Hobart & Mt Wellington

Arriving in Hobart

We landed at Hobart a little earlier at 1040.  The airport was a small one-storey design with no airbridges.  It was a long unsheltered walk to get to the arrival hall, which was fine because it wasn’t raining.  I thought the distance was because we’re a very rare international flight but to my surprise, the domestic arrival hall was a similar distance.

While waiting for my luggage, I asked the ground staff if she knew anything of the last two week’s flight cancellation:

The one a fortnight ago was due to engineering.  From FlightRadar24 I had seen that the aircraft from the cancelled Hobart flight had subsequently done a whole day of domestic flying.  That would suggest the Hobart aircraft didn’t break down but was reassigned to replace the domestic aircraft that broke down.

Last week’s flight was cancelled due to crew sickness.  The Hobart ground staff only learned of the cancellation when preparing to open for check-in, which would mean around departure time of the flight from Auckland.  Wow!  That is really last minute!

Like many airlines, Air New Zealand is having issues operating its schedule.  There has been higher than expected staff sickness following the pandemic, with Covid-19 now endemic in the community.

Exploring Hobart

The Skybus from the airport was super-expensive at about AUD20 for the 20 min ride.  The driver had delayed its departure slightly as he had a very light load and departed as soon as I boarded around 1115.  Lucky me!

I found my way from the first stop in the city to the Hobart Central YHA where I left my bag in my yet-to-be-readied room, before exploring the city.

It was around midday when I wandered up Elizabeth St, with its pedestrian mall and restaurants beyond the pedestrian area.  It was cold so I treated myself to a scallop pie, with six whole Tasmanian scallops in a light curry gravy.

I continued to the waterfront and along to the Salamanca area with its long row of sandstone buildings.  I then made my way to the other side of the water the Hunter St area before trying to kill about 30 mins before the bus/tour up to Mt Wellington (kunanyi) at 1400.

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Mt Wellington

The tour started with a ride through the suburbs before ascending on a narrow road just wide enough for two vehicles.

At one point we had to overshoot the turnoff for the ascent as it was too tight a turn.  Instead, we had to make a turn near a pub carpark so that we could get back onto the intended route.

It was about 1 degC up on Mt Wellington (1271m or 4170 ft).  The driver/guide told us to put our glasses and hats away safely due to the strong wind.  He had seen car doors ripped off (probably not off but into the wrong direction).

I made my way quickly to the outdoor viewpoint before spending some time at the indoor one.  The view of the area was magnificent and we were lucky we had moments of clear weather.  The landscape was rocky with large round boulders in many parts and some protruding columns in others.

Soon enough it was drizzling but the water was frozen, making it a rather painful walk on the face walking into the wind.

Combined with a trip to the toilet, I probably spent only 15 mins of the half hour stop outside of the bus!

Back on the bus, the driver showed us photos from the big storm in June this year.  The snow was probably 3m high and took 10 weeks to melt away.  He also had a photo of local snakes, which can be huge.

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We started our drive back down around 1530.  It was hard on the trip to get good photos of the Organ Pipes, which are striations (dolerite columns) on the cliff-like crown at the top of Mt Wellington.  This was due to the vegetation along the drive.  Down in the city, would be buildings obscuring a clear view of the mountain.  Fortunately, I had a decent vantage point next day for a shot.

At AUD35 for the 45 min ride (each way), waiting time and good commentary, the bus/tour seemed like excellent value after the airport Skybus.

Back in the city around 1615, I was ready for a Vietnamese pho to warm myself up after the frigid experience on the summit.  I finished the day with a visit to the supermarket to get some fruit and snacks.