State of Tasmania Off The Beaten Path

 
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Most Viewed Off The Beaten Path in State of Tasmania

1.

Suburbs.   Hobart

Suburbs., Hobart

 8 Reviews  A great trip out of town is to visit Seven Mile Beach. If you're brave enough you can go for a swim is the cold water, if you like walking -there's a trail to Lauderdale (about 10km) from where you... 

 See All 30 Off The Beaten Path in Hobart

Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

Stitt's Falls at last

by iandsmith

After recuperation from Montezuma Falls (see other tips) I thought I’d duck down and see Stitt Falls; after all they’re right below the Lions carpark, you can hear them roaring......or so I thought.I only had my sandals on and what I thought would be an easy 100 metres was turning into a nightmare as I plunged on through the narrow boggy trail trying desperately not to dirty my clean feet. After what seemed an eternity I broke out next to a football field and wondered where to next.Spotting a bridge I determined that must be it and wandered over. It wasn’t, but two locals walking their dogs had much amusement when I told them where I’d come from and they said they’d taken that trail the first time they’d moved here but never again. “You just go across the bridge, up the road and turn right down the main road and you’re back at the park”. Mmm, it’s all very easy when you know how.They...

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Frenchs Road Conservation Area

by iandsmith

On the way I called in at the Wynyard tourist information centre and an officer gave me a free (normally $7) guided tour of their excellent motor museum before I headed out with all the directions and information he’d given me.Of course, there was one small problem at Frenchs Nature Reserve, “No Unauthorised Entry, Track Closed” said the sign. Still, it was only a sign, I'd walked past plenty of those before. Treading carefully I started to wonder what all the fuss was about. The trail was clear though signs of a recent major weather event were evident with trees askance in several places but the path was clear of them.There’s something so wonderfully soothing about walking in a rainforest swathed in ferns and having a symphony of birds in the background massaging the nerves.I walked on; two brand new bridges were crossed and I went on all three of the trails and still don’t know why...

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The Hartz Peak experience, Ladies Tarn

by iandsmith

After about an hour you come to Ladies Tarn, whose background of a towering rock wall you cannot fail to be impressed by. The closer you get the more it wraps itself around your vision until you crest a small rise and the lake unfolds before you.It has those three things going for it that make it truly wonderful - location, location, location. Then again, most tarns have this very same thing going for them.One day I hope to return when it's still and get some reflection shots or maybe that missed sunrise. Still, if I hadn't left at that time I probably wouldn't have seen the wombat in the previous tip.

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The Big Stump

by iandsmith

It was a chance encounter. I was on my way to Hartz Peak, having turned off the main Tahune State Forest road. Less than 2 kilometres in I noticed a sign indicating "Big Stump" but I had another agenda. Still, I noted it and returned two days later.There are no carparks here, you simply pull on the side of the road.I'd only gone 50 metres and there it was, this massive tree that had been felled in living memory. I always find it a bit sad when you see a really big one that has been toppled by man.Still, I took my picture sitting inside it and was suitably impressed. I noticed the trail seemed to carry on a little further so I wandered off and there, less than another 50 metres on, was THE Big Stump. I mean, really big.Unfortunately, getting a relevant picture of it was an impossibility due to the overgrowth and poor light but, trust me, it was huge.Both these are rarely visited and...

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Marriott Falls

by iandsmith

Unlike the much-photographed and very touristy Russell Falls, these are seldom visited and you will likely get the place to yourself. So, if you're a nature lover, Marriot Falls could be a place you'd like to venture.The walk in takes about 30-40 minutes but passes through some paddocks and nice bush scenery before you reach the falls. In fact, the fern forest is the finest I've seen.Once there the falls aren't as easily accessible as Russell but that is part of their attraction as well.When I visited the first time whole place was a few drops short of a minor flood so my experience will probably be different to yours. We trudged in on muddy paths with our plastic rain covers on and literally soaked up the atmosphere!The second trip was less rain soaked and the stream in the initial pic was just a trickle. However, the falls were more accessible with some of the large logs having moved...

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Fungi

by iandsmith

One thing you'll see a lot of if you walk trails in Tasmania is fungi. They come in colours ranging from white to dark brown to yellow to red and some are even green.It's usually growing on dead trees just beside the track and, if you keep you eyes open and your camera handy, you too can get pictures like this, shot on the way to a lookout not far from Lake St. Clair.The other picture was taken in the controversial Upper Florentine forest that was listed to be logged but a rearguard action being undertaken by greenies was holding it up when I visited in 2009.

