Tassie Trip March 2018 : Ranalagh & Margate

Ranelagh & Margate

We flew down to Hobart using up our flight voucher from the cancelled Perth return trip from our Around Australia Lap last year. We needed to use it before April or lose it.
This time we left our car in the Long Stay car park right at Brisbane airport domestic terminal. We though this would be more convenient, and indeed it was. It just would've been helpful if there'd been more explicit instructions as to where to park and which entrance to use. Of course we went in the wrong entrance then got bamboozled. An attendant helped us and we made it in time for our flight. Phew!
The rental car pick-up at East Coast car rentals near Hobart Airport went quite smoothly. We got a Toyota Camira which was similar to the one we'd hired in Geraldton last year. Drives great and has good fuel economy. We drove ourselves down to Jan and Nick's place at Charlotte Cove. We were very pleased we'd taken our own HEMA GPS and also the dash cam....very useful items to find our way around, especially as we didn't have a very detailed paper map.
It was great to be back in Tassie. Quite surprisingly, the weather in March turned out to be much milder than when Barb had visited with Pamela less than two months ago. Then is was very cold. This time Barb was better prepared with heavy coats, scarves, beanie etc.
On our first day we decided to explore the local area we hadn't visited before. We drove up to Huonville via Cygnet and then took a little scenic detour through Judbury and stopped at Ranelagh. Jan's rowing friends had mentioned to her that the Ranelagh bakery was worth a visit. Oh yes! We sat outside beneath a shady tree and indulged in some very tasty morsels and quite decent coffee too. Definitely a winner!

 

 

When we left Ranelagh we decide to look in at the Willie Smith Cider Factory and Apple museum.
This was very interesting and they had a lovely dining area suitable for hosting events such as weddings or birthdays. The menu looked pretty good, but we were still too full from our delicious morning tea to do lunch. Instead John selected some cider to take away and try with dinner tonight.

As we were driving away from the Apple Museum we suddenly became aware that the rental car ahead of us was travelling on the wrong side of the road. John was flashing his lights to try and attract their attention and then drew up close behind and started tooting the horn. They suddenly swerved back into the right lane and moments later a car came hurtling around the corner from the opposite direction. It would've been a nasty head on collision. Thank goodness they realised in time. We were extra glad of the dash cam!

After our pulses returned to normal, we decided to go and have a look at the Margate Train we'd briefly seen as we drove down to Charlotte Cove yesterday. The train carriages have small shops within them and also a café with seating area inside and on the train platform. Right at the back there is a big shed selling good quality second hand wares and antiques and also a selection of Tasmanian timbers. We really enjoyed poking around in this store. Everywhere you looked was a profusion of stuff, even hanging from the ceiling and walls.

Further down the road was another museum. This turned out to be really good. Various rooms were given over to a theme of local activity, whether it be fruit growing, fishing or historical interest. There was a great section about bushfires. This can be a big problem in many parts of Tasmania as there's so many trees and when it gets dry and windy sparks can quickly cause an out-of-control blaze.

We had a lovely relaxed stay with Jan & Nick. They make good B&B hosts and we especially love their breakfasts of local berries, homemade yoghurt and muesli (Aunty Dot's recipe) and Nick's homemade bread and jams. Oh yum!