Custom Search

What got me interested in a Bruny Island cruise?

I was at a cafe named the White Wallaby (formerly the Penguin cafe), located at Adventure Bay on Bruny Island.

Following a yummy breakfast, I had a look around the cafe, I was captivated by a framed photo of what looked like an extremely vertical cliff-face. The caption was "Humility". I was mesmerised. I had to know more. The lady at the cafe was most helpful. She told me about an eco-cruise that I could join, to see cliffs just like that. There was one leaving in about 15 minutes - perfect!

After we made our booking, we were provided with wet weather gear in the form of long waterproof jackets - this only got us more excited. A bus picked us up and in minutes we were boarding our eco-cruise boat. There were about 20 of us that would be travelling together.

Our guides, Jimmy and Glen were very knowledgeable. We learnt about the rich whaling history of the region. At one point Jimmy even invited us to imagine the sea running red with the blood of whales. I was extremely glad that whaling is now banned.

Glen told us that he possessed a permit for harvesting abalone from the area. The abalone industry is strictly controlled by government, hence only 25 permits are allowed.

We actually got the chance to meet an abalone diver who showed us one of his catches for the day.

We even got to hold it and touch it. Not exactly my cup of tea, lucrative industry or not!

We stared open-mouthed at dolorite cliffs for which this region is renowned. According to Jimmy, these dolorite wonders are rare. Tasmania is one of the few places they can be found, others being South America and South Africa.

We saw plenty of natural sea caves and rock archways.

There were so many other incredible sights. These were some of them:

• Breathing Rock, a blowhole . Glen told us how it felt as a diver in the vicinity. It was best to keep your distance!

• Totem Pole, one of the many astounding rock formations
• Mangana's bluff, named after the father of the courageous Truganini
• fish-seeking albatrosses and gannets
• playful dolphins swimming alongside the boat

• a seal colony, where we spent a little time observing the antics of the residents.
• Cape Bruny and the lighthouse.

I could have stayed out there and watched the wildlife for hours.

On the way back, our guides reminded us about the packet of energy-boosting crackers and bottle of water provided for each person. I'm glad they did as the food and drink were very nourishing. This Bruny Island cruise was certainly everything we had expected and more.

Remember the framed photo I mentioned above? It was taken by Warwick Berry. I highly recommend his DVD. Read my Bruny Island travel tips to find out more about that.