Bushwalk Australia

Hi all,

Firstly - really love the forum - I've been reading for a while, but have only finally gotten around to signing up and posting.

I'm taking the family down to Tasmania, from Sydney, a bit later in the year and was hoping to do some day walks. When I was a bit younger, and unattached, I spent a bit of time in Tassie walking and really loved it. Now I've got a family (couple of young kids), I think they'd really enjoy exploring some of Tasmania's wonderful scenery on foot - only I think it might be best if we stuck with some nice day walks (Federation might be out ).

I'm looking for some ideas of good walks to do whilst we are down there. We've got a couple of weeks in Tassie and will by touring around by car - so we should be able to get to most places pretty easily.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

The obvious ones with good car access are daywalks around Freycinet, Cynthia Bay at the bottom of Lake St Clair: you could catch the ferry to Narcissus or Echo Pt. at the northern end of the lake then walk back along the lake shore through the rainforest (beautiful and level walking), Cradle Mtn or around Dove lake is kid friendly. Last time I was there on my way down from Cradle's summit I was passed by a large family with young kids on their way to the summit. There are plenty of daywalks around Mt Wellington.
Maria Is. is awesome for a family day or two. They have budget accom' in old convict buildings, plenty of walks of differing lengths and bike friendly tracks also. Tasman Peninsula......etc

Add Mt Field NP and Hartz NP to that list too.

day walk book
http://www.fishpond.com.au/Books/Day-Wa ... 1920995119

Hi lanecovewalker, in addition to the above suggestions, Ben Lomond can be great - very low veg, great views, really easy walking. It's kind of pick a point ad walk to it.

G'day Lanecove walker. Welcome out of the shadows. I spent many years down the road from you, coming to Tassie on holidays, then finally made it here for good. I often wonder how I ever survived in Sydney.

Now I've got a family (couple of young kids), I think they'd really enjoy exploring some of Tasmania's wonderful scenery on foot

How old is young, and how many kms / elevation gain do you think they can handle? How do they go if tired? Cold/wet? That'll have a big impact on which walks would be good to do.

Cheers

I will put the plug in for the 60 Great Short Walks booklet (or app)

http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/?base=1315

There is a campground at the bottom of Mt Field where you can do a short walk to Russell Falls & at night see the glow worms- would be excellent with kids. Of a day - around that area are a few short walk including the tall trees which is pretty awesome to see. Up the top at Mt Field are some excellent walks if kids are a bit older. Looking forward to hearing what you do

Couple of nice half-day walks - the Sisters Beach one in Chapman's book (Anniversary Bay??) and St Valentine's Peak. Both easy to get to. Oh and Quamby Bluff.
If you're anywhere near Narawntapu National Park, a dusk BBQ is great for wildlife-viewing. Just be careful when driving out!

East coast (particularly Freycinet and Bay of Fires) and Tasman Peninsula would be great if you're visiting in the colder months.

As suggested, Chapman's book and the 60 short walks leaflet are good options. I'd add Tyrone Thomas' book to the list, 100 walks in Tasmania ( http://www.exploreaustralia.net.au/Book ... n-Tasmania ). Although it's not as user-friendly as Chapman's, it's got more walks and quite a number of them are in less known areas (Lime Bay on the Tasman Peninsula for example, some walks in Mount William NP, which Chapman ignores completely). Navigation is less easy than with Chapman, mainly because of less precise maps and huge chunks of text.

So if you're looking for family day walks, the areas are pretty obvious : Mt William, Narawntapu, all the Tasman Peninsula, Bruny Island, Maria Island, Mt Field, Hartz, Cradle/Lake St Clair, Rocky Cape, Ben Lomond, Freycinet. More difficult areas such as Walls of Jerusalem, South West NP (except a couple of easy day walks along the Gordon River road such as the Needles), should probably be avoided.

