A beautiful start to the day as the sun rises above the Hazards.

We headed north to the Bush Mill to grab some food, before turning south towards Triabunna and Orford.

Today was shorter, a mere 60 km with around 500 metres climbing. The views for the first half was beach after beach, with the omnipresent Hazards and later, Maria Island.

We stopped at each beach turnoff, including Cressy, Spiky, Kelvedon and Mayfield.

I particularly liked this view at Kelvedon Beach looking towards a farm building and Maria Island poking its head behind.

Roadworks were occurring on the northern approach to the Spiky Bridge so we could not ride over it today.

Built by convicts in 1843 the bridge was made from field stones laid without mortar or cement. The parapet features field stones laid vertically, giving the bridge a spiky appearance.

Three arch bridge is a short walk, or bike push at Mayfield Beach. The bridge was built in 1845 by convict labor from the nearby Rocky Hills Probation Station, as part of the old convict built coach road that connected Swansea to Little Swanport.

The bridge spans Old Mans Creek and has the current highway built over the top, some 10-15 metres higher.

Just after we left the Mayfield Conservation area we came across an echidna, not keen to be photographed as it tried to bury itself. Great to see one alive, as sadly we past one earlier that had been killed on the road.

Another beautiful view as we approached Little Swanport.

We had not planned to stop for coffee until Triabunna mainly because we did think there would be anything. When we came across this cafe in the middle of nowhere, we thought ‘why not’. We had time to kill today so we chilled here for 30 minutes or so, until 3 guys on motor bikes arrived and we offered up our table (there was only one).

The owners dog came over for a pat, making us think of our two loved dogs Simba and Jack hoping they are going ok at the kennels.

The Highway is quiet here. Traffic overall was not too bad today with one major exception. One idiot driver of a red convertible Mercedes, registration starting with MHH…I was hoping we might see the car in Triabunna or Orford so we could have a chat! He came within inches passing us, making no attempt to leave a 1.5 metre gap.

Triabunna is the gateway to the Maria Island National Park. Decent looking ferry and we’ve added that trip onto our local bucket list.

Another dog came over for a pat. This is Archie who walked ahead of an elderly lady walking with her frame. She told us Archie belonged to her grandson and that he is a good boy. I think she meant the dog.

We knocked off another hour at Triabunna making the final 7 km ride to Orford, located on the Prosser River. Another very quiet town. Interestingly the jetties are all privately owned.

So a short day but tomorrow is a tougher day as we head to Port Arthur. We have a few different possibilities route wise but will make our mind up in the morning depending on the weather. The forecast is potentially problematic wind wise, so we will see how bad it is and tweak accordingly.

We are planning another early start, having purchased breakfast supplies. The wind tends to be kinder earlier in the day.

Thanks for reading. Ooroo.