To Southport I say!

There have been numerous memorable moments during these past days, such as my helping to prepare the 1957 Fordson tractor and then watching it bounce down the bush driveway in a hail of white diesel smoke; or moving a large water tank only to discover two copperhead snakes at our feet; or sitting in Dad's outdoor spa and watching the night close in and the satellites move, as the wallabies surrounded us to feed on the lawn.    

Continuing the theme of exploring roads that I had been driven along, passively, as a child, yesterday by means now of my own machine I rode the other side of the channel: from Huonville to Southport.  As always I explored certain tarred nooks and crannies along the way, such as a single lane of black stuff wending along the coast and in between diary farms, which was Police Point.  People here live in wooden shacks that overhang the tide.

My aim was to explore the towns of Franklin (where Dad lived for a time), Geeveston, Dover and Southport.

Geeveston is a logging town with, in recent years, a polish to the place to draw the tourists.  Sculptures litter the central district.

Outside of Geeveston I joined in behind a couple of Harley riders for a distance, enjoying both their mellow pace and the act  riding along with others.  They were not particularly skillful riders however and at a certain point, tired of having to brake in every corner, I opened up my throttle and took to piloting my wonderful bike through the twists and sweeps, alone, at a pace that thrilled.

Eventually I made it to Southport, the southern-most town in Australia.

 

   

I rode along the shoreline and beheld this beauty, an island that one could inhabit.  Notice the shallow water in between.

A place to dream of being.

This wonderful place continued to draw me as I explored it.  Such was the beauty that, in the middle of the day, I had that feeling which you have experienced on a hot summer night, on a beach or island under a full moon over glittering water and a visible scene: that the world about you is alive, open and magical. 

Do not be fooled when you watch this video: the breeze is kind, the air warm, the water clear and inviting:

I went further and saw other interesting things, but let this suffice.