After leaving Port Arthur we travel to Bicheno, a fishing port and beach resort on Tasmania’s spectacular East Coast. .As the weather is still rather cool and wet and Ian’s body continues to be on its worst behavior, there is really not a great deal for us to do. Since we also have no Internet or TV reception in this place, we decide (or better said I allow myself to be talked into) another game of Scrabble. Still smarting from my recent defeat I am determined to do better this time. I must report that whilst I didn’t win the game, I only lost by the ‘length of a nose’ – some 4 points – which, although still frustrating, isn’t quite as devastating as the other night’s defeat.
The next morning we head off to St Helens, apparently the largest town on the north-east coast of Tasmania as well as being Tassie’s game fishing capital, where we are due to meet up with our friend Sandra who is accompanying her friend (+ child) on a little holiday. We spend some hours together and are enjoying each other’s company whilst lunching on local delicacies.
The next day we travel on to Bridport – a destination that Ian has been very much looking forward to reaching as it happens to be home to two of the world’s top link golf courses - ‘Barnbougle Dunes’ and ‘Barnbougle Lost Farm’. As Ian is simply champing at the bit to see these legendary courses with his own two eyes, we pay them a visit just as soon as we’ve set up the Beast. The Caravan Park is located at the most spectacular spot right at the ocean’s edge. What a shame that it isn’t warmer – this would a great swimming spot.
As it is, the temperature records a pleasant 19 degrees, the persistent wind, however, makes it feel a fair bit cooler than that. As soon as Ian lays eyes on the golf course he is ‘a goner’ wafting in 7th heaven and for the next two days (playing both courses) he is as happy as a ‘pig in mud’. To describe the courses adequately I’m borrowing from a golfing website. It states:
"At Barnbougle golf is an experience that strikes all the senses. With the sun on your back, the wind in your hair, the whiff of sea salt and the roar of the ocean you'll be captivated by all that Mother Nature has to offer. The course presents itself in a new dimension each day providing exciting, challenging golf."
Needless to say, our time at Bridport was a great success and as we are slowly wending our way back to where our Tassie journey began 3 weeks earlier and where we are due to board The Spirit of Tasmania for our return to the mainland – Davenport - we both agree that we’ve had an awesome time in Tasmania.
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