Touring Tasmania with Throw Your Leg Over
Words: Alan Cox and Bridget Hallam
Photos: Copyright and courtesy of Throw Your Leg Over
It's the bucket list ride for many of us ... that slightly mysterious green island at the bottom of our continent. Tasmania is a motorcycling mecca like no other – it’s packed with twisting roads and enticing mountains, alongside lush farmland and glistening oceans.
Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania was the culmination of our two recent tours of this rider’s paradise.
Featuring 16 awesome rides across the main island, our motorcycle touring guide book has maps, detailed directions, stunning photos and much, much more.
We’re delighted to share our story with you of how this book came about and a few of our top tips for riding Tassie in the best possible way....
Grab your copy of Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania to get the full picture!
About the Authors
Bridget Hallam and Alan Cox met in Brisbane over six years ago. Alan offered his spare helmet and Bridget couldn’t refuse! Since then, the couple have explored the many stunning, winding roads of south east Queensland and northern New South Wales, as well as equally exhilarating stretches of tarmac and gravel in Tasmania. Bridget and Alan have also ridden through Victoria and South Australia together and are heading to Europe this year for five months of touring.
The seed for what would become the ‘Throw Your Leg Over’ book series was planted during a weekend away in July 2016. While shooting the breeze about the joys of riding, a friend suggested Bridget and Alan write a book. The couple seized on the idea and set about the task of properly riding and mapping these roads, then wrote, designed, edited and self-published Throw Your Leg Over South East Queensland & Northern New South Wales.
Launched in September 2017, the ink on that book was barely dry before the pair were on the road again, starting what would be another eleven months of riding, exploring, researching, writing, shooting and editing to bring Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania to fruition last August.
How Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania came to be.
Our first trip to Tasmania in October 2017, accompanied by a mate, saw us spend four days on the road before we even crossed Bass Strait.
Riding two-up from our base camp in Brisbane to Melbourne on “Beauty” (Alan’s BMW R 1200 GS), we avoided the crowded coastal highways and headed inland, soaking up the vast beauty of regional Australia, stopping overnight at Tamworth, then riding through the majestic Warrumbungles to Dubbo and on to the picturesque Murray River towns of Mulwala/Yarrawonga and down to the Victorian capital.
From Port Melbourne, a smooth night onboard the Spirit of Tasmania ferry delivered us to Devonport’s terminal at dawn.
We then spent ten exhilarating days in Tassie - and wow, what an experience! Roads that twisted and turned, mountains that climbed above the clouds and stunning scenery that took our breath away.
The gentle, lush farming areas along the north-east coast, the jaw-dropping ruggedness of Mount Barrow and Ben Lomond, the breathtaking beauty of the bejewelled east coast and the ever-changing dramatic landscapes across to the remote west coast were intoxicating. Queenstown’s ‘ninety-nine bends’ didn’t disappoint, either – just magic!
After only a day of our ten-day trek, we knew we’d made the right decision to produce a book on this motorcycling mecca.
While Tasmanian weather can be changeable – make that VERY changeable – the weather gods smiled on us, with only a couple of drops of rain the whole time we were there. Our day at Cradle Mountain was under a hot, crystal-blue sky – a stark difference from two weeks before, when we were told there was 1.2 metres of snow in the car park!
After saying goodbye to Tassie, we did the Great Ocean Road around to Mt Gambier, then on to Adelaide to attend a wedding.
From there, we turned Beauty homewards, heading due east from the Clare Valley in South Australia to take in the Mallee and Hay Plains, then gradually snaking north east to hit West Wyalong and onward to Dunedoo, sticking to the inland roads and avoiding Sydney and Newcastle as we headed back up through Tamworth again and home to Brisbane.
That trip saw us cover five states over 24 days, riding a total of 7,775km, and we could have easily turned around and done it all again in a heartbeat.
We’ve been asked since then how Beauty performed in the various road (and sometimes off-road!) conditions we encountered. The simple answer is that she was a joy to ride, for both of us.
As you know, BMWs like the R 1200 GS are built for touring and Beauty does it so well - ‘beautifully’, you could say!
Smooth and comfortable, the big Beemer didn’t miss a beat. But like any touring motorcycle, everyone will have their own methods for making it more to their liking, with their own modifications to set up the bike for long-range touring. Of course, with us doing the whole trip two-up, there were extra considerations to be factored in.
Experience gained on rides that led to the creation of Throw Your Leg Over South East Queensland & Northern New South Wales were honed further when touring for Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania, so we reckon we’ve pretty much got it down to a fine art now. We have a pannier each (no fights that way!), with shared essentials divided between a tank bag and tail bag. Also, we’ve travelled long enough now to know what to pack and what to leave at home.
Our first trip gave us ten rides for the book, but we knew we needed more, to give readers the full experience of riding this magical green isle. That’s why we did a return journey – but for our second trip, we did it a little differently.
Flying down to Hobart in April, 2018, we hired a Triumph Tiger 800 to continue exploring Tassie’s endless twists and turns for another nine days. Hard yakka, but someone had to do it!
