Bushwalk Australia

Hello all, and Mr. Son of a beach who I have gathered runs this show, thanks for a good forum. Look, I was glad to find this quality forum, it is world class it really is. I spent all last night about six hours reading many, many of the posts on this forum and I've found it very interesting. I'm a 27 year old guy from the 'mainland', I've been to tasmania in the summer before but never in the winter. Next week, I'm bringing the car over on the spirit of tasmania, and I've been trying to research what my options are, and I would like to do some walking. Nothing more than a day walk, and this is the thing, the stuff on here, you guys seem to be pros and into these multi day walks etc... you've intrigued me with these long walks and it is something I might consider in a couple of years (when I'm not alone in tasmania)... but next week, I'll be coming over for two weeks, alone, and I've found the following parks tasmania link below... it is called '60 great short walks'.... it has lots of walks, some of them are 20 minute walks, some of them are four hour walks, some seven hour, but what I would love to know is, if you guys have done these short walks and if you can tell me anything about them, ie: are the tracks in good nick, is it easy to get lost on these tracks, is it ok to do these alone in early june, some of them I should stay away from? is there many people around in the weekdays in early june? does your car ever get vandalised when you park it in the car parks? Is car camping dumb in june or should I get a cabin at the local caravan parks etc.... not necessarily looking for an answer to each and every one of these questions I know I asked a heap of them... just some general advice for a guy who may or not be a bit spooked by what he's read on this forum to do with snakes, deceased 20 year old girls, toilet paper blossoms, smashed knee caps, solitary vietnam vets, snare traps, duck shooters, hypothermia.... not that this forum has put me off. So just to recap, I found this list below... thinking of doing a few of these short walks, some of them are several hours.... any advice... would be great. I've got to see this east pillinger abandoned town... looks awesome. So there are short walks on this list all around the state, but I was thinking the north, west, south west, mainly. I appreciate any help you can give me guys, thanks.

List of all the walks http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/index.aspx?base=1315

Long circuit walk 'mt rufus' http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/index.aspx?base=1558

By my initial account, the 60 walks book / online info is excellent and accurate. I cannot see any problems with what you have planned. I will take a closer look later when time permits.
From what I can see, you must be SOOOOO looking forward to this.

I've just done a (longer) variation on the Mt Rufus circuit walk, and I would certainly recommend it. However, you need to be cautious in Winter as it is a very exposed peak (although not difficult to climb in good conditions). Last weekend the wind was so strong on top that merely standing up was rather difficult, let along walking.

The first 4 walks in the sublist would all be worth considering, too, as they all start from about the same place (ie, Mt Rufus, Echo Point, Shadow Lake (which is en-route Mt Rufus), and Lake St Clair (although this basically just means bits of the other 3). Mt Rufus is the hardest of these 4, with Echo Pt being almost as long (but flat) if you walk there and back.

Note that any of these can be very cold at any time of year, and are almost certain to be very cold over the next few months.

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It's hard to give advice without knowing which specific walks you're most interested in, what sort of experience you have with bad weather, and what sort of gear you have. If you've not been in alpine areas in wintertime before, it might not be a good idea to get into places like the Western Tiers or the Walls or to try to climb Cradle Mountain, for instance.
Even if we assume you've actually read the sections of that guide that deal with appropriate equipment, and taken it to heart (unfortunately, most people don't), do you have boots and gaiters and wet-weather gear and thermals that will cope with snow and mud and mad, ravening, blood-thirsty giant mutant leeches freezing cold?

As others have said, it would great if you could single out some ones that appeal, or just say what sort of environments you're keen to see.
From looking at the list i can say that a lot of them are great walks; the track over the Hazards saddle and onto Wineglass Bay then out via Hazards Beach then back around the coast is a great walk and you're likely to have nice weather on the east coast too. Any walks on Mt Wellingtons eastern slopes (city facing) are recommended, especially if you get a lift to the top then walk down via the labyrinth of tracks- the Zig Zag and onto the Organ Pipes track are both great and offer beautiful views, but you need to be more mindful of the weather although you'll see other walkers no doubt. The Dove Lake Circuit is a stunning way to see the more alpine environment that Tassie is famous for and if you make a bit of a circuit out to Wombats Tarn and onto Carter Lake and out through Crater Falls, it would be a great day out if theres too much snow to attempt Cradle or the top of Marions.
I could possibly go on forever but i'll stop now because i need to conserve hand strength for many more millions of assignments to write before semester needs (TOMORROW!!!!!)