And last but not least, although it's not a walking book, it's my favorite : Hema Tasmania Atlas & Guide ( http://www.exploroz.com/Shop/Hema+Tasma ... Guide.aspx ). It's got most of the maps you need, lots of info on towns, waterfalls, walks, activites, food, wine etc... Many hidden gems are mentioned in there. It's not a phone book type of guide such as Lonely Planet guides, it's way easier to browse through.

more about the latest search efforts

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-new ... 2o1a6.html

wayno wrote:more about the latest search efforts

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-new ... 2o1a6.html

Wrong thread Wayno

Just a quick note from someone with three kids
Chapman book is great but I would allow extra time than what is stated to be safe

Cheers

Steve

Yeah Chapman's times, even though it's a day walk book, are for a fit adult walking about 4 km/h, no lunch break or anything. I thought it might be only on mountain walking, and not coastal walking, but after doing his Narawntapu and Rocky Cape walk, the times are similar. With young kids I'd add 25/30% to his times. On the other hand, Tyrone Thomas' times are really on the safe side, with breaks etc... so if you've got his book, you can trust the walking times.

Regarding difficulty, a medium rated walk by Chapman would probably be rated difficult by Thomas. And a lot of long day walks (Mt Anne, Mt Jerusalem) in Chapman's book are presented as 2 day walks in Thomas'. Thomas also includes short walks (2 hours), which Chapman doesn't. It's more family friendly, but photos are seldom, and you've got to endure big chunks of text.

I would also like to add some classic traps that many people fall into when going to Tassie :
-Do not miss stuff like Cape Raoul or Cape Hauy just because most books say it's steep. It's not that hard, and definitely worth it.
-At Mt Field NP, many people talk about the falls and the forest, but to me it's all about the plateau. Unless it's winter and the road is awful, don't miss it. The real Mt Field is there.
-People talk about the Bay of Fires. But most people only go to Bay of Fires Conservation area, because that's the one signed for St Helens. It's good, but the real experience to me is to go to Mount William NP (which is the Northern part of the Bay of Fires). Roads are all unsealed, but the beaches are just magnificent, and the exploration very rewarding (hidden beaches and coves, beautiful campsites).
-Narawntapu is a haven for wildlife, but many people miss it because it's small and not that famous. Although the beaches are nice, it's all about the wildlife there.
-Cataract Gorge sucks.
-Accommodation is quite cheap in Tassie, have a look at http://www.stayz.com.au/ . In some places, you can find a whole house with 2 bedrooms or more for 100 $ a night... Much better than a motel.

Hallu wrote:Cataract Gorge sucks. .

Interesting statement Hallu. Would you care to expand on it?

Well it was more or less intended as a joke by exaggeration, but on every guidebook it seems to be praised, whereas it's mostly a big public park with human structures ruining it. As a day trip from Launceston, Narawntapu, Ben Lomond, or Quamby Bluff are much more interesting.

Hallu wrote:Well it was more or less intended as a joke by exaggeration, but on every guidebook it seems to be praised, whereas it's mostly a big public park with human structures ruining it. As a day trip from Launceston, Narawntapu, Ben Lomond, or Quamby Bluff are much more interesting.

Fair enough Hallu it's certainly not a proper bushwalk - but as something so very easily accessible from the city it is rather special.
At least one member of this forum goes running up there at lunchtimes (zigzag track of course).
I have fond memories of doing a bit of rock-climbing there, and dog-walking regularly after work from Duck Reach to First Basin. Certainly a reasonable track, but no other man-made structures visible for almost all the walk. Of course it would be much more impressive if its full complement of water was there all the time, but floods really are spectacular.

Cataract Gorge is park near the centre of a city. Expecting wilderness there is a bit unrealistic. You could also argue that it's ruined by all the exotic plants. But then you could also say that about any botanic gardens or park in any city.

I used to go swimming in the river there during lunch breaks at school, now I take my kids there to play, or for picnics, or take my wife there to the restaurant. It's a fantastic spot for all sorts of things. But not for a wilderness style bush walk. If it is praised in literature, then I doubt the praise has been attributed to its wilderness values.

