09. January Orford - Bicheno

Spontaneously, we booked a boat tour from Triabunna to Maria Island. We started in the early morning with 16 others and went to a small island, Ile de Phoques, to observe seals. Liz wasn't completely relaxed because she thought it would be a bigger boat and was afraid of getting seasick. Poor thing. The best part was a young woman sitting with us. Liz indicated that she was feeling cold. Ralf offered her his fleece jacket, which Liz didn't accept, but the young woman sitting with us did. She quickly put on Ralf's fleece jacket and didn't take it off until we reached the port again. It was all worth it. The seals had fun in the water. The island itself is full of caves. One of them was so big that our boat had enough space. The play of colors was sensational. Just like the second one, where the sun showed its magic with its rays of light.
Then the boat turned towards Maria Island, passing incredibly beautiful cliffs showing off their most beautiful colors in the sandstone. After lunch, we walked on the island, which was also inhabited by convicts who served their hard existence here.
Part of the houses have been restored and can be visited. Today, only rangers live there, taking care of visitors and animals. Luck was on our side, and we saw some wallabies and, yes, wombats. Better in daylight than at night.
A very beautiful tour today.