Despite some drizzly mornings, we still managed to scrape the pegs on endless twisties, curved around spectacular coastlines and climbed breathtaking mountains. This time around, we explored beguiling Bruny Island, historic Port Arthur, the deep heart of Tassie’s wilderness through to Gordon Dam, the “edge of the world” on the remote west coast and so much more. The result was another six rides for Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania, bringing the total to sixteen, covering pretty much all points of the state and offering what we feel is a good mix of rides to suit both differing experience levels, budgets and time scales.
And the bike? To be honest, the Triumph’s ergonomics took us both a couple of days to adjust to – we were definitely spoiled by Beauty. We also found the Tiger’s panniers pretty meagre compared to those on the BMW. They were like the Tardis in reverse: smaller on the inside than they appeared on the outside!
The takeaway from both our trips – beyond the book, of course! – is that Tasmania is a thrilling playground for motorcyclists. It will mesmerise you
Our Tips for Tasmania Touring
Two trips – and a hell of a lot of kilometres – through Tasmania have given us what we feel is a very good understanding of what’s required to make touring the Apple Isle an exceptional experience. Here are our top tips:
Road conditions:
Tasmanian roads are heaven to ride. However, you can feel thrillingly exhausted after just a couple of hundred kilometres, largely due to the never-ending twists and turns through the spectacular countryside.
Some roads are a challenge and warning signage can be sparse, especially on the minor roads. Road camber can change quickly, too, especially when going through the mountains. As always, ride to your ability.
Watch for the strobe effect from the sun filtering through the trees, as well as moss on the road edges and sometimes in the middle of the road itself through rainforest areas.
Expect to come across dirt roads, even on main roadways.
Finally, rural and remote areas mean wildlife on the road and Tassie is no exception, especially near dusk and dawn.
The weather:
The best time of year for touring Tasmania is October through to April. However, just because it’s summer, summertime conditions are not guaranteed. Expect four seasons in one day, all year round, and pick your riding gear accordingly, including effective wet weather gear.
The people:
Tasmanians are friendly and welcoming to touring motorcyclists, particularly in the smaller towns where the income generated by visitors on two wheels is appreciated. Return the favour by showing your gratitude and spending your hard-earned cash on food, accommodation and the like in these small communities.
Cold weather riding:
The key here is layers, layers, layers: Tassie can be cold, even in the summer.
Consider thermal underwear, merino tops and pants, as well as down vests and jackets. We’ve found goose down to be ideal as it’s extra-warm and packs down extra-small.
Silk, surprisingly, is warm, wind-resistant and compact. Bridget purchased a silk scarf from the Salamanca Market in Hobart and it was so effective at keeping out the chills she was able to ditch her bulky woollen one.
Long distance riding:
Stop often, but don’t just stretch your legs – walk around a bit to get your blood circulating; stretch your back and shoulders, too. As a rule of thumb, five days of riding to one day of chillaxing will serve you well. Breathe in the fresh Tassie air, taste the local gourmet fare and indulge in a locally-produced tipple at the end of the day. Life is good
About the Book
Released late last year, Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania is the latest motorcycle touring guide book from the team at Throw Your Leg Over; following on from 2017’s Throw Your Leg Over South East Queensland & Northern New South Wales.
Bridget Hallam and Alan Cox took the task of touring around Tasmania – twice – to meticulously research rides for this second book. Cruising the state from north to south and east to west resulted in sixteen awesome ride routes that they are confident will thrill and delight riders.
Packed with maps, detailed directions, distances and ride times for every ride route, Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania also includes “twisty alerts” and “dirt alerts” to let you know what to expect during each leg of each ride.
QR codes for every ride enable you to instantly see them in Google Maps on your smartphone and view videos which provide a real taste of what touring Tasmania can be all about.
When purchasing the book, gpx files are also available to upload to your navigation device or app that accepts the gpx file format.
Beyond the maps and descriptions of each route, Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania is also filled with stunning action shots captured by Bridget from the pillion position. Her images of the winding roads, breathtaking scenery and quirky surprises on Tasmania’s great riding roads are sure to inspire you to explore them for yourself.
Finally, understanding that finding accommodation on the road is often a challenge, an entire section of Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania is dedicated to places to spend the night.
Whether your preference is for free camping, luxury accommodation or something in between, the directory of 1,000+ places to stay, from pubs to bed and breakfasts, hotels and more, will make it easy. Whether you’re happy with a swag under the stars or would perhaps prefer a luxuriously-converted pumphouse on a lake, it’s all there.
Throw Your Leg Over Tasmania is available direct from Throw Your Leg Over’s website – throwyourlegover.com.au – and is $29.95 (+ postage: $9 within Australia, $21 international). You can also request the free gpx files of all the ride routes when ordering through the website. If you fancy a ride to pick up a couple of books, cruise over to one of their stockists.
Visit the website for more details or look for Bridget and Alan at a motorcycling event – they’re out and about at shows promoting the book and love to have a chat!
