| After surviving one of the hottest summers of my | | | | It was a long drive from Sydney to Melbourne |
| life, with regular temperatures of over 100f, I | | | | before boarding the ship once more to cross Bass |
| decided that South Australia was not fit for this | | | | Strait. I am not certain who was more excited about |
| particular human's habitation. I needed somewhere | | | | the prospect of being Tasmania bound, myself or |
| cooler, and more scenic. (Adelaide is basically flat, and, | | | | Margie. Both stood with mouths agape as we caught |
| in my opinion, best seen on a day trip). | | | | first sight of the land from aboard the ship, eager to |
| I had always wanted to visit Tasmania, having heard | | | | make landfall and begin the search for a new domicile |
| a lot about it from friends, and seen many | | | | and the new experiences that awaited us. |
| photographs that demonstrated a place of immense | | | | If there was ever any doubt in my mind as to the |
| beauty and diversity. Plenty of mountains, lakes, | | | | validity of my memories of the beauty and grandeur |
| trees, and rainforest. This was my kind of place. | | | | of the Tasmanian countryside, the drive south |
| Around this time, in 1996, major things were | | | | dispelled them. As soon as we got out onto the open |
| happening to put Tasmania in the international news | | | | road I fell in love all over again with the magnificence |
| on a daily basis. Some crazy had lost it and gone on a | | | | that I saw. Each corner of the road forced my jaw |
| killing spree in one of the major tourist centres. While | | | | to sag a little lower as I soaked up the beauty that |
| most people anguished over the tragedy I was awe | | | | surrounded me, in what I knew was to be our new |
| struck by the scenery the images regularly broadcast | | | | home for a very long time to come. |
| over television showed me. A tragedy, for sure, but | | | | We decided to take a side road from the main |
| what a place it happened in. I made my mind up that | | | | highway and head out to Richmond, a quaint and |
| I had put it off way too long, it was now or never. | | | | very historical village east of Hobart. It was in the |
| My partner of the time, and I, packed our house up, | | | | surrounding area of this locale that I had hoped we |
| sent the boxes to a removals company for storage | | | | would be able to locate a house to live in whilst we |
| and began a trek to this remote southern land. We | | | | got our footing in Tasmania. One phone call, and we |
| had no idea where we were going, nor how we | | | | had located a nice, isolated, mountain top home, set |
| would manage to find a new house to live in, we | | | | in natural bush. Surrounded by the sounds of nothing |
| simply knew that this was the place for us. | | | | other than the wind and bird song. It was perfect, |
| After visiting my family on the east coast of the | | | | and more than either of us could have hoped for on |
| mainland, and spending a little time in Melbourne, we | | | | this first day in our new homeland. |
| finally boarded the ship that would transport us to | | | | We spent 18 months in that location, day tripping to |
| this penal colony that was Tasmania of old. I will | | | | various locations around Tasmania, falling in love over |
| never forget my first images of the island. Out on | | | | and over again with a land that is truly unique on the |
| deck, just on sunrise, the light still filtered with the | | | | earth, and one which every person should visit at |
| sun not quite awake yet, I saw a rugged coastline, | | | | least once in their life. |
| nothing appeared flat, it was as though this was the | | | | Returning to Tasmania has been the fulfillment of a |
| land where nature had let loose her fury and thrown | | | | long held yearning for me. It is a journey that I could |
| things up in a random manner. In short, it was one of | | | | not be happier to have made, and one that has |
| the most beautiful coastlines I had ever seen. I | | | | brought a great degree of richness and satisfaction |
| knew, then and there, that this was the kind of place | | | | to my life. It is so very nice to be home. |
| I had been searching for, this was my kind of terrain. | | | | When day tripping was not enough, and it never is in |
| We landed in Devonport and boarded a bus to take | | | | order to explore this land, the real journey began. |
| us down south to Hobart, the capital. As we | | | | Three months on the road, living out of a tent, with |
| journeyed south, through the midlands and historical | | | | no set itinerary, simply a desire to explore. |
| townships, my sense of awe grew beyond belief. | | | | The house we had found was perfect for us.... that |
| Every corner produced a new vista to excite the | | | | was until the owners decided they were going to |
| senses, my jaw constantly dropped open as I gazed | | | | break up their marriage and sell the house. Our home |
| upon the natural beauty that filled every moment of | | | | was situated on the same block as where they lived, |
| that trip. | | | | so we had regular contact with them both. To begin |
| A week after landing in Hobart we located a quaint | | | | with, there were no real problems, and we had |
| cottage with a private beach, a little to the east of | | | | begun to look around for somewhere to move. Being |
