Rafting and Walking Through Weekend #2

I’m very behind on my blog writing! Time flies by so fast here… it has already been about two weeks since I posted last. It will be June before I know it!  Plus, I usually end up talking myself out of sitting in my room to write, which doesn’t help. There are just too many distractions!

During our first week of school the University hosted what they call Societies Day. It is basically the equivalent of Club Fest at ISU. However, when I had to go through security and open my backpack to get in I realized it was going to be a very different type of Club Fest. This club day is like a giant campus party, with music and cheap alcohol. Tanner and I headed straight for the bushwalking club when we got in because it came highly recommended. Our membership was $10 and it came with two free ciders each! Most clubs there were giving out beer or cider after you paid the membership fee. I’ll admit I was very confused when I was handed two cans at like 3 in the afternoon. I wasn’t prepared to party so early. The amount of people at this event and signing up for organizations was crazy! It made ISU’s club day seem quiet. The energy was awesome and it was cool to see so many students come together. J

On Thursday we had our last class of the week, which ended at 10am… tough life I know! It was officially our second weekend in Tasmania! Friday we just hung out and went into town to get food.  On Saturday though, we went on our first trip with the UTAS Bushwalking Club. We spent 5 hours walking up and down Mount Wellington! Once we got towards the top it started to rain and the further we climbed the windier/colder it got. By the time we reached the peak the whole group was soaking wet and shivering. There were like hurricane force winds too….I seriously thought I might blow away. At one point during the walk up it also started to sleet, which felt super awesome. I love getting pelted with icy rain…

The views from the top made it completely worth it though! Plus I think we all felt pretty accomplished… walking up was so much better then just driving. We ate lunch at the top and then tried to warm up a little. 

We made it to the top! 

Views from the top of Mount Wellington

After lunch we began our decent to back down to the car. The sun came out and it started to warm up as we walked. There were amazing views all the way down Mount Wellington. By the time we reached the bottom the plants had completely changed, which I personally thought was awesome to see.   I was definitely pooped out once we got back to the cars, but it was the perfect first bushwalk! I had so much fun and the cold/wet adventures at the top made the experience so much more memorable. It was beautiful both with and without the sunshine!

Tanner at the bottom of Mount Wellington...so different then the top!

A small waterfall we saw on the way dow Mount Wellington.

During Societies Day Tanner and I also decided to join the White Water Rafting Club. Our intro trip for the club was on Sunday, so we woke up early to get ready to spend the day on the Derwent River. On the way to where we were going to put the rafts in the river the club stopped to get something to eat a bakery. Tanner and I had some Aussie meat pies! So yummy! Once we got to the part of the River we were rafting we put on our wetsuits, helmets, and lifejackets and then blew up all the rafts. We listened to instructions, got into a raft with a member that was a rafting guide, and then eagerly took to the water.  This trip was an introduction for new members, so there weren’t any huge rapids. It was a more of a calm section of the river with a few small rapids. I've never been rafting before, so the rapids we went down still seemed fun to me! We were able to get out of the rafts and swim/float a few times. The water was pretty chilly even though we were wearing wetsuits, but the swimming was too much fun to resist being in the river. We also got to practice getting everyone back in the rafts from the water.

The scenery and weather were absolutely beautiful! Tanner even saw a wild platypus!!! Our time on the river was fantastic and it was another perfect day. <3

Getting ready for the river!

We're ready!!!

After the rafting trip the club went to a park and we all had fish and chips, and hamburgers. It tasted great after being on the river for a lot of the day!

Our second weekend in Tassie was a blast! We were definitely pooped out after our adventures. I think I slept for 12 hours on Sunday night. J It is beautiful here and I am looking forward to exploring more of this amazing place in the weeks to come! Miss you all back home so much! See ya soon!

Love Always, 

Bobbi