2018 GWV, Day 40, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia (Part 2 of 2)

The sail into Hobart this morning was brutal...  high winds, overcast skies, bits of rain and very cold temperatures.  It wasn’t looking too good for a nice day.  For today, we arranged a private tour with Personalized Tasmanian Tours to see the sites of Hobart and the surrounding area. Since the weather was not the best, we left our drive up to Mount Wellington which was covered in clouds,  until later in the day and headed for the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary. This was the girls first time in Tasmania so they were anxious to see a Tasmanian Devil. On our way out of Hobart, we stopped at Cornelian Bay on the Derwent River valley. The city of Hobart has transformed itself, from its beginnings as a penal colony to the bustling capital of Tasmania.  It's a lovely place, nestled at the base of Mt. Wellington and surrounded by natural beauty....rugged coastlines, sandy beaches, mountains, islands and wildlife. We arrived at Bonorong as they were opening, just in time for the breakfast feeding. The kangaroos roam free...many of the animals are nocturnal but we did see the Tasmanian devils, koalas, wombats, spotted tail quoll, tawny frogmouths and other birds. We continued on from there to Richmond one of the oldest towns in Tasmania.  It is a quaint place 30k northeast of Hobart is in the agricultural/wine region...This historic village is full of sandstone buildings including the jail constructed by the prisoners...it is home to the oldest Catholic Church and bridge in Australia. Back in the city, we stopped at Rosny Hill Lookout overlooking Hobart before our drive to the 1,270m high summit of Mt. Wellington...  Today the clouds were scattered so Hobart and the surrounding area was pretty clear for spectacular views spanning Tasmania. We descended the mountain and went up to Mount Nelson Signal Station... The last I was in Hobart, I climbed up Mount Nelson, it was fogged in when I reached the top and we saw nothing and were freezing...  Not a good experience!   Today, we had great views of the city and also ran into our friends Henk & Christel Mensink who had biked up the mountain.  They recommended the scones and we found the scones, jam and cream simply delicious. Before dropping us at the Salamanca area, Theresa our driver gave us the Hobart highlights tour including the Cascade Brewery building, Sandy Bay, Battery Point...oldest residential and expensive part of Hobart including Arthur Circus....We walked back to the ship through the fashionable Salamanca Place with its old sandstone warehouses, galleries, cafes and along the waterfront...it was a great day and the weather turned out to be beautiful. Today’s weather was the calm before the storm, as we will not stop in Port Arthur tomorrow due to an intense low pressure system barreling its way towards Tasmania...still hoping we make it into Kangaroo Island.