MOT Tour Day 31 - Critters and Graves

Over-active yesterday, we both woke a little leg sore this morning. Time to catch up as our remaining time in Bicheno is somewhat laid back. The chief cause has been a cancellation in our glass bottomed boat tour owing to strong winds.

We dawdled through the morning and drove out to East Coast Nature World nearing noon. Sue and I are not really that interested in zoos unless they are performing a rescue and recovery role but this one took our interest, located as it is, on the eastern shoreline north of the town. Set on quite a large site, it’s a series of large enclosures, with only the aviary failing and nocturnal house failing to satisfy our concerns over keeping wild animals in captivity. The staff were excellent and the feeding demonstration with Devils was informative, both in the information passed on by the keeper and the ferocious and argumentative way in which the four Devils approached communal eating.

It’s a business which is doing its best as a private zoo to provide access - particularly to children - to wild animals, with an emphasis on Australian animals. However, it suffers from good ideas not matching declining exhibit infrastructure.

Sue finally got to meet her much desired white wallabies (albino Bennett’s Wallaby). As a small child, she became enchanted reading about them in a library book, with the population on Bruny Island being one of her motivators for coming to Tasmania. She sat face to face with one for about half an hour this morning and finally left, thrilled. We will now probably change our plans and not travel to Bruny as the chief experience for going there has been fulfilled. A lighthouse, some good views, wineries, cheeses, chocolates: these can all be equaled without paying more than $200 on ferry fares.

We also had a close enough encounter with a very plump Tiger Snake. The enclosure was between us and its malevolence but it was just a metre high wall of corrugated iron. I think bulletproof glass, double brick and a laser force field would have been more appropriate. They are a scary piece of the environment.

The bird enclosure was sad. The nocturnal house sadder and lots of animals were no-shows. We did find out that Eastern Grey kangaroos are called Forester Kangaroos in Tasmania.

However, we enjoyed our few hours there. Perhaps it was the attitude and enthusiasm for the predominantly young staff that helped us accept the entrapment.

Late lunch. Lazy afternoon making some small changes to our itinerary and tightening our planning, as needed, which we had left loose until needs be. Went for a stroll through the cemetery to read the old gravestones - as you do.

Click here for today's photos

Rain is expected late afternoon - perhaps heavy - and extending into tomorrow, so a day off looks as likely. As it will be only the second day with no activity since we left home on 26 January, it will be welcomed.

Footnote to the leg soreness: we walked another 4kms today!