Hobart and cycling are not words which sit comfortably together in a sentence. David insists on taking our bicycles with us almost everywhere we go but even he agreed to leave them at home on our recent trip to Tasmania. Part of the reason was cost. As hard as it may be to believe it costs less to fly bicycles the 12,000 kms from Sydney to Los Angeles than it does to fly them 1,600 kms from Sydney to Hobart. Mostly however, it just didn't seem worth the effort for the one or two leisure cycling paths we were able to find in Hobart. Being neither road cyclists nor super-fit mountain bikers we look for easy, relatively flat, family-friendly, off-road paths - and sadly these are in very short supply in Tasmania's capital.
All was not lost however. On Day 2 of our week long stay in Hobart we visited the local Visitor Information Centre and kitted ourselves out with a Hobart Bike Map for $8.00. The map lists 9 family rides on multi-user paths and 20 regional rides (which are almost exclusively on road) as well as BMX tracks, skate parks, dirt jumps and bike shops.
Many of the road rides looked pretty good, such as the 36km loop from Richmond, an historic town north-east of Hobart. This is me standing in front of Richmond Bridge. It was built by convicts in the 1820s and is the oldest bridge in Australia.
It was the rides on multi-user paths we were interested in. Most are less than 10 kilometres - hardly worth the effort. One or two such as the 12km Pipeline Track looked interesting but we couldn't fine anywhere nearby to hire bikes. In the end it came down to two rides.
Option 1. - Hobart to Claremont along the Intercity Cycleway.
The Intercity Cycleway is 31 kms return, using an off-road, shared path the whole way. It finishes at the Cadbury Chocolate Visitor Centre. This would have been a great bonus but for two things. I don't eat chocolate (well - very rarely) and the Visitor Centre closed to the public in 2015. Despite the scary looking contour map on the Greater Hobart Trails website, the path is almost flat. The highest point of the trail is only 30 meters above the lowest.
The Clarence Foreshore Trail
A few kilometres before it ends the trail goes past MONA - a Museum of Old and New Art. Combining a nice cycle along the western shore of the Derwent River with a visit to a museum described by its owner as a 'subversive adult Disneyland' was superficially attractive until we found out the admission price; $28.00 each - ouch! All we wanted was a quick look around. We would have cycled 15kms to get there and have another 15 km to get back before the 5 p.m return time on our hire bikes. Maybe museums, art galleries and other attractions could consider a special cyclists' concession price, available only to those on two wheels who walk in looking exhausted.
You can also get to the MONA from central Hobart on one of their futuristic/militaristic looking ferries.
Option 2. - Geilston Bay to Howrah along the Clarence Foreshore Trail
The Clarence Foreshore Trail runs along the east bank of the Derwent River for 15 kms. You can add an extra few kilometres at the southern end by cycling along Howrah Road to join up with another short section of track at Tranmere.
The path looked deceptively flat on our map. To be fair most of it is flat but there are a couple of steep sections which tested our mettle - particularly mine which for some reason wasn't up to its normal strength that day. The detour around the sewerage works at Rosny Hill is particularly challenging - I walked that bit!
I thought this sculpture, just the other side of the Tasman Bridge was worthy of Sculpture by the Sea.
Almost the entire path is right next to the river making it a great scenic leisure ride. There is a waterfront pub and cafes at Bellerive, about half way between Geilston Bay and Howrah, and loads of lovely spots to stop and share a picnic. Most of the path is sealed but there are a few short sections which were unsealed.
Our hire bikes on the Clarence Foreshore Trail.
The only seriously challenging part of the ride was crossing the Tasman Bridge. If you can possibly avoid this - do it. We hired our bikes at Hobart Bike Hire which is on the western side of the Derwent. The shop owner warned us that the cycling/walking path on the Tasman Bridge was narrow and treacherous. There was no avoiding it though and since the bridge is more than a kilometre long, dismounting and walking across wasn't really an option.
The Tasman Bridge
This is the same Tasman Bridge which 42 years ago was cut in half by a bulk ore carrier killing 12 people and leaving several cars balanced precariously on the edge of the missing roadway - click here for a photo.
You can see what a precision manoevre it is to sail a large ship under the bridge.
The bike shop owner wasn't wrong about it being tricky to cycle across the bridge. David later described it to him as 'challenging'. The traffic seemed only centimetres from us and each passing truck presented the terrifying threat that a wing mirror or other protruding object would sweep us off our bikes and onto the roadway. Each gust of wind brought with it a similar fear. Add to that the fact that every few hundred metres the path was partly blocked at about the level of our heads with bits of machinery, (electrical boxes or switches or something), and my personal safety radar was screaming with tension. On the couple of occasions where we had to pass cyclists coming toward us, we had not only to dismount (fair enough) but flatten ourselves against the guardrail in order to have room to let them by. I can honestly say I don't think I have ever been so glad to finish a stretch of cycle path. Next time I think I'll walk the kilometre, especially if there is any wind.
Although crossing the Tasman Bridge by bicycle was a challenge it was worth it for the lovely scenery along the Clarence Foreshore Trail.
Other blog posts from our two weeks in Tasmania: -
The White Wallabies of Bruny Island
Where to Look for Platypus in Tasmania
The Little Penguins of Low Head
Port Arthur - A World Heritage Convict Site.
The Heritage Buildings of Launceston
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