1. What everyone else said. I haven't been there beyond early May, but have experienced Tassie highland snow, rain and violent wind in Dec/Jan, and similar conditions at other times. So you really do need to be prepared.

2. I have the past two editions of that guide in hardcopy and it's an excellent resource, particularly if you haven't done much walking in Tassie.

Zuell wrote:I've got to see this east pillinger abandoned town... looks awesome.

3. This is one of my favourite day trips to date (Walk 60). I agree with Parks assessment of it. Being mostly near sea level and quite protected I would think it may be a good choice for winter, although the west coast is often very wet. Note that the 5km road access from the Mt Jukes Rd to the track head at the Bird River bridge is considered 4WD only. Based on my experience I agree as we did it slowly in high range 4WD with a lot of slipping and sliding in places. It was raining steadily and quite muddy. That said I think a forum member was there recently and reported that it was doable in 2WD, although I wouldn't recommend it personally. The walking is generally easy, mostly level along the old railway alignment except for a few landslips. A lot of tree roots may slow you down as you approach East Pillinger. It's not particularly short though, about 16km return. If you do it allow enough time for both the walking and exploring around the ruins, which are quite fascinating. Tip: Read the history before you go.

I've done quite a few of them (mainly in the north and west) and concur that the info provided on the Short Walks is pretty good. Timings generally tend to err of the slow side, so if you are reasonably fit many will be shorter than you expect, but many are right on the money. On all the ones I have done the tracks have been generally pretty good, all nice and easy to follow, and no crazy mud/scub or anything like that.

Personally there are a handful of the longer highlands walks I might be a bit skeptical about alone in mid winter - but it depends on the weather and who's about on the day. Cradle Mountain Summit for example can be anything from completley deserted with sub-zero blizzard conditions right through to hot and like walking in a congo line (unlikley in June however)! In the north, northwest, northeast and west sections of the list Cradle Summit & Mt Rufus would be the only ones I'd be skeptical about solo. I have not done the 2 Northeast falls, Rufus, or Kelly Basin however. I don't know the east and south areas as well.
Of the ones I've done numbers 21, 3, 1, 51, 52, 27, 9, 37 & 3 would be most recommended. 14 & 5 are nice picnic areas but otherwise I didn't see much in them.

Yeah car camping as good - just so long as you have lots of warm clothes and a good sleeping bag. Depends on the weather too - if it's a wet week it could get miserable, otherwise it should be fine.
Never had my car vandalized but have heard stories (like 4th hand or more).
Have fun!
PS - yes history of Pillinger is interesting!

I came for a short holiday a couple of years ago and loved the place so much I ended up moving over here! You've been warned!!!

Slug

Car camping can get very cold indeed, so be prepared for that. Also, expect the interior of your car to be saturated in condensation when you get up in the morning. (I've owned a couple of panel vans and slept in them quite a lot). But depending on where you park, you can go to bed and wake up with some great views!

Yes, good point about the condensation.
No trouble at all to wake up and find the car covered in ice too (frost). Even here near Devonport, we often need water to get rid of the ice from the windscreen so we can get moving. TIP - leave the wipers on when melting the frost, otherwise you will have a windscreen covered in ice instead of frost.

Only vehicle trouble I have encountered was early '90s, some lowlife scumbucket redneck so and so broke into my car at the start of the Frenchmans Cap walk, stole a handheld spotlight, must have been smokers I reckon because they missed more than $10 in loose change in the ashtray.

The other thing you need to be mindful of is that as these are day walks, you can get a fairly accurate forecast every day. If you've got a radio, the ABC have a detailed weather coverage at 12:35 daily. Usually a 4 day forecast, but if you can get a forecast every couple of days you will have a good idea of whether or not to attempt one of the more exposed walks.
Weather is broadcast at other times too, but I'm unsure of the regular sched times.

If you find places with internet access, http://www.tasadam.com/weather is a page I made with all my favourite weather links.
Radar - http://mirror.bom.gov.au/products/IDR52 ... shtml#skip
State forecast - http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/wrap_fwo.pl?IDT13100.html
Cities and towns http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/wrap_fwo.pl?IDT13400.html
4 day forecast http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDG00074.shtml
Colour enhanced infrared satellite loop http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDE00902.loop.shtml

Parks offices often have updates on this - certainly Lake St Clair office has it printed out on their desk each day.
And they'd be great to talk to regarding any of the walks in their area.
Local track conditions, whether they think it's do-able in the current weather, etc.