Well my Lonely Planet Tasmania sold it as :

A 10-minute walk west of the city is the fabulous Cataract Gorge. Surrounded by a wildlife reserve, near-vertical basalt cliffs crowd the banks of the South Esk River as it enters the Tamar. During the day, teens plunge into the river and rock-climbers defy gravity; at night the floodlit cliffs take on a shifty, shadow-strewn countenance.

so the first time I was around Launceston I gave it a try, not expecting what it really is, and was hugely disappointed. Now I've learned not to trust Lonely Planet of course. And if you look at the first google result when you search "Cataract Gorge" you have http://www.launcestoncataractgorge.com.au/ :

Launceston's own piece of wilderness just 15 minutes walk from the city centre.

.

The second result is http://www.discovertasmania.com/activit ... ract_gorge :

Cataract Gorge Reserve, or The Gorge as the locals call it, is a unique natural formation within a two-minute drive of central Launceston - a rare natural phenomenon in any city.

Wilderness in the city.

Granted, they mention afterwards the chair lift, the pool and café, but it's still a misconception of what it is : a public urban park.

So they mention that it includes all of: Wilderness, a chair lift, a pool, a café, flood-lighting. They also mention that it is two minutes from the city centre. You were disappointed that it wasn't untouched wilderness? OK.

it's still a misconception of what it is : a public urban park.

Did you expect it to be private? Did you expect it to not be a park? (Cradle Mtn is also in a park.) Did you expect that within two minutes of a city centre it would not have any urban infrastructure?

(By the way, it is a fairly large park, for a city, and some parts of it do not include much infrastructure.)

Surely the large photos at your first link would have given it away (http://www.launcestoncataractgorge.com.au).

Your second link actually says, close to the top: "One of Australia’s most enticing urban parks." How is that a misconception of "a public urban park"? (http://www.discovertasmania.com/activit ... ract_gorge)

Both links clearly list kiosk, restaurant, swimming pool, chair lift. Certainly not misleading.

Well I expected it to be a nature walk with no chairlift no café no swimming pool and certainly not a big dam in the middle of it. I should have read between the lines, but the overexcited regular tourist usually doesn't. I expected it to be more like The Nut in Stanley : maybe a café or a building, but outside the general area, not ruining the view if you know what I mean. We probably should get back to topic now.

Hallu wrote:Well I expected it to be a nature walk with no chairlift no café no swimming pool and certainly not a big dam in the middle of it.

A big dam in the middle of it? The Trevallyn Dam is quite a long walk up river from the Cataract Gorge park area.

There is a very small weir about two foot high just upstream from the First Basin. Is that what you mean?

Or are you referring to the large body of water right in the middle of the main park area? That is a natural water hole called "The First Basin". It's a great place to swim (albeit a tad on the cold side).

I should have read between the lines

I don't think you needed to read between the lines. You merely needed to read the actual lines on the pages that you linked to.

Anyhow, this side track was merely trying to ascertain why you thought that the Cataract Gorge was crap, and I think we're all clear on that now.

I wondered why this thread was so busy, now I know.

I know it has been a while, but better late than never. Firstly, thanks for all the great suggestions, the family (and I) had a great trip to Tassie - some might already be planning another trip . We enjoyed some great walks all around the state, including in Mt Field, Hartz Mts and Ben Lomond, just to name a few.

We purchased Chapman's book before we left for Tassie, which was great for planning, but we found the times in Chapman's book to be a bit hard for the family. Whilst we were down in Tassie, we found a series of family day walk books that turned out to fantastic - we'd highly recommend them - perfect for families with kids. We picked them up at The Map Shop in Hobart, but if anyone else is interested, you can grab them more conveniently (at least for us non Tasmanian's) online at http://www.hillsidepublishing.com.au/

Thanks for the update glad you & the family had a good time


Cheers
Steve

No problems. Thanks to everyone who posted for their help and advice.