| the main city. A rural and peaceful setting with water | | | | pretty fussy about it though, and nothing was turning |
| as our backyard and a mountain rising from the front. | | | | up. |
| Water and mountains I have always had an affinity | | | | As time passed, and very few people showed any |
| for, to me, this was heaven. It did not matter that | | | | interest in buying the property, the owners started |
| we were around 7k/m from the nearest store and | | | | getting desperate. Although their marriage was over, |
| without a car, I simply had to take this house. | | | | they continued to live together, and this no doubt |
| For me, it was perfect and idyllic, the nicest and | | | | created its own brand of stress upon them. Soon |
| most relaxing location I had ever lived in. My partner | | | | they became the landlords from hell, and stress was |
| found the isolation too much to bear and soon | | | | building all around. Our health and work were |
| announced she was leaving to find more populated | | | | beginning to suffer, we could not relax at home, and |
| locations. Life is like that, and we each must seek | | | | worried about potential damage whilst away. Life was |
| what we need for ourselves, I remained in my | | | | getting ridiculous. |
| hideaway, she moved to a township nearby. | | | | Things had to change, and change fast. We could |
| After 6 months of enjoying the beauty of the | | | | not continue to live the way things were going, and |
| region I had settled into I was forced to return to | | | | there was no sign of improvement on the horizon. |
| the mainland. Reluctantly I returned to the smog of | | | | We were sitting in our car one day, and I looked |
| Sydney and work. My uppermost thoughts being on | | | | down at the floor in front of me, noticing the guide |
| the beauty and serenity of the Tasmanian landscape | | | | to campsites around Tasmania. I looked at Margie, |
| and lifestyle, vowing to return as soon as I possibly | | | | and said..."I have a solution to our problem". I followed |
| could. | | | | up with the idea of packing our belongings away, |
| 2004 was a turbulent year for me, loads of stress | | | | putting them into storage, for an unspecified time, |
| through the kind of work I was doing, living a hectic | | | | and simply driving around the state, exploring |
| lifestyle, virtually in the centre of Sydney, the smog | | | | Tasmania in a tent, for as long as it took to get rid |
| capital of Australia. I had taken way too much on | | | | of the stress, and begin to enjoy life again. |
| board and needed to get away. Reducing my | | | | Whilst most people would have reacted with some |
| workload to a single major project involving civil | | | | degree of shock at such a suggestion, Margie has a |
| liberties and social activism I left the partner I was | | | | sense of adventure, and a strong desire to seek |
| with at the time and moved to the mountains west | | | | new things. She agreed readily. 3 days later we were |
| of Sydney. | | | | busy packing and arranging storage. 5 days later we |
| The project I had undertaken was shaky, a small | | | | hit the road. The feeling of relief was immediate, but |
| team persevering against public ignorance and | | | | we still needed to get some time out before it would |
| resistance to change. It was challenging though, and | | | | vanish entirely. |
| stretched my abilities to their limits. During the time I | | | | You will find the descriptions of the places we |
| was working on this project Margie came into my life, | | | | camped by looking in our community forums, under |
| an interesting person with an openness to new ideas | | | | the "Places To Pitch Your Tent" section. I will basically |
| and potentials rarely found. By the end of the year | | | | gloss over the finer details of the locations here, and |
| she had settled into my mountain home and life was | | | | focus on the stories behind the journey, and the |
| taking interesting twists and turns. | | | | many changes we experienced as we traveled. This |
| Early in 2005 it became clear that the opposition we | | | | is the "inside dope" on our life during the period we |
| faced in the project I was working on was far too | | | | refer to as "The Journey". |
| great. It was going to take a long term commitment | | | | Not exactly wealthy, we did not have much left |
| that promised no results in the foreseeable future. | | | | over after covering the costs for storage and |
| We decided it was time for a change, and where | | | | getting a few things together for the planned trip. |
| better to make that change than Tasmania. Margie | | | | We needed to wait for payday, and that was still 3 |
| had never been there before, but had heard enough | | | | days away. A few nights spent in different locations |
| about it to have a desire to explore the environment. | | | | around Hobart saw us through though. After getting |
| Her willingness to explore new places and desire for | | | | paid, we updated our camping gear (getting what we |
| adventure took over and we soon found ourselves | | | | thought we would need) and headed for campsite |
| reducing our possessions to only that which would fit | | | | number 1...as far south as we could possibly get, and |
| in the car before driving off for new places and | | | | into isolated lands, away from the landlords from hell, |
| experiences. | | | | and our problems of city living. |