Hiking like a real hiker: Cradle Mountain

A tour bus picked me up from the side of the road in Burnie and drove me to Cradle Mountain. Happy as a little chicklet I posed with overenthusiastic American tourists for photoshoots on every lookout and listened to their stories about life on a cruise ship. I waved them goodbye as we arrived at the Cradle Mountain visitor center, where I met up with Taiwanese friends. We hiked the whole day and loved the gorgeous views. It was a perfect Monday, with blue skies and lots of wombats.

When the night fell, feet got cold and possums freaked me out. I don't like them for one bit. They wait in a dark corner for you to go outside and then just scare the pants off of you. So I decided to stay in the backpackers kitchen where I ended up having a funny tea party with travelers from all over the world.

The next day I drove to Strahan with Martin, a French guy with an accent that makes you want to wear a beret an ride your bike with baguettes under your arm. Strahan appeared to be a tiny town where mostly old people come for a visit. Only old people really. So we bought lots of wine and meat and had a barbecue party that rocked the town.