Just enjoy yourself and don't extend beyond your own abilities, you'll soon get the hang of what the place is like.
And what's been said, also about gear. And not wanting to leave. I'm an import from long ago.

Unless you ask for more specifics, I'll leave it at that, but to ask one more thing - do you like leeches?

Wow - fancy being poised on the brink of discovering all this great walking! Good luck with your trip. Some general remarks first:

Weather - yes, at this time of the year it will get cold. There will be frosty nights and there could be snow (except if you’re a skier! ) But there will be calm sunny weather somewhere there too. Prepare for any and everything.

Clothes - bring and wear layers, so you’ll be able to walk whatever the weather. Everything from t-shirts (preferably merino or polypro) through merino or polypro mid-layers to polar fleece or even down jackets as an outer layer. Then add waterproofs top & bottom. And wear good sturdy boots, preferably snow-sealed/dubbined or whatever is your waterproofing preference. If you're camping, use a good sleeping bag (if not, wear all of the above in your cheap bag, and shiver anyway!)

Here’s a random selection, remembering that there are many great walks over and above this abitrary 60. For instance Crescent Bay (leaving from near the Remarkable Cave carpark, on the Tasman Peninsula) is one of the best coastal walks anywhere (yet it isn’t in the 60). And while down that way, the Coal Mines Historic Site is a wonderfully evocative place to ramble and read about Tassie's convict past. Beyond there is the walk from Lime Bay to Lagoon Beach, a short but very pleasant walk across an isthmus between two beaches. Take a bird book, as you’re likely to see a wide variety of woodland and water birds. In Freycinet NP it’s hard to go past the Wineglass Bay walk, but also try out the Cape Tourville walk. It’s short and easy, but offers wonderful ocean views, with the possibility of spotting whales.

If you're going to Cradle, the Dove Lake Loop track is wonderful, giving you a good taste of the area without exposing you to the wildest of the high country weather. I also think the newish Cradle Valley walkway (between the Visitor Centre and Ronny Creek) is rather under-rated. It offers a lovely varied walk, with mountain glimpses, rushing water and a fair chance of seeing wombats. The Russell Falls/Tall Trees/Lady Barron Falls circuit is a great one in Mt Field NP. And Seagers Lookout, near Lake Fenton in the same park gives plenty of view for a reasonably small effort. Down the Lyell Highway there are some great short walks, with Donaghy's Hill and Nelson Falls two of my favourites. They're worth doing in rainy weather too.

That’s just a taste of the possibilities. You have been warned: you may end up migrating here just so you can keep discovering the nooks and crannies of this beautiful island!

All the best

Peter

PS - if you're walking by yourself (not ideal), put your trip intentions in any log books. And let someone reliable know where you’re going. A couple of winters back a young Danish solo walker, Caspar Sorensen, died on Cradle Mt after apparently falling in icy/snowy conditions.

I visited a couple of times with my motorhome and have had no trouble with vandals but, you can never be certain.
My best walk would be Waterfall Bay - stunning scenery, easy walk.
The Russell Falls to Lady Barron I would also concur with, as mentioned elsewhere.
A couple of others I've done that offer variety are the Hartz Peak trail (very weather dependent) and, despite its popularity, the Dove Lake walk is beautiful.
I'm also a one day walker so can totally relate to your thoughts. One good camping spot by the beach is at Bolton's Beach and, further north, Policemans Point.
Contact me if you have any enquiries and I'll give you some more details.
Also, I'm not sure if the Marriott Falls walk is on the list but that takes you through arguably the best fern forest anywhere.
Cheers, Ian

johnw wrote:

Zuell wrote:I've got to see this east pillinger abandoned town... looks awesome.

3. This is one of my favourite day trips to date (Walk 60).

Blast, just when I've almost completed the lot, they go and change the list! Typical (expletive deleted) bureaucracy.

tasadam wrote:No trouble at all to wake up and find the car covered in ice too (frost). Even here near Devonport, we often need water to get rid of the ice from the windscreen so we can get moving.

*sigh* Spend winter in the Centre. I've woken up in the West MacDonnells with a quarter inch of ice over the car. Didn't help that there was close to a quarter inch of mud under that on the lower half - including the lights . . .

Thankyou everybody for your thoughtful, kind responses. I've very much appreciated all the friendly advice. I'm booked to sail on the Spirit of Tasmania tuesday evening. I look forward to it!