Shopping in Launceston.

It's 200km from St Helen's to Launceston which is a very long distance to travel for shopping. What's on the list? There's: a pair of motorbike boots to replace the new ones we purchased only six or seven weeks ago, which are now torn; some kind of mat that lets the sand/dirt drop though and a Telstra NextG™ mobile phone, hopefully on the same number as the Optus Next-To-Useless™ (in Tasmania) phone. Ben wants to keep the number because he has a long list of new contacts. Life in St Helens sounds fine. New people arrive at the camping ground each week. Two 'old blokes' from Exeter, both fond of a drink or three, happily referred to Ben as Evel Knievel as he rode his bike in and out of the camp grounds. A giant of a man driving a small car strolled over the other day and introduced himself, 'G'day name's Bear.' There's the possibility of some packing work in an oyster farm or some picking work in orchards. Ben says the packing job starts tomorrow. In the meantime, this shopping expedition requires an immediate (small) transfer of funds.

Congratulations, your booking was successful!

Willows Roadhouse (web image)

I pushed a few buttons on the keyboard, entered the magic 16-digit number and its expiry date, and was congratulated by the screen. Heading over on the boat (with the car) on 13th March for a week. Haven't been able to contact Ben yet. Secret tracking device puts him at Willows Roadhouse, Pyengana at approximately 11.30am today. Pyengana is on the Tasman Highway, between St Helens and Scottsdale. His room at home is still occupied.

Repaying a favour.

House guest in Ben's room

You meet people when you travel. Sometimes they do you a favour and occasionally the favour is repaid. So, you ask, who's the guy in the photo and why is he in Ben's room, sitting comfortably on Ben's chair and using Ben's computer? Well, he's a traveller from Germany who's doing the backpack-around-Australia trip. When Tuyet visited Tasmania, the only campervan available was a manual which she couldn't drive. Ben asked his German friend to drive and now his German friend is here and staying for a night (or maybe two three) in Ben's room. That's just how the system works, sometimes.

One month ago...

(web image)

... a tall young man wearing new motorcycle gear and riding a recently-purchased VTR 250, loaded with full saddle bags and a tent strapped to the back, queued with all the other vehicles on Station Pier. The queue ran from the entrance gate to the other end of the pier and then back again with a final 180 turn and a steep run up the ramp and into the ship. A month is a long time when you get to thinking about it.

The one that got away.

"Found the beer in the fish's belly."

Usually it's a fish that gets away but this time it's a new fishing rod, reel and all the fishing gear that were washed off the rocks and out to sea by an unexpectedly big wave. What do you do when a big wave comes along and washes all your stuff away? Start again I suppose.

Our visitor has returned with stories of fishing, camping, cooking, shopping, rain and sunshine. It sounds like St Helens and surrounds is a beautiful spot. One lesson learned is to book a car or van in advance. Cost for a camper van was high, $70 a day with a minimum of five days, however we're informed that it was reasonably comfortable inside, especially on rainy days. The trip continues with Ben heading south again in a day or so.

Afternoon postscript: The fish story may, like many fish stories, have been exaggerated in the telling. Ben rang from Scottsdale and said he only lost a fishing bag. He also mentioned that he'd ridden 100km from St Helens to Scottsdale just to do some shopping and use the mobile phone! Now has to ride all the way back. He also has a long-term plan, and that's to stay in St Helen's and go fishing every day. It sounds remarkably similar to his short-term plan.

No news is no news.

A few more photos then... the theme is 'seaside':

Video posted.

Short (54 sec) video taken on the way to a camping trip. Better quality (and smaller screen) on Facebook. Skillful driving, especially at the end.

Pics posted.

Facebook post of 150+ pics and a short video. Some examples are here and others added to previous posts;

Bay of Fires

Housing, transportation and all possessions.

Cute and curious, Exeter.

Rock pool, Bay of Fires.

Street scene (Swansea)

Oysters, fish and chips in St Helens.

(via email)
At st St Helen now Ben on Bike I am on Campervan one of Ben friend drive i cant drive manual van.He and his friend sleep on tent i sleep on van
It's beautiful here.I think you and Tess will like here You should come here one day
we had oyster and fish and chip for tea buy some clothes for Ben.

Visitor.

A visitor arrives today. Hobart is only 1 hr and 15 min from Melbourne (and about 3.5 hours from home by the time you drive to the airport, check in, get on the plane and travel.)  Cheap travel? $89 plus a Flight Centre booking fee of $16.50, since Jet Star doesn't accept Amex. (Jet Star has a booking fee too but the actual amount remains a mystery till you're deep into the booking screens!) There's a $49 return fare on Saturday evening but a return date hasn't been decided yet. That's two Hamiltons on one-way tickets to Tas! Ben suggested that mum rent one of these, http://tassiemotorshacks.com.au/.
Ben stayed here last night, not far from the airport. Expensive though, $30 for powered camp site for up to two people. Travelling solo costs more.

