Banjo’s Bakery

The morning of our departure, Coles Bay turns it on again with sunny skies and glassy seas. It’s still 4 degrees, but it’s gorgeous. Matt and I agree we’d just love to sit around the house and admire the ocean view for one more day.

The coast road (from memory I think it’s the A3) south of Coles Bay is closed during winter, however, this information is received with joy because it means we have to go back through Campbell Town. And what’s in Campbell Town? Banjo’s Bakery. We are packed and in the car by 10am and a large proportion of our conversation is firmly around who’s going to get what at the bakery. The general consensus to this question is ‘pies’, but what type.

The icy road conditions mean Rod adds an extra two minutes onto our ETA, but I keep this information to myself. The delight as we pull into Campbell Town is not hidden and we pile into the bakery. It’s already loaded with locals, tourists and the ‘Po’ as Hamish calls the police. I’m not really into pies as a meal, but I have the cheese and cauliflower and it’s bloody delish.

• Jess – cheese and cauliflower
• Matt – steak, cheese and bacon
• Hamish – meat
• Rod – steak and mushroom

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These are had with various forms of hot drinks and sweet treats, because we need extra bakery food after eating pies. Back in the car, we head towards Hobart. A planned stop at Banjo’s is discussed for our return trip to Launceston Sunday. Seriously. I am not joking. This place has been a highlight.

Moonah Cottage

We easily find our little cottage in the suburb of Moonah and unpack. I talk up the fact that I’ve never been so excited to see a washing machine, but Rod reminds me I’ve been pretty excited by washing clothes in the past; on holidays, when I’ve been wearing the same tee shirt for three days. With the washing on, we venture out for supplies. Rod cooks us a curry for dinner. He and Matt take it in turns to ‘attend to the fire’ because this is what men do, apparently… * insert eye roll by me and Jess.

Activities for the next few days are loosely planned. It’s a nice evening at home and we all enjoy a bit of down time.

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Mawson’s Hut

We head to Constitution Dock and walk around in the freezing Hobart weather. Some people are dressed for summer, but not us and we’re still cold!

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We have planned to visit the replica of Mawson’s Hut, which is a mini-museum dedicated to Mawson and his explorers and, you guessed it, designed to replicate the Hut which still stands at Cape Denison, Antarctica. It’s quite a tale of adventure and heroics; how these men completed any exploration with their primitive gear is beyond me. As we leave, Rod and Matt ask, ‘what did they even achieve there?’ – tough crowd.

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Maritime Museum – Thursday July 8

Jess and Matt have headed out to lunch at Cascade Brewery and we take Hamish to the Maritime Museum. Ease up on your criticism, it’s Hamish’s choice. He loves a good museum and is interested in lots of things. Maybe this museum doesn’t quite live up to his expectation, but he buys a ‘knot tying kit’ which is yet to be opened. We three have a great seafood lunch and then go for a bit of drive along the coast in a southerly direction. Many of the homes are straight out of Grand Designs (definitely wouldn’t take kids there) and we take in the beautiful views as Hamish entertains us with his singing.

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Tonight Jess has booked us into a trivia competition at the Granada Tavern; she’s checked if it’s kid friendly. It is. Not to brag, but out of all the trivia nights we have attended, we’ve lost one. Rod low-key prides himself on his extensive range of general knowledge, whils the rest of us kinda muddle through. Jess has been part of these winning teams in the past – I hope we don’t let her down. I’ll let you know how we go.