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Lyrebird Walk - Mount Field National Park

by iandsmith

Of every 100 visitors that visit the park, probably a lot less than 2% would visit this little gem. Tourists tend to all visit Russell Falls, some venture further up that trail to the next two falls, some drive to the ski huts carpark and walk around Lake Dobson or climb Mount Field. En route however, there are a couple of other marked walks that you really should stop and see; this is one.Though only short, this stroll has a lot of quality and lots of big trees, as shown with the myrtle in pic 2 and the stringy bark in pic 3.Lyrebirds also inhabit the area but they are an elusive beast so don't go there expecting to see one. Go more for the flora which is wonderful. Eucalyptus Regnans (swamp gums) are the tallest flowering plants on earth.

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The beaches

by iandsmith

Tempting as they are, Tasmania's east coast beaches can be a bit daunting when it comes to actually putting your foot in it.We're talking cold here. In winter, very bloody cold! That is, unless a warm current sneaks in somewhere.Let this not detract however from their beauty and the possibility of squeaking the sand between your toes and feeling your cares waft away on a zephyr of an offshore breeze.I arrived at this scene and was overwhelmed by the crowd........there wasn't any. In fact, as far as I could see in either direction no person or animal disturbed the sands Still, that's what you come to expect in Tasmania.From memory you do down Hermitage Road, and you'll know it when you see four letter boxes at the intersection. It's between Swansea and Triabunna.The next time I went down there over a decade later there were some surfers and another vehicle in the small carpark. It was...

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Waterfall Bluff

by iandsmith

What a great walk. Rated three hours around to Camp Falls, Shower Falls and Waterfall Bluff along the dramatic sheer sandstone cliffs, laden with ancient fossils, that line Waterfall Bay. You actually get to walk underneath one waterfall (Shower Falls). If you like hiking it doesn't get much better than this. I put it in my top ten Australian short walks.The route is part of the Tasman Trail down past Eaglehawk Neck in the south east of Tasmania. So many people go to Port Arthur and bypass this scenic wonder.You park at the Devil's Kitchen carpark and then head out past Paterson's Arch and onto the rest of the walk. These days the trail is well made and undulating.You can walk for days further out on the Tasman Peninsula but I only managed a couple of hours and a longing to return one day and, in 2009, I finally did it which is where the new pics came from.

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The Hartz Peak experience, part two

by iandsmith

The next day I was a little tardy. The weather forecast wasn't that flash and, when I finally arrived at the carpark again, little had changed from the previous day. I deemed it unwise to try that day and returned to do Tahune instead.The third day I awoke a little late and missed a great sunrise but packed and got the motorhome up there as soon as possible. Today was clearly going to be THE day.At 6.30 I alighted ready to go and nearly stumbled over Raylea, a young lady who had parked next to me. We determined to ascend together and were soon on our way after signing in the walker's register in case of a problem. Turned out she was studying entymology and thus my more pronounced interest in insects began.The first hour of the walk is almost exclusively across boardwalk (pic 4 & 5), not the climb I had been expecting. In fact it was very easy up to and including Ladies Tarn.As we walked...

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Unique Places in State of Tasmania

Top 3 Hotels in State of Tasmania

Astor Private Hotel  Hobart

 1 Review and 62 Opinions  An old style hotel with a great hostess in the form of Tildy, who is extremely helpful and at all... 

 Hotels in Hobart

Hotel Tasmania  Launceston

 1 Review and 12 Opinions  Booked over the internet and everything confirmed by email. When arrived I was shown to a massive... 

 Hotels in Launceston

Stewarts Bay Lodge  Port Arthur

 78 Opinions

 Hotels in Port Arthur

353 Hotels in State of Tasmania
 
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Off The Beaten Path: Cities in State of Tasmania
  1. Hobart Off The Beaten Path
  2. Launceston Off The Beaten Path
  3. Port Arthur Off The Beaten Path
  4. Strahan Off The Beaten Path
  5. Cradle Mountain-Lake Saint Clair National Park Off The Beaten Path
  6. Macquarie Island Off The Beaten Path
  7. Saint Helens Off The Beaten Path
  8. Tasmania Off The Beaten Path
  9. Swansea Off The Beaten Path
  10. Stanley Off The Beaten Path
  11. Geeveston Off The Beaten Path
  12. Freycinet National Park Off The Beaten Path
  13. Lake Pedder Off The Beaten Path
  14. Ross Off The Beaten Path
  15. George Town Off The Beaten Path
  16. New Norfolk Off The Beaten Path
  17. Wynyard Off The Beaten Path
  18. Rhyndaston Off The Beaten Path

More Cities in State of Tasmania

 

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