All you need is a warm sleeping bag and a good novel.

Eating Subway in Sorell.

Has spent a few days camping and fishing with 9 other people, organised by the 'head chef' he met a few days ago. They caught plenty of flathead and had to throw back many undersized fish. Finances further dented by the purchase of a $234 down sleeping bag (marked down from over $400) at the Anaconda store in Cambridge. Thinking of buying a better tent (later, not now), something a bit smaller and easier to put up. Plan is to ride down to Cygnet in the next few days.


View Larger Map

Ben, Dover (nowhere near Port Arthur).

Spent a couple of nights camped in the cold and wet at a place called Cockle Creek, about 35 km south of Southport - Tasmania's southern-most town. The Aussie Disposals sleeping bag is rated to zero degrees but not good enough for the climate down there. He's been to the thermal springs west of Hastings but didn't go to the caves. Now at Dover and planning to stay the night at Geeveston. Bike is going OK but the dirt roads were very rough going by the sound of it. Ben's got or getting a cold so he's going to look for warmer accommodation. Possibility of some fruit picking work at Calvert and Brothers in Waterloo. Longer-term plan seems to be to head back to Northern Tasmania, perhaps back to Bay of Fires. Enjoys fishing but keeps losing lures and they're expensive. He was surprised to learn that Uncle Peter and I used to do alot of fishing in our teens. Plans to upload photos to Facebook sometime soon. (Oh... and hasn't been to Port Arthur yet.)

Don't know really, Port Arthur perhaps?

According to the Port Arthur FAQ's:
Mobile phone service at Port Arthur is currently limited to Telstra customers. Other networks do not yet provide coverage in the area.
Or maybe he's somewhere else with no Optus coverage (ie 50% of Tas). (Seems like switching networks would be a good option). Sorell is on the way to Port Arthur, hence the guess.

When I was your age...

[subtitle: The wheel turns and patterns repeat.]
... I was hitch hiking around New Zealand with friends from uni.

Feb 10 1976: ... Pitched the tent in a Motor Camp. That Yoga Place didn't look very good and didn't have hot showers (which I think I need)... bought some scones (couldn't resist I'm afraid). 6c each but they sure are filling... this place is infested with sandflies. My hands are nearly eaten off - I'll probably scratch them to shreds within the next few days.

More details here.

Ben went to Cambridge (for a night).

SMS received:
2.02:26AM


... town called cambridge. Went to a restaurant 30 minutes after it closed and they made me a woodfired pizza. Then the head chef took me fishing and cooked me the flathead we caught. He offerd me to go boating with his family sometime. Ill start saving tomorrow im down to ... 

Yes, in Hobart.

8pm. Fishing somewhere in Hobart. Hasn't yet worked out where to stay tonight. "Oh, got one! Gotta bail!" <end of call>

Earlier in the day... Rented a locker to store items when they're not needed. It's too much trouble to lug everything around on the bike. ('Old' bike helmet in storage at Scott's Motorcycle Spares at Legana.)

Likes Tasmania, may stay a while...

Orford.

Ben fishing, self portrait.

Ben's camped on a nice stretch of grass behind the Orford Pub. He had planned to stay in the pub but wasn't keen on the room being offered (on account of the carpet). Still has use of the hotel's facilities though. Now within range of the Optus mobile phone network, the 18 minute call covered lots of topics. He's bought fishing and camping gear. Caught a Tasmanian Salmon and then had to take it to a shop to find out what to do next. They showed him how to clean and fillet the fish. He's travelled from the Bay of Fires, south to Freycinet and Swansea and another 40km south to Orford. Met some European backpackers and travelled with them for a while. Told me he's still not 'tightarse' enough to budget properly but is learning. The European backpackers are very careful with their spending, probably because the AUD is so strong at the moment. He seems to be heading in the general direction of Hobart.

It's pouring in Melb.

What about Tasmania at the moment? Radar looks clear. 'Scattered showers' according to the forecast. Minimum temperature of 15 and a maximum of 19.

Souvenir in the post.

This arrived in the post today. Plastic lens broken, reflector dinted and chrome surround buckled. Not repairable and a (genuine Honda) replacement was over $200! It's been used while broken, there's a bug splatter on the reflector.

No Optus Mobile coverage in St Helen's.

I think Ben's in St Helen's but haven't been able to contact him. Can't say why I think he's in St Helen's but, if he is, this map explains why he can't be contacted.

He did mention the Bay of Fires recently.

Hopefully he'll stumble across the Garden of Eden Internet Cafe in St Helen's and send a message. I wonder what people wear in that cafe?



Edit (2hours later):

Phone call from a pay phone. Yes, he's in St Helen's. Rode from Exeter to St Helen's in a day, via Bridport. Food is expensive and the plan is to move from the camping ground (no running water) to the backpackers (hot showers!). Bought a fishing rod and learning to fish. Later will head south and ... <beep, beep, beep>.