Day 5. Resting up in Launceston.

Still no riding 🙁

Today I took the bus from St Helens to launceston! We left at 8.30 and arrived just after 11. The scenery was beautiful the whole way and it made me really sad to miss out on this on the bike.

Today I woke up not much better than yesterday, but I got better sleep. My body and head still hurt this morning and I wasn’t feeling to optimistic. The coach journey made me feel horribly sick and dizzy, guess my head couldn’t deal with the vibrations!

I got to Launceston and the dude at the hostel let me check in early which was awesome, I nabbed a bottom bunk in the dorm and then left to go explore the town. I needed a distraction! I headed to the QVMAG (Queen Victoria museum and art Gallery) and wow what a wonderful treat! Today I needed a chill kinda afternoon but I needed something to engage my brain with. Being stuck inside most of the day yesterday drove me a little crazy. Before the Museum I needed some lunch and coffee so I sat at the cafe opposite the museum and the most amazing lamb rice and vege compilation, with a Latte. My belly was pretty happy for some decent fresh food.

I Then headed to the Museum and spent the best part of my afternoon there. What a fantastic place… and FREE! It had a planetarium, art gallery, films, dinosaurs, animals, bikes, public transport, science, History and Space. I could have spent longer in there but my brain had taken in as much as it could for day! I haven’t been to a museum in so long and this was just what I needed today.

I had intended to go to the Art Gallery as well, but time flew past and I didn’t realise the Art Gallery closed at 4 which was only 30 minutes away. I had decided to have a phone call with a friend instead, which might have been what I needed instead. I needed a pep talk, and for someone to tell me to get out of my own head! I was overthinking everything with the bike ride, and I was finding excuses to give up.

After the Museum and getting my head in a better space I head over to the Cataract Gorge. My head has been pounding throughout the day but I needed to be outside and doing something, and the walk seemed pretty easy. Only 5km round trip and pretty flat. The Gorge was beautiful – I did the cliff walk to the water and walked over the suspension bridge to get over the other side. Instead of going back around I took a looped route and did the ‘Zig Zag trail’ on the way back which in hindsight wasn’t the best idea, it was a steep up and down and kept making me feel dizzy. Might have been too much exercise but other than my head my body is actually starting to feel okay!

I might not have done a huge amount today but I am exhausted and headed back to the hostel at 5.30pm. My body is still wiped of energy. I need some decent sleep before I conquer tomorrow. I think I will get on the bike and just see how it goes. Life is throwing a few shitty things at me and testing me, and I’m going to try and see through it. Come at me emotional rollercoaster, I’m in it for the whole ride.

“We humans have lost the wisdom of genuinely resting and relaxing. We worry too much. We don’t allow our bodies to heal, and we don’t allow our minds and hearts to heal.”


To make today’s post a little more exciting and worthy of wasting your time with reading… here are some fun fun facts of Tasmania! I had totally forgot to post these right at the start!

Fun Facts on Tasmania!

  • Tasmania is known as the ‘Apple State’ – Because of its former status as an important apple exporter, or maybe because the Island is shaped like an Apple?
  • Tassie may seem small but It’s coastline measures about 4500km.
  • Almost half of the state is considered National Park, World Heritage Area, Marine or Forest reserves <3
  • Tasmania is the worlds 26th largest Island.
  • Tasmania has the cleanest air in the world.
  • It has the oldest trees in the world – Huon Pine Tress.
  • After Adelaide, Hobart is Australia’s driest capital city.
  • Tassie has water so pure it produces the only bottled rainwater approved by health departments around the world
  • Tasmania has over 2000km of walking tracks
  • The Tasmanian devil is the largest carnivorous marsupial in the world
  • When it comes to rude, baffling and hilarious place names, Tasmania has it all. There’s Eggs and Bacon Bay, Trousers Point, Penguin, Milkshake Hills, Stinkhole, Granny’s Gut, Awesome Wells, Satan’s Lair and errm, Lovely Bottom.. (well this sounds like a more fun bike ride, to go to all these places! – surely I will pass some of these!)