The Wild West

HOME BEAUTIFUL'S DEPUTY EDITOR VICTORIA HEADED TO THE RUGGED NORTH WEST COAST OF TASMANIA, SOMEWHERE NOT TO BE MISSED

- VICTORIA

The last time I visited Tassie, I thought I'd done it all. I braved the windy tops of Mount Wellington, ate my way around Hobart and stopped at the many wineries on the way to Freycinet Peninsula, then on to Cradle Mountain where my fiancé lost a chunk of flesh when a seemingly friendly wombat took on a more menacing persona up close. We drove around the whole island, maybe skipping a town or two, but we felt we'd seen it all. Ten years later, on my recent second trip to the island state, I realised how wrong we were. In fact, we'd missed out the whole coastline of North West Tasmania, where world-heritage wilderness meets unspoilt beaches and the Bass Strait beyond. It is said that here you are breathing in the cleanest air in the world, where you feel as though you are on the very edge of the earth. After a busy and stressful few months, this was just what I needed - a remote corner of the world where I could just breathe.

I felt myself relax as soon as I stepped off the plane in Launceston, where I picked up my hire car, a nippy little Toyota Corolla Hybrid, and within 20 minutes I was already out on the highway, flanked by greenery on both sides. My destination was Stanley, a small town 2.5 hours' drive from the airport. But first, I had a couple of pit stops.

First up, Ashgrove Cheese. I had actually been here before, but I knew I wanted to go again (because, cheese) and it has gone through a transformation since my last visit. Family-owned since 1908, visitors can now dine at the large cafe and browse the shop, all while watching the cheese being made through large windows. Everything involves cheese here, from simple toasties to three-tiered 'High Cheese' platters.