Tasmania, Australia

Tasmania suddenly appears in the middle of the ocean at a distance of 240 km south of the continent after a 10-hour ferry ride from Melbourne. This triangular island is unlike any of the other Australian territories. Its size is the same as the islands of Sri Lanka, but the climate is cool and temperate, and the landscape has no analogues in its diversity of vegetation and wildlife. People, of course, appreciated these features of the island, and more than 40% of the territory is covered by national parks and nature reserves.

On the east coast there are beautiful coves with long white sandy beaches. However, on most of the island, the terrain rises sharply from the coast to the interior, creating a picturesque backdrop for seaports, especially Wellington, towering over the city of Hobart, located in the bay of the same name at the southeastern tip of Tasmania. The peculiar landscape of underground columns is characteristic of Wellington, towering over the mouth of the Deborah River and forming part of the city of Hobart. Its highest point is at an altitude of 1,271 m above sea level. Here nature is always at hand. Just a short walk from the center of the second largest northern city on the island, Launceston, is the wild Cataract Gorge.

Most of Western Tasmania is mountainous and offers excellent conditions for hiking. One of the most famous routes here is the Overland Trek, 65 km long, running through Lake Crater Hill National Park, Lake St. Clair. Along the way, tourists enjoy stunning Alpine peaks, lakes, waterfalls and wild animals. In the Franklin-Gordon-Wild Rivers National Park, near Macquarie Harbor on the west coast, tourists can walk in the wild on river cruise liners.

Tasmania boasts a place for adventurous recreation - hiking, kayaking, rafting on mountain ranges, surfing, fishing and scuba diving in underwater forests of brown algae. But the island has recently expanded the palette of tourist attractions with luxury boutique hotels and restaurants for connoisseurs of good food. Nevertheless, Tasmania has preserved the memory of its dramatic history. The island was discovered by the Dutch sailor Abel Tasman, who came here in 1642 and called it the Land of the Demens. However, the settlement of the island began only in 1803, when the British turned it into a penal colony. Refugees started arriving here long after Sydney stopped accepting them. Therefore, today most of the massive old buildings are built by criminals and deserters. One of the most visited places here is Port Arthur - the best preserved settlement for convicted criminals, there are fascinating testimonies from this period of Australian history.

Among the beautiful landscapes of the island, many monuments of the difficult and desirable life of the first settlers of the XIX century have been preserved: port warehouses, farms, fishing villages and mining towns. Judging by the local names, it becomes clear that the settlers sought to recreate their British homeland in this similar, but fundamentally different world. The Australian National Trust today cares for Clarendon, a magnificent Irish palace near Lonestone that is neither English nor Australian in style, but definitely Tasmanian.

Interesting: the Tasmanian devil owes his name to his sharp teeth. The size of a small dog, it is the largest predator on the island, but it is dangerous only for motor vehicles. The animal is the emblem of Tasmania.

When to go: There are four seasons in Tasmania. Summer is from December to February. Spring and autumn have their advantages, but the weather can be very rainy and foggy.

What to pay attention to: The descent from Mount Wellington is an exciting three-hour bike adventure from 1,270 m above sea level to the beach on Hobart's coastal street. https://king-567.com/