After a whirlwind tour of Australia (Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Sydney so far), I’m spending a week in Tassie in December and a bit of local knowledge would help enormously.

I’d like to a) get some recommendations for wineries to visit, particularly those with a bit of added interest such as some contemporary architecture / or an interesting winemaker. I’m hoping to spend a day in the Tamar valley, though I will be based in Hobart and have already visited Moorilla (will return to check out MONA).

And b) I’m hoping to do some riding on Mt Wellington – is there anywhere local to hire an mtb? Google is not throwing up anything. If needs be I’ll take a town bike out!

Thanks…

So that’s a no then? 🙂

And too much to hope that anyone has ridden the Wildside race there? Looks ace and is on my ‘life’ list: http://www.wildsidemtb.com/

Be sure to ask for a map of Tassie before you go there

Rob Hilton – Member
Be sure to ask for a map of Tassie before you go there

and tell them you root for the home team.

🙂

heh, commented on a wombat having a good root around on my first visit to aus many years ago and didn’t think I was being that funny.

So that’s a no then?

And too much to hope that anyone has ridden the Wildside race there? Looks ace and is on my ‘life’ list: http://www.wildsidemtb.com/

Haven’t done that race but I just rode a fair whack of that course as a stage of ARWC2011 – the section through Montezuma Falls and Melba Flats is pretty cool even though we did it through the night. Lovely country although I was a wee bit disappointed as it is the same as NZ in many ways. Drivers were very courteous even the tanker drivers.

I know there is a bike park just outside Hobart, you could do a bit of riding there. You know that kiwi john is a winemaker, right?

no specific tips, but spent 2 weeks in Tas a couple of years ago. Did a roadtrip (4×4 and swags) around the coast – been meaning to go back since, really amazing place. Plenty of amazing stuff around Hobart – check out the Cygnet music festival (think it’s around that time of the year) – the surrounding forests are pretty amazing (you don’t tend to get forests that old on the mainland as they have more forest fires) – the south coast has some great spots – and you have to get up to wineglass bay (and if you do, keep walking past it for 2 / 3 miles to an amazing beach, must of been a couple of miles long (where on a baking hot day – we were the only people on it) – the West half of Tas is exactly as all the guidebooks say, very wild and rugged. Loads more to see, but thats what comes to mind first (as does sleeping on a beach and being surrounded by penguins as they came in from the sea at night to feed their chicks – and the bay of fire, Frenchmans cap, rough-arse pubs in Queenstown…)

now you have me thinking about it – must go back

You rang?
Not so many bikes to hire from memory, but I could sort you out something if you ride a medium.
Plenty of riding on Mt Wellington, a lot of it off the map. The new part of the north/south trail should be open then.
Wineries, well that’s my job. Only Moorilla has anything you would call architecture. Our cellar door at Meadowbank is interesting to say the least.
Ping me an email at john@frogmorecreek.com.au

must go back

Indeed, that was my thought. But I’ve never been there with a bike and it’s just going to kill me if I can’t rent one! (#firstworldproblems etc)

There was a rather fun video on the Hobart City website about the making of a trail linking Glenorchy Bike Park (thanks for the tip RichPenny) and Mt Wellington Park. Looks like they’ve done a really nice job.

Last visit we drove from Launceston to Hobart via Cradle Mountain. Some of the small logging towns were pretty, um, insular sorts of places. But, yes, Tasmania, is probably my favourite place on earth. They just need a couple of bike rental places to finish it off. Oh, and to knock the old-growth logging on the head…

Ah, hello kiwijohn – will drop you a line!