After Cradle Mountain our second stop was another one of Tasmania's famous National Parks to see Wineglass Bay.
After our epic hike round Dove Lake, I was a bit nervous to see the walk I wanted to do described as considered to be 'challenging'. Luckily, despite a steep start to the hike, it was much easier than I feared it might be.
The Wineglass Bay lookout has some fantastic views of the crystal clear blue waters. I'm a bit unconvinced as to how much it actually looks like a wineglass, but it is a stunning inlet.
After the lookout we descended onto the beach for a walk up and down the sand. I didn't bring my swimmers with me on the walk, but it did inspire me to take a dip in the sea at the beach near our house that evening. The water wasn't as cold as I feared it might be!
After Wineglass beach we walked across the peninsula to Hazards Beach. More beautiful white sands and clear blue waters awaited us. There were a couple of other walkers around, but we almost had the beach to ourselves which was very picturesque.
After we completed the walk we quickly visited the Cape Tourville lighthouse before doing some shopping and heading home for my swim!
The name only has little to do with the shape of the bay. In the early-mid 1800's when whaling was big business the carcasses were dragged ashore for butchering and the blubber was boiled down to extract oil. The oil was shipped to Britain for lighting and the bones for ladies corsets and hoop skirts! For as long as the shore-based whaling lasted (20 years) the bay was dyed red with blood - like red wine in a glass.
ReplyDeleteWow that water is so gorgeously blue! I don't know what it is that draws me to the ocean, but I can't swim properly with a constant fear of drowning and I get sea sick! But I love looking at it... =)
ReplyDelete@John - I had heard that story, but completely forgot when I was writing the blog. It's not something that advertise in the brochures when you are there!!
ReplyDeleteMust have been a chilling but remarkable site all at the same time.