joy it! What better way to wind down after a bracing fresh
air ride than cosying up in front of a fire, scoffing some
oysters and drinking some Tassie pinot noir, or Tassie
whisky, or gin – take your pick of perks of life down at the
end of the earth.
Many Australians picture the island state as drizzly and
cold. Having now seen it through the changing seasons,
the colder months are nothing to be feared. And it’s not
all that rainy either. In fact Hobart is the second driest
capital city in Australia. Sure you get some drizzle and
blasts (it is the end of the earth after all) but generally,
there are far more clear blue skies than there is doom and
gloom.
You may be forgiven for assuming that Tassie is tiny. To
look at it on the map, it’s dwarfed by that colossal main-
land. Sort of like – do we even need a bike? Couldn’t we
walk around most of it before lunch? Ah, no. Definitely
not. Tasmania is just a bit smaller than England. In fact -
the tiniest state in Australia is still bigger than more than
half the world's countries.
It’s just small enough that you can base yourself down
south, or on the east coast or up in the north and get plen-
ty of day trips in from the one spot. But you also wouldn’t
be short of roads to ride, things to do and see, and eat, and
drink, if you stayed here for a month, two months – or just
decided to pack up and move down here for good, and say,
start up a Harley rental business (more about that later!).
Also, the twisty, windy and often steep and narrow
roads mean it takes longer to get 100kms than it would on
a four lane highway on the mainland. Which is great - be-
cause why would you want to rush this experience?
You don’t necessarily associate Tassie with beach loung-
ing, pina colada sipping, island paradise – but let’s bust
another myth. Not only is it not extremely cold in win-
ter, it’s also truly magical in summer. And jumping into
the turquoise water isn’t too much of a shock to the sys-
tem (between November and March that is … I’d say you’d
get a few goosebumps/hypothermia going for a paddle in
July), with the water temperature not (much) noticeably
colder than the bottom of WA or far South East NSW coast
beaches.
It’s a bit more rugged than other island paradises. The
beaches aren’t developed, resortlike or crowded (though
unfortunately this means they are also usually lacking
in readily available tropical cocktails). Many of the best
beaches require a fair hike, but then – after a morning’s
ride, and perhaps some enthusiastic delicious cheese and
wine consumption, it’s a nice way to get a leg stretch.
It’s kind of like one big national park
About 40% (yes – heaps right?!) of Tasmania is reserved
as national parks. And about one fifth of the island is
world heritage listed wilderness. World heritage basical-
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