Bushwalk Australia

i read that visitor no's to tasman park have dropped off a lot after the fires people think the place is closed to vidsitors still
i was there yesterday and its well and truly open, minimal delays on the roads. still plenty of fantastic unspoilt scenery untouched by the fires despite what damage there is in the area. could be a good time to go if no's of visitors are down..

February is shoulder season, school holidays are over, so you'll have a significant amount of tourists only in Freycinet and Cradle Mountain, maybe some at Mount Field. Tasman Peninsula is usually not very busy, apart from Port Arthur. You see some people camping at Fortescue bay, but not many of them walk to the capes. So my guess is you can pretty much go there all year without being annoyed by crowds.

at least maybe until the three capes track gets opened and marketed to death....

Even so, I'm more concerned about the impact of off-track walking and the cinnamon fungus spread than crowds. This track isn't gonna bring new tourists to Tasmania all by itself, it may divert some from the Freycinet 3 day walk or the Overland Track, but that's all.

There were 12 people at Cape Huay when I was there last Sunday. Not including others I saw along the track. I'd hardly call that quiet for a half-day walk.

wayno wrote:at least maybe until the three capes track gets opened and marketed to death....

If they can afford to finish it, I doubt there will be any money left over for marketing! Cape Hauy went $15M over budget...

Hallu wrote:Even so, I'm more concerned about the impact of off-track walking and the cinnamon fungus spread than crowds. This track isn't gonna bring new tourists to Tasmania all by itself, it may divert some from the Freycinet 3 day walk or the Overland Track, but that's all.

The you, in a couple of sentences have just guzumped all of PWS's hopes and dreams. It(3 Capes Track) is designed to attract a completely different type of walker than any other route in Tasmania.

stepbystep wrote:The you, in a couple of sentences have just guzumped all of PWS's hopes and dreams. It(3 Capes Track) is designed to attract a completely different type of walker than any other route in Tasmania.

It's the T20 of walking...

lol how can you "design" a track specifically for a new type of walkers ? Making huts won't attract crowds, marketing it will.

Hallu wrote:lol how can you "design" a track specifically for a new type of walkers ? Making huts won't attract crowds, marketing it will.

Read the media release...

Graded trail, no mud, huts with mattresses and kitchens = easier walking + less weight to carry resulting in a "design" more akin to Europe, NZ and the US. Therefore appealing to a different type of walker. Do you understand?

ollster wrote:It's the T20 of walking...

Hallu wrote:Making huts won't attract crowds

Build it and they will come?

Strider wrote:

wayno wrote:at least maybe until the three capes track gets opened and marketed to death....

If they can afford to finish it, I doubt there will be any money left over for marketing! Cape Hauy went $15M over budget...

how did they get away with that? I wondered when I saw it, looked like someone had gone absolutely mad with the budget. a lot of work went into getting the steps mae to a good standard. and all the comments i've read about cash strapped tasmanian parks, how many millions of dollars per kilometre did that cost?

i saw maybe twenty people there on monday...

So what, they're gonna say "come here it's like Europe !" ? Walkers who don't come to Tasmania don't come because they have no idea what it is from lack of publicity, not because the tracks are muddy and steep... Besides, it's mostly easier to navigate on the regular tracks of Tasmania than on the regular tracks of the mountainous ranges of Europe : in Tassie you usually have one marked track and a couple of junctions. In Europe, there are junctions everywhere, a bucket load of different markers, not to mention crowds, scarce wildlife, and surprisingly a quite poor track management. Indeed, there are no boardwalks, or platforms for lookouts in Europe, despite the fact that it's well graded and defined.

What I'm saying is that Tasmania, as it is now, has enough to attract any type of walker from all over the world. The Three Cape Track won't attract them, the marketing will. You could already sell Tasmania as a walker paradise, because it is one. There's no need for a financial black hole, if they wanted more tourists, they should have spend all this money on marketing.

wayno wrote:how many millions of dollars per kilometre did that cost?

Almost $10M/km

Hallu wrote:So what, they're gonna say "come here it's like Europe !" ? Walkers who don't come to Tasmania don't come because they have no idea what it is from lack of publicity, not because the tracks are muddy and steep... Besides, it's mostly easier to navigate on the regular tracks of Tasmania than on the regular tracks of the mountainous ranges of Europe : in Tassie you usually have one marked track and a couple of junctions. In Europe, there are junctions everywhere, a bucket load of different markers, not to mention crowds, scarce wildlife, and surprisingly a quite poor track management. Indeed, there are no boardwalks, or platforms for lookouts in Europe, despite the fact that it's well graded and defined.

What I'm saying is that Tasmania, as it is now, has enough to attract any type of walker from all over the world. The Three Cape Track won't attract them, the marketing will. You could already sell Tasmania as a walker paradise, because it is one. There's no need for a financial black hole, if they wanted more tourists, they should have spend all this money on marketing.

Sorry Hallu, but you are incorrect. The market research shows there is a large market in the international 'hiking' community who are confronted by the crappy condition of the OLT and SCT and want a more refined experience. These are also walkers who want a coastal experience because they already have spectacular mountain walking where they come from.

It's not something I'll be doing because I enjoy my walking as unrefined and devoid of 'structures' and 'interpretation'(sorry PG )as possible, but I do know what I am commenting about. As I said if you want to have an informed discussion, read the PWS media releases as to what they are doing and why. But, yes Hallu, the 'product' will obviously need to be marketed when it is done...

wayno wrote:how did they get away with that? I wondered when I saw it, looked like someone had gone absolutely mad with the budget. a lot of work went into getting the steps mae to a good standard. and all the comments i've read about cash strapped tasmanian parks, how many millions of dollars per kilometre did that cost?

Read the thread on the topic Wayno(notice the use of the capital W there ) PWS was allocated the money from federal and state coffers for this project alone. If they didn't spend it here they wouldn't have received one red cent.

It's all good and well to type with a stream of consciousness gents, but it's kinda nice to know what it is you are talking about huh?

For the coastal experience thing, there's already Freycinet, the Great Ocean Walk, the 2 circuits in Wilsons Prom', not to mention the Wilderness Coast Walk (Croajingolong) and the Great South West walk (near Discovery Bay). The first 3 ones already have a very nice track and campgrounds, so this 3 Cape Walk better be one hell of a walk if they want to compete against those multi-day walks.

Because that's the first question a foreign walker is gonna ask himself : why should I do this 3 cape thing instead of the already fine and well known other walks ? Not to mention the fact that if you pay top money to go from Europe to Australia and want to have a hell of a walking experience, it's more attractive to do the full Great Ocean Walk that this complicated journey where there are 2 boat rides and no beaches along the track (only at starting and ending points).

Hallu wrote:For the coastal experience thing, there's already Freycinet, the Great Ocean Walk, the 2 circuits in Wilsons Prom', not to mention the Wilderness Coast Walk (Croajingolong) and the Great South West walk (near Discovery Bay). The first 3 ones already have a very nice track and campgrounds, so this 3 Cape Walk better be one hell of a walk if they want to compete against those multi-day walks.

Because that's the first question a foreign walker is gonna ask himself : why should I do this 3 cape thing instead of the already fine and well known other walks ? Not to mention the fact that if you pay top money to go from Europe to Australia and want to have a hell of a walking experience, it's more attractive to do the full Great Ocean Walk that this complicated journey where there are 2 boat rides and no beaches along the track (only at starting and ending points).

Freycinet and the Tasman are poles apart in terms of the coastal experience. Where you get long beaches and granite peaks at Freycinet, you get huge sea cliffs and amazing forest on the Tasman. A completely different experience.

Why choose the 3 Capes over one of the mainland walks? Well again it is a completely different experience. Victoria and Tasmania's coasts are not one and the same. With the money they are spending, and if you have seen the work they have done already, I am sure it will be 'one hell of a walk' that will certainly rival the famous walks in Victoria and other states.

Hallu wrote:For the coastal experience thing, there's already Freycinet, the Great Ocean Walk, the 2 circuits in Wilsons Prom', not to mention the Wilderness Coast Walk (Croajingolong) and the Great South West walk (near Discovery Bay). The first 3 ones already have a very nice track and campgrounds, so this 3 Cape Walk better be one hell of a walk if they want to compete against those multi-day walks.

Having the highest sea cliffs in the Southern Hemisphere should play a part in this.

Do any of those coastal walks have huts of the standard and facilities that will be provided on the 3CT? Yes or no?

It is a DIFFERENT product. I will suggest one final time you read the business model/media releases and inform yourself.

I will reiterate one final time that I doubt I will ever walk the 3CT as a punter but I can at least open my mind to understand why some will, and frankly if you've paid thousands of $$$ to get here from Europe or America you won't miss a cpl hundred dollars extra, or it's just a couple of days picking cherries to pay for it....

I'm not sure, it's always more appealing to be able to swim or at list dip in the water just about every day of the walk. And for mountains, you have waterfalls, lakes and peaks. Here it's cliffs and forests, not as sexy. I like the area (probably more than Freycinet) but it's gonna take some serious marketing to make it more attractive than Wilsons Prom or the Great Ocean Walk even though it's very much different. They probably thought that gap was gonna be filled by the presence of quality huts. We'll see how it goes, they have 2 years, but I'm quite pessimistic.

[edit] just seen sbs message, you should seriously relax lol

Hallu wrote:I'm not sure, it's always more appealing to be able to swim or at list dip in the water just about every day of the walk. And for mountains, you have waterfalls, lakes and peaks. Here it's cliffs and forests, not as sexy. I like the area (probably more than Freycinet) but it's gonna take some serious marketing to make it more attractive than Wilsons Prom or the Great Ocean Walk even though it's very much different. They probably thought that gap was gonna be filled by the presence of quality huts. We'll see how it goes, they have 2 years, but I'm quite pessimistic.

[edit] just seen sbs message, you should seriously relax lol

It's not appealing if you don't like swimming though. Whether the scenery is 'sexy' is completely unique to the punter. It is naive to make the suggestion that it isn't. Does it appeal to me? Not really, but like SBS has already said, I can see what the PWS are trying to do here, and having read the reports provided, I now have better understanding. I was mostly against this proposal 12 months ago, but having read the report I am slightly more open minded.

Whether it competes against bigger walks, I don't know, but give it the time of day, you might be surprised.

We live on the Tasman Peninsula having moved here from Europe for a few reason but a major, maybe the dominating factor, was the fantastic landscape and seascape (both below and above the surface). I love the place and has been in two minds about this project but have come to terms with it as I can also see the benefits. It definitely has what's needed to attract international walking tourists down here if they can pull it together. I really do hope it will be a success.

I'm very glad 2 of my absolute favorite spots for a swim/dip are not part of the official route, being more side trips so might avoid the hords.

Hallu wrote:[edit] just seen sbs message, you should seriously relax lol

Thing is, he's not simply speculating like you seem to think he is. He has provided contract work in the field of video production to P&WS on quite a number of projects, if I recall correctly including this one. I think that pretty much explains the tone. You should probably go back and look at what SBS wrote with that in mind.

ollster wrote:

Hallu wrote:[edit] just seen sbs message, you should seriously relax lol

Thing is, he's not simply speculating like you seem to think he is. He has provided contract work in the field of video production to P&WS on quite a number of projects, if I recall correctly including this one. I think that pretty much explains the tone. You should probably go back and look at what SBS wrote with that in mind.

Haha yep, guess I'm a victim of the marketing Oll!

stepbystep wrote:Haha yep, guess I'm a victim of the marketing Oll!

AND I know a little of how you usually think about that sort of thing. So given that, there must be some merit in it!

ollster wrote:

stepbystep wrote:Haha yep, guess I'm a victim of the marketing Oll!

AND I know a little of how you usually think about that sort of thing. So given that, there must be some merit in it!

For the right kind of punter of course, can't see our friend Hallu forking out his hard earned though(see we agree on something)

Strider wrote:

wayno wrote:how many millions of dollars per kilometre did that cost?

Almost $10M/km

That's more than the Peninsula Link Freeway. Which is heaps longer and took less time to build. Insane.

highest sea cliffs in the southern hemisphere in tasman park?
milford sound has theis a contender for the highest in the world theres a 700 metre overhanging cliff. mitre peak itself is a contender at nearly 1700 metres

north-north-west wrote:

Strider wrote:

wayno wrote:how many millions of dollars per kilometre did that cost?

Almost $10M/km

That's more than the Peninsula Link Freeway. Which is heaps longer and took less time to build. Insane.

Hmmmm I think Strider's calculations are a touch out nnw, the track is 65km long and the funding is;

TheTasmanian Government has committed $12.8 million to the Three Capes Track project, and the Australian Government contributed $12.5 million. It is estimated there will be an investment of up to $8 million from the private sector through provision of water-based transport,
land-based transport and a guided hut-based walking experience.

Perhaps someone of your unrivaled intellect can do the sums

$33.8 million for 65km of track. Which, if I've added that correctly, is just over a cool half mill per km. Which is still one hell of a lot for a walking track, although i assume it's supposed to include the huts and other associated infrastructure.