that we only have 4 more days before we fly back to the Gold coast, and 8 weeks have flown by.

 

A drive up Mt Wellington

One of the big benefits of house sitting is that the home owners often introduce you to their friends and neighbours. We were introduced to Kimbra, a lovely, friendly person who adores dogs and has two that are the same size as our little fur bundles. Kimbra loves to take all 4 of them for walks and will take them to the park for a game of ball and a run. That is good because at this stage we keep the dogs on their leads when we take them out. Henry is so sociable and energetic he would chase every dog and child that we pass.

On Monday morning Kimbra rang to ask us if we had any plans for the day because, as the sky was blue and not a cloud in sight, the mountain was magnificent and revealing all it’s glory and she would love to take us for a drive up the 21 kilometres to the top. At 1270 metres most days it has a cloud cover on it’s peak.

What an opportunity we gladly accepted.

So with all 4 dogs in the car with us we slowly wound our way up. The 21-kilometre (13-mile) drive to the summit takes you from temperate rainforest to sub-alpine flora and glacial rock formations. The present road was blasted from rock during the Depression (1932), around the same time that the Sydney Harbour Bridge was built. It is quite narrow with many sharp bends. The views are stunning. But as we near the top we drive into the cloud cover. The views disappear in a cloud of mist but we are seeing the mountain in it’s usual guise.

A week ago the temperature at the peak was -1 degrees and snow had fallen but after a week of sunshine the snow was visibly melting.

Photo by Jack The sun is an eerie presence through the low cloud

Struggling through the snow

Sub-alpine plants

Very rocky and bleak

Photo by Jack

Photo by Jack

Photo by Jack. He thought this looks like a mini forest

Photo by Jack.Observation building looking out into the mist

Photo by Jack. With Kimbra and 3 of the 4 dogs

Where has Hobart and the view gone?

Photo by Jack. Rock shelter nestled into the rocks

Photo by Jack. Bleak landscape

Photo by Jack

When we drive back down as soon as we drop below the cloud cover we pull into a stopping area to admire the fantastic view.

 

The narrow road created in 1932 and dug out by pick and shovel

Looking along the Derwent River

Looking over to the East side across the Tasman Bridge

Looking west next habitation 11000kilometres to Patagonia, South America

It has been a truly memorable day out. Thank you Kimbra.