Coastal Treks of Tasmania

Arrive at your advised check-in location for boarding at 4:00pm, with time to settle into your stateroom before our 5:00pm departure. Take the time to become acquainted with all the facilities onboard before meeting your fellow travellers, the Captain and crew for the Captain’s Welcome Drinks.

On the edge of the world in southwest Tasmania, the landscape here is about as wild as it gets. Raw, craggy-peaked mountains and drowned river valleys. Wild rivers and rivulets carved by an eternity. Where tannin-rich freshwater sits atop saltwater, tinting the ocean the colour of tea. With no road access, the logical way to explore this wilderness is by small expedition ship.

Guests will have the option of:

MOUNT BEATTIE
256m above sea level – The Mt Beattie track starts from a jetty at Claytons Corner where the historic. Claytons Hut is located, it travels steady uphill through native forest then opens out to button grass, open windy areas which are often muddy on the trail to the summit. It offers stunning views of the whole Port Davey area in particular Bathurst Harbour.

Walk Details:
› Distance: 3 hours return
› Grade 3 walk – some bush-walking experience recommended. Tracks may have short steep hill sections, a rough surface, and many steps.
› Prepare with: A raincoat, woolen jumper or polar-fleece jacket, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

MOUNT MILNER
180m above sea level – This hike begins with getting your feet wet in the shallow bay, the hike begins by slowly gaining height before reaching a short but very steep section which quickly gains height before leveling off and an easy up and down section to the lookout over the Break Sea Islands.

Walk Details:
› Distance: 2 hours return
› Grade 3 walk – some bush-walking experience recommended. Tracks may have short steep hill sections, a rough surface, and many steps.
› Prepare with: Sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

At Adventure Bay on the east coast of Bruny Island, we walk along the dramatic coastal cliffs of Fluted Cape and hope to see Bennett’s Wallabies which are endemic to Bruny Island. Learn about the rich maritime history of Adventure Bay, and explore the history of old whaling stations on the way to Grassy Point.

FLUTED CAPE WALKWAY
240m above sea level – This is a moderately challenging track which has a very well-maintained loop track with several short steep sections, and gradual inclines. It begins at the beach and is a flat easy walk to grassy point (1.5km) where the steep uphill section begins, it levels off at the lookout sections (1.5km) and them traverses down through the forest area, this can be slippery and muddy if rainfall has occurred.

Walk Details:
› 3 hours return loop (5.5km)
› Grade 3 walk – There is one very steep section on this track that requires good fitness but in general it is a steady climed to the summit lookout area before it is mostly downhill to the beach.
› Prepare with: Water bottle, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

One of Australia’s most significant historic places, the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Port Arthur ruins stand sentinel on the Tasman Peninsula south of the narrow isthmus of Eaglehawk Neck. For more than 40 years the Port Arthur penal colony housed British and Australian convicts sentenced to hard labour before its heavy iron doors clanked shut for the last time in 1877.

Today, the Historic Site has over 30 buildings, ruins and restored period homes set in 100 acres of landscaped grounds. In the company of Port Arthur’s knowledgeable guides, join a tour of this site.

Guests will have the option of:

CAPE HAUY (part of the Three Capes Walk)
180m above sea level elevation gain – It features many steps along the way over 1000 on the way down and 800 to the junction lookout – good fitness and balance required. It starts from the boat ramp and undulates through woodlands and heath; it then drops down a steep set of steps before ascending to the Cape.

Walk Details:
› Distance: 4 hours return (4.4 km one way)
› Grade 3 walk – Some bush-walking experience recommended. Tracks may have short steep hill sections, a rough surface, and many steps.
› Some hazardous cliffs and unprotected track edges
› Prepare with: A raincoat, woolen jumper or polar-fleece jacket, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

CANOE BAY TO BIVOUAC BAY
Stroll along the shoreline looking for local wildlife as we beachcomb from Canoe to Bivouac Bay

The Freycinet Peninsula is a dramatic headland dominated by a pink-hued granite mountain range called the Hazards. Blessed with picturesque sweeping bays with white sand beaches like famed Wineglass Bay, much of the peninsula is designated as Freycinet National Park.

Guests will have the option of:

HAZARD LOOP
204m elevation – From Wineglass Bay across the Isthmus track and walk down Hazards Beach before joining onto the Hazards track looping onto the start of the Wineglass Bay lookout walk from Coles Bay.

Walk Details:
› 3.5 – 4 hours return (12 km loop)
› Grade 3 walk – Undulates up and down a steady track then a rocky track with built in steps. The walk over to Wineglass has many steps over 500 on the way down.
› Prepare with: Water bottle, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

ISTHMUS TRAIL
An easy flattish walk that undulates between Hazards Beach and Wineglass Bay on a well-formed trail can be walked either way. It features both sand and dirt tracks as well as a selection of boardwalks.

Walk Details:
› 30 minutes return (2 km)
› Grade 2 walk – There are some ups and downs bust mostly an easy enjoyable walk.
› Prepare with: water bottle, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

WINEGLASS BAY LOOKOUT
204m elevation – One of Tasmania’s celebrated walks, it is a very well-constructed walkway passing through the coastal woodland and striking granite boulders to the lookout. It is a steep uphill climb featuring many individual steps (more than 500) before reaching the lookout summit, as we cannot land on the Coles Bay side this is a return from Wineglass Bay.

Walk Details:
› 2 hours return (3 km)
› Grade 3 walk – It is a steady and sometimes steep walk