Tasmania

Wonderful, wild, rugged, remote, beautiful Tasmania. It’s west Scotland without the heather but with wallabies and devils. Much of it still fairly unvisited, it is a traveler’s delight and a walker’s paradise.

The landscape varies from the tangled rainforests and wild rivers of the west to the glens, peaks, moors and lakes of the centre to the perfect beaches and coastal cliffs of the south and east.

Tasmania’s great wilderness areas achieved World Heritage Status in 1982, powerful evidence of its international importance.

Complimenting the extraordinary landscape is an exceptional array of wildlife. As well as animals found elsewhere in Australia – kangaroos, possums, platypus echidnas snakes and spiders ( evidence of the island’s recent separation from the mainland at the end of the last ice age) – it has its own unique fauna, including the famous Tasmanian devil.

Tasmania’s plants are also diverse and in many cases unique, including the extraordinarily long- lived Huon pine. Fascinatingly, some of them are closer related to South American plants than mainland Australia.

Tasmania has more than merely world-class walking: it is some of its very best. It is not possible here to mention all the island’s great walks, but we have done our best! Almost wherever you go, you will find good walking nearby: if it is not here, check the guidebooks.

Multi-day walks

• The Overland Track: Tasmania’s most famous walk, and justly so. Five or more days southward through the Cradle Mountain/Lake St Clair area.
• Bay of Fires Walk: perfect, empty beaches and coastal scenery in the north-east. (See below)
• Freycinet Experience Walk: on the beautiful, eponymous peninsula.
• Three Capes Track, on the Tasman Peninsula with its enormous cliffs and surprisingly remote forests.
• South Coast Track: one of Tassie’s great tracks: rugged, utterly remote coastal scenery. 85 outstanding kilometers ( 6-8 days). Beware frequent bad weather.
• Port Davey Trail: also in the south west 70 even remoter kilometres than the South Coast Track.
• Walls of Jerusalem : a totally remote ring of mountains in the heart of Tasmania, adjacent to where the Overland Track passes. Argued to be the best of all Tasmania’s parks - but being a genuine wilderness makes for demanding walking. Expect no support and few facilities of any kind, although there are some proper walking trails. Peaks, cliffs, lakes forest, all part of the World Heritage Area. You can make long day walks from the Mersey Forest Road beyond Mole Creek into the WOJ Park.
• Maria Island Walk: (see below)
• Tarkine Rainforest in the north west: the largest intact temperate rainforest in the southern hemisphere and said to be the most diverse wilderness in Tasmania - and beaches, dunes  and heathland, too. Famously bad weather. Tarkine Trails (Tarkinetrails.com.au) organise a variety of walks.
• Western Arthurs Traverse: 6 days up onto and along the spine of these totally remote mountains in the wet far west, much of it above the treeline and reminiscent of the UK’s Lake District. Some of the best walking in Tasmania, but it will be wet and you will need to bring everything yourself. See www.retiredaussies.com for a good idea of what it is like.
• Frenchman’s Cap: tough, utterly remote, 4 days trek to this fine but inaccessible peak. The first day can be walked out and back as a day walk.
• Other superb south west multi-dayers include the Mt Anne Range and Federation Peak.
• The 480km Tasmanian Trail is said to be excellent, but perhaps less thrilling than other shorter walks.

Day Walks

North-east

• Wineglass Bay and other day walks on the glorious Freycinet Peninsula, one of Tasmania’s most special places.
• Cataract Gorge Walk  in the heart of Launceston.
• The Bay of Fires: wonderful, unsullied coastal scenery, huge, empty white sand beaches claimed to be some of the most beautiful in the world. Think seriously about taking in the four day Bay of Fires Walk.
• Douglas-Apsley NP:  emptier than Freycinet. Varied scenery in ancient eucalyptus forest. Walks range from the Apsley Gorge to the multi-day, demanding Leeaberra Track.
• Ben Lomond NP: fantastic walking in yet another area of peak and plateau, Tasmania’s largest alpine area.  Vegetation ranges from ancient forest to alpine wildflowers. Interesting rock columns. Legges Tor, at 1,575 m the second-highest Tassie mountain, is a fine 4 hour round trip.
• Lovely, empty Mt. William NP in the far north-east.  Lonely beaches, woodland and hills. Not Tasmania’s most dramatic walking, but beautiful and interesting and undervisited.
• Flinders Island to the north. Empty and beautiful.

North-west

• Cradle Mountain area: a plethora of gorgeous walks in Tasmania’s most famous area. Includes a tough ascent of the eponymous mountain itself for outstanding views. And the Enchanted Nature Walk and the Dove Lake Circuit.
• The Alum Cliffs Gorge:  in Mole Creek Karst NP a 1km round walk to a fine lookout over the Mersey Valley. Superb scenery. Also long day walks to the Walls of Jerusalem NP (see above).
• Franklin River: the first stage of the walk to Frenchman’s Cap, or the short Franklin River Nature Trail from the Lyall Highway.
• The Kelly Basin: on the west coast, walked along an old railway line – 3-4 hrs return. Utterly remote, magnificent rainforest reaching a ravishing, huge inlet.
• The fabulous 3 hr walk along an old tramway to the Montezuma Falls near Rosebery.
• Tarkine Rainforest (see above)
• The Nut: a volcanic plug near Stanley. A steep 20 mins plus half an hour circuiting up the top, with splendid views across bay and sea. Beware crowds due to the chairlift.

Central Lake County

• This area of mountains and, yes, lakes, contain a huge variety of excellent walking.
• The Liffey Falls (lovely but a short and sometimes crowded walk) and elsewhere in the Liffey Valley.
• A 5 hr return to remote Meander Falls, lovely forest walking, pristine landscape.

South-east

• The amazing Tasman Peninsula includes famous 300m high cliffs, beaches and wildlife. Not to be missed if visiting the Port Arthur penal colony. The Three Capes Track and Tasman Coastal Trail are two of Tasmania’s great hikes.
• Mt Field National Park. High mountain to rainforest to waterfalls, a mere 80 km from Hobart. Options include the short trail to Russell Falls and the Pandani Grove Nature Walk by Lake Dobson. The high level walking is marvelous, the most famous being the Tarn Shelf Track.
• The Hartz Mountains, including the day walk to Hartz Peak. High, rugged, beautiful county easily reached from Hobart.
• For something different, the treetop Tahune Airwalk.
• Mt Wellington, overlooking Hobart, including the Zig Zag Track and Organ Pipes Walk. Accessible by bus.
• The Truganini Track: two hour climb of Mt Nelson near Hobart (lower and easier than Mt Wellington).
• The multitude of trails on relaxed, lovely Bruny Island, including Fluted Cape and Labillardiere Peninsula. 
• Lovely, empty Maria Island, to the north of Hobart, has wonderful scenery and wildlife – and very few people. You can do a fabulous (but expensive) four day guided walk.

South-west

• The first section of the Port Davey Track from the end of the Scott’s Dam Road. Forest and boggy plain.
• Mt Eliza: 5 long hours to superb views over the Lake Redder Area
• Mt Wedge: 5 hours to a peak just south of Lake Gordon.

ALL COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS AND PHOTOS ARE VERY WELCOME.