Two Floridians win Tasmania leg of travel contest

Two American girls from Florida are about to find themselves pretty far from home. Dara Simkin and Catherine Fleming won the Tasmania leg of the WorldNomads.com Van-Tastic Adventure. This is the first time an American team has won the Australia contest. On December 19, 2009, they’ll fire up the engine and start to drive through Tasmania for six weeks. On January 30, 2010, they’ll arrive in Melbourne, having completed the fourth of seven legs. The seven-part journey begins in Queensland and consists of 10,000 miles of driving in a van named Geoff.

During their journey, Dara and Catherine will report on their experiences kayaking on the Freycinet Peninsula, mountain biking Mt. Wellington and walking through Cradle Moutain. You can keep track of their progress on YouTube or on the Van-Tastic Adventures website.

But, watching might not be enough for some people … there are still three legs open, so you may want to put your application video together.

Photo of the Day (3-25-09)

This lushness of green is along the trek to Montezuma Falls in Tasmania. When crafterm was on his two-hour hike, these ferns towered above him, the tips of the fronds sometimes just above his head. The way he describes it, this trip was as stunning as it looks here. The way the textures pop out against the background is alluring.

Notice the black bug. In still-paintings of food and flowers, a bug can be a symbol of transience–sort of the idea that nothing is permanent, even beauty. One hopes that this gorgeous hiking trail stays that way.

If you have a stunning photo to share–one that gives us pause, send it our way at Gadling’s Flickr Photo Pool. It might be chosen as a Photo of the Day.