Founded in 1916 Freycinet National Park is the second oldest park in Tasmania after Mt. Field. It's home to Wineglass Bay, one of the top 10 beaches in the world. To get to the beach you have to do a little bit of a hike in between Mt. Amos and Mt. Mayson. There are various trails and you can get all the information off of the park's website.
Wineglass Bay from the Lookout
Once you make your way down to the other side, you're instantly rewarded.
We made our way between the two mountains on the right-hand side to get to the beach.
After our morning hike, we drove for a while before ending up in the town of Ross. This historic town's buildings are from the labors of the convicts sent to Tasmania. Their well-crafted brick and stone facades have stood up well over the last 100 years.
The Ross bakery still uses the original oven. They're well known for their fantastic vanilla slice and pies. They're also apparently mentioned in a famous Japanese cartoon, as it is the bakery the main character learns her craft in.
The convicts who built the bridge actually received a full pardon for doing such a great job. It wasn't realized until later on, that they also had made secret decorative carvings that in the convict world translated into insults towards the leadership at the time.
Last stop for the day was the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary. They're a completely volunteer/donation run center that works to rescue native Tasmanian animals. They run a hotline to report injured or orphaned creatures, and house them for as long as necessary.
This little guy is Max, a 10 month old wombat. His mother was unfortunatly hit by a car, but luckily for him someone stopped and found him in her pouch. At the time he was the size of an orange, but now is growing up hardily. He'll be released sometime in the next year.
Tasmanian Devils have a serious problem. They're not the greatest hunters, so they tend to look for roadkill. Sadly, their black color blends them with the road making them easy targets as well. On top of that, they have infectious cancer working its way through their population. It can be spread through biting, something that happens naturally when they all share a meal. As a result, healthy devils brought to the center won't be released, since they'd risk infection.
They have lots of kangaroos and wallabies here. You're given a bag of food, so you can make your way around the park hand feeding them. Once you've made a friend, rub under their chin, it's a hard to reach spot for them and most love it.
