Tasmania Heritage Highway

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Hobart

   Hobart tucks itself against the foot of Mount Wellington, with the wide Derwent estuary at its feet, and it has the compact, sandstone-and-timber feel of a port that never grew too large. It is the capital of Tasmania and Australia's second oldest city, founded in 1804 as a convict settlement, and the old warehouses along Salamanca Place and the cottages of Battery Point survive from the early years of the colony. On Saturdays, Salamanca Place fills with a crowded market of stalls selling food, crafts and plants.

   Read the complete Hobart write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Hobart is where the day begins. Next is Richmond.

2. 2. Richmond

   Richmond is the Tasmanian village where the bridge is older than almost anything on the mainland. The sandstone arch across the Coal River was built by convict labour and completed in 1823, and it is the oldest bridge in Australia still in use. Cars cross it, cyclists wobble over it, and ducks paddle underneath, and standing on the grass looking at the weathered golden stone it feels as if the nineteenth century has simply been left in place.

   Read the complete Richmond write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Richmond comes up about 27 km into the recorded legs. Next is Oatlands.

3. 3. Oatlands

   Oatlands sits on the Midland Highway in the middle of Tasmania, and it is built almost entirely of local sandstone. The main street is lined with Georgian buildings, shops, inns and cottages, many of them dating from the 1830s and 1840s, and the town claims one of the largest collections of such buildings in Australia. It is not a showpiece, and many of them are simply in daily use, as houses and cafes and a bakery, which gives the place its reality.

   Read the complete Oatlands write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 84 km into the recorded legs you reach Oatlands. Next is Ross.

4. 4. Ross

   Ross is a tiny sandstone village on the Macquarie River, and it is the prettiest stop on the Midland Highway. A bridge, a bakery and a few old buildings are all it needs. The bridge, built by convicts and opened in 1836, is one of the oldest in Australia still carrying traffic, and its arch is decorated with nearly two hundred carved stones, the work of two convict stonemasons, Daniel Herbert and James Colbeck, who were pardoned for their efforts. The carvings include Celtic symbols, animals, and portraits of figures from the time, and every face seems to have a personality.

   Read the complete Ross write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Ross, late in the day. Next is Launceston.

5. 5. Launceston

   Launceston sits where three rivers meet, the North Esk, the South Esk and the Tamar, and the town takes its character from the water and the hills. It is Tasmania's second city, with something over a hundred thousand people, and it feels more like a large, well-kept country town than a metropolis. The Victorian architecture is excellent, because the city grew rich on wool, timber and mining in the nineteenth century, and the brick and sandstone buildings of the centre are among the best preserved in Australia.

   Read the complete Launceston write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Finish at Launceston. That is the ride.