What an epic morning. It will be impossible to find the words to describe the amazingness we experienced. But God is good. In so many ways! I had been following the weather for the last 10 days and it was always going to rain. But we woke to a beautiful day with perfect conditions for our Pennicott Wilderness boat cruise- the sun was shining, there was virtually no wind and minimal swell.

We started our day with a visit to Remarkable Cave. This geological oddity is aptly named- it really is remarkable! A sea cave that is actually more of a tunnel. In fact, it’s really two tunnels through the sea cliffs that join together. We visited at low tide for the best views and took the stairs down to see where the waves come through the cave.

We listened to the energy of the sea as it continues to sculpt the cave… the rumble of the ocean surf outside… the rush of water being sucked through the tunnels and being slapped against the cave walls. We could feel and smell the cool, damp, salt-laden air rushing in through the cave tunnels. Magnificent and an amazing way to start the day.

While there we checked out the Maingon Bay Lookout with great views of the sea cliffs, where apparently you can often see surfers in the waves far below you. Wild!

Then we joined our unforgettable three hour Wilderness boat tour along the spectacular coastline between Port Arthur and Eaglehawk Neck through potentially one of the roughest bodies of water in the world.

Our captain Kane was interesting, informative and amusing giving commentary as we gazed in awe at the stunning coastal seascapes. Donned in our bright red ankle length raincoats…

… we set out with a group of three boats and travelled beneath the highest vertical sea cliffs in the Southern Hemisphere at Cape Pillar…

… explored off-shore islands…

… spectacular archways…

… deep sea caves and fluted rock formations and platforms…

getting up close to the most iconic of which are the candlestick and totem pole at Cape Huay.

We even saw the waterfall we had walked to yesterday at Waterfall Bay from below.

Incredible photo opportunities were everywhere but the pictures could never show the breath-taking wild magnificence of that rugged coastline. We were constantly enthralled at the beauty, power and might of the southern ocean.

But if that wasn’t enough, we were also blessed to see migrating humpback whales including a calf, a large pod of dolphins that just decided to hang out with the boat for a while, rare sea birds like the Wilson Storm Petrel and the albatross wheeling on the wind (did you know that they can fly for five years without ever touching land- amazing!) and lots of playful seals. The water was the most amazing deep turquoise colour and so crystal clear that you could see below the surface.

What an unbelievably memorable experience. So blessed!

I almost feel like I should do the second half of our day in a separate blog, as very soon our euphoria from the amazing morning left us as we visited Port Arthur. It’s hard to comprehend how a place of such beauty could have been the scene of our worst ever non-wartime massacre in recent times and Australia’s harshest and most brutal penal settlement. Only the worst of the worst were sent to Port Arthur, and while the conditions were unthinkable you can’t help but admire the stunning harbour, lush green lawns and intricate Georgian architecture throughout the sprawling grounds. It’s a fascinating, well-preserved site exploring the early convict history of Australia but we felt a real heaviness in our spirits and with one of our party unwell, were actually quite happy to leave.