Arrival in Devonport, Tasmania

After one of the worst nights I've ever had, I arrived in Devonport to glorious sunshine.

It's a pretty town, but the Ferry arrives the other side of the river, and it's quite a long way round to get to the main part of the town. I had originally intended to ride straight to Deloraine at this point; but I was still feeling sick as a dog and was totally sleep deprived.


(There is a small Ferry that can take you the short cut across the river but I didn't know about this till later and I don't know if it takes bikes).

I had a look around (it was 6-7 AM still) but none of the accommodation places were open. So I hung out on the town side looking across at the Ferry. It was warm, peaceful and pretty.  My greenness soon melted away.

I tried to charge my phone using the solar panel, but it wasn't charging. This was really strong sun and it should have charged. It was puzzling. 

I used what battery was left to call around and found a caravan park back over the Ferry side again. The tourist information on the Ferry had told me categorically, "There are no camping sites in Devonport!" So I asked for a cabin for a night to get some sleep and try and charge the phone via a wall socket.

The Camp Site - Abel Tasman Caravan Park, Deloraine, Tasmania

Web Site

They were very friendly both on the phone and in person, and were able to secure a cabin for me and let me in quite early in the morning (10 AM). Which was handy as I'd had enough of waiting for everything to open, and had exhausted the McDonald's menu. 

The cabin was clean, comfortable and functional (apart from hot plates that didn't work in the kitchen) and most importantly I got the sleep I needed. I was still whacked the next day so stayed an extra night.  It was $90 a night that wasn't a bad rate actually (especially in a large town / city). 

It is convenient to get here from the ferry but a long way round to get to the town. There is a set of shops nearby however to get important things like basic food, and a very good cafe.

They do allow tents. The tourist info on the Ferry was totally wrong. I could have saved myself some money if only I'd asked.

 

Phone Blues (Part 1)

However the bad news was my phone wouldn't charge. As the battery died I wondered what it was. Perhaps the battery was somehow damaged and a new battery would fix it? Or maybe the charging port was broken, that's quite a common problem. 

This was a severe issue for me. The phone was vital for navigating, listening to music, taking photos, planning where to stay, booking camp sites, and gathering information about interesting places to visit. Also the link to friends and family back home. It was my sisters 50th birthday and it passed by without me being able to contact her. It was unthinkable to continue the trip without a working phone.

I had a look round Devonport but nobody there could fix phones. They suggested I went to Launceston, Tasmania's 2nd city and somewhere I wasn't planning to visit until almost the end of the trip.