Tassie Advice

Cruising Granny · Guru

Tassie Advice

cito · Veteran Member

Hi Granny,
As a resident of the apple isle I can tell you that if you have done those road you won't have a problem doing Tassie. Yes, parts of the West Coast will keep you busy but that can be done over several days. As an immigrant here and one who has done a fair bit of driving about the place towing boats and trailers I reckon you will will love it.
I think you will find people who can such travel in Tas are those who, generally, have not researched their own travel.

Cheers and good travels

Basil Faulty · Guru

Yep I'd agree with Cito and I'm a mainlander....I don't think you would have any trouble, sure some of the roads are a bit "english country lane" but the lack of traffic makes driving easier than if you were for example climbing one of the east coast escarpment roads and having to cope with b doubles on your side of the road. I would do as you suggest and find a nice spot as a base camp and trip around from there and move on after a few days.... Tassie is a compact place and the natives have a different, almost European, concept of distance. Many from Launceston have never been to Hobart and vice versa as it is a "long way", in reality a cuppla hours drive. You could do it like Dave who has only a short time and has his trip planned with military precision....

rocan · Veteran Member

we did tassie earlier last year.put car &van on ferry.no problems.toured tassie for a month,only hilly narrow road was east from launceston but definitely no problems.nearly all roads are caravan friendly .careful staying into winter as some van parks close down or shut some of their amenity blocks.
worked out slightly cheaper taking van including ferry cost compared to hotel/motel costs .
so many nice places to see,great place
rocan

dave06 · Guru

granny I have done those roads that you mentioned and found them to be a walk in the park compared to some of tassies roads, the centre (Launceston to Hobart) and some of the east side is very good for caravans, nice and flat, the west coast and far north east coast is not van friendly at all it is straight up and straight down with hairpin turns at the bottom

Hobart to lake st Clair is good and reasonably flat but beyond lake st Clair it gets very rugged, beautifull though, I would leave my van at new Norfolk (nice open park with good walks from it to the bridge) and travel to lake st Clair or book in to lake st Clair but not take it any further

the road from Hobart to port Arthur is the same, very twisty and hairpins, the entrance to the port Arthur caravan park is an experience in itself it is straight up for about 40 mtrs, if you are not prepared for it one could get in to trouble, the roads in the park are very narrow with no room for maneuvering, I would give this park a miss if I was towing, however there is a free camp at nubeena

you don't have road trains to contend with on these lovely little roads but you do have the local idiot hoons who see it as their right to take up all the road and proceed through these corners at a rapid rate of knots

if it was me with a van behind I would pick strategic positions to leave the van, there are a lot of motorhome friendly towns in tassie who will let you kip for little or no cost, these areas are large open places with showers and toilets and firepits

some of these places are

Burnie.................... Devonport....... Franklin
George Town........... Latrobe.......... Penguin
Port Huon............... Port Sorrell..... Railton
Sheffield................. Smithton .........Stanley
Ulverstone............... Wynyard

Tassie is not very big but if you ask a local it is huge, a trip from Launceston to Hobart is far out of reach for most locals although in reality it is 2.5 hours apart I have been further for a loaf of bread) watch the coppers over there they drive all different vehicles and different colors as well

if you go into "google maps" go on tassie, click "terrain" you will see where it is and is not caravan friendly

we took a 5 ton motorhome around in about 98 and I can tell you it was not easy, the roads lean into the cliffs so overhang is a problem, the corners are very sharp so you will need all of it, much easier to place the van and explore out from those positions with the vehicle

when we returned the motorhome to the hire company they said it was the most kilometers they had seen knocked up in that time period by anyone

we plan what we want to see as we are on a limited schedule and we want the most out of it, we were paying $220 per day for that thing and we got our moneys worth out of it

when we go for 12 months the planning will go out the window, but it is such a lovely place to just daudle around in

cito · Veteran Member

I'm back again. As one who lives in near to Launceston I think the windy roads you are being warned about in the north east would be the Tasman Hwy over a range known as the Sideling between Launceston (Lonny) and Scottsdale. The locals don't use it but GPS units take you to it because it is the main hwy. I would suggest you use the road via Lilydale to Scottsdale or via George Town. Either way you will go past some terrific wineries! Both these roads are van friendly although a couple of decent hills via Lilydale.
I am currently practicing in the north east with our new c/t in the north east because of the variety of road surfaces we can access so feel free to check on any other thing you may like to know.

Cheers

romanyrebel2 · Member

i'm with cito on the sidling, i grew up in lonny and we went from there to bridport (near scotsdale) for holidays and weekends, what a nightmare, you wouldn't believe the hairpin on it. such relief when someone told my dad about the way through lilydale, ah bliss. the locals don't use it cos they know better. always ask the locals first. i still remember that almost every trip on that horror there was a truck down in the gully, (no not the same one). also there is a reason tassie has a low road toll every year. people are forced to drive careful, a good thing i reckon. whichever choice you make, me i would take the van and use the advice given in above posts, you will love it. check out bridport and mole creek wet caves. have fun. cheers. shadow.

-- Edited by romanyrebel2 at 13:31, 2009-01-20

Cruising Granny · Guru

Wow! Thanks heaps everyone. You have all given me great, useful, unbiased advice, which I appreciate, and will certainly bear in mind.
I would only go in summer, eg. Feb after school hols are over.
After living in the Kimberleys in WA, where the nearest town is 250kms away, and we'd go for a drive to "do lunch" at the King Sound Pub, Tassie will be a piece of cake. In fact, having driven around Oz by the top and the bottom, Tassie will be easy.
I do plan to base myself and do day trips etc. I have friends near Hobart, and I hope I can park in their paddock for some of my stay.
The warning came from my daughter who has been over there 3 times, the most recent being Christmas. She's just looking after he mum.
Once again, thank you everyone for your responses and advice.
Cheers Granny

Basil Faulty · Guru

Well CG you sound prepared.... Before you go read "For the Term of His Natural Life" by Marcus Clark.....

dave06 · Guru

granny I had a few minutes spare and was slumming around in a few websites when I came across this, it may be of interest to you as I found it of interest to me

Starting point to Tasmanian destination, Distance (kms) ,Distance (miles) Approx. Duration

      Launceston to:
      St Helen's (via Scottsdale) 163km 101 miles 2 hrs 20 min
     Bicheno (via Scottsdale) 236 km 147 miles 3 hrs 30 min
     Coles Bay (via Campbell Town) 209km 130 miles 2 hrs 30 min
     Hobart (via Midlands Hwy) 198km 123 miles 2 hrs 20 min
     Cradle Mountain 149km 93 miles 1 hr 55 min
     Strahan (via Cradle Mountain) 298km 185 miles 3 hrs 55 min
     Devonport 99km 61miles 1 hr 15 min
     Queenstown (via Sheffield) 251km 156 miles 3 hrs 30 min

      Hobart to:
      Bicheno (via Sorell) 178 km 111 miles 2 hrs 25 min
     Port Arthur 93km 58 miles 1 hr 30 min
     Cradle Mountain (via Midlands & Bass Highways)302 km 188
     miles 4 hrs 15 min
     Queenstown 260km 162 miles 3 hrs 40 min
     Strahan 300km 186 miles 5 hours
     Coles Bay 192km 119miles 2 hrs 20 min
     Geeveston (via Huon Hwy) 62km 38miles 50 min
     Kettering (via Channel Hwy) 37km 23 miles 30 min
     Devonport (via Midlands Hwy) 277km 172 miles 3 hrs 30 min
     St Helen's 265km 165 miles 3 hrs 40 min

      Burnie to:
      Queenstown 176km 109 miles 2 hrs 25 min
     Devonport 49km 30 miles 40 min
     Smithton 85km 53miles 1 hour
     Hobart 349km 217miles 4 hours

hope this helps a little.

Road Ranger · Senior Member

Hey Granny. Your gunna love it over there, I lived at Meander for quite a few years, built a two story stone house on ten acres with air strip and nursery.
Every one in Tas are friendly, it will take you a long time to see it all as there is no better state to wander around and you wont want to leave.

Basil Faulty · Guru

Something else to do in Tassie is to travel to the southernmost point of Australia, South East Cape http://www.ontheroad.com.au/old/previous/october2000/oct00cape.htm and while you are at it visit the Ida Bay Railway, when I was there we did the trip in an antique Wolsley Rail Motor.... http://www.idabayrailway.com.au/default.htm

Cruising Granny · Guru

Road Ranger wrote:

Hey Granny. Your gunna love it over there, I lived at Meander for quite a few years, built a two story stone house on ten acres with air strip and nursery.
Every one in Tas are friendly, it will take you a long time to see it all as there is no better state to wander around and you wont want to leave.

Oh yes I will, when it gets too cold for "dem bones". But I'm sure I'll see nearly everything, thanks to everyone's advice. I'm glad I asked.
I really do appreciate all the experiences you have shared with me. That's what is so great about this site. Nice to be among friends.
Cheers Granny

dave06 · Guru

just a little note from one who has just returned from there

if you stick to the highways with the van you will be fine, the road to keep the van away from is the western tiers but you absolutely MUST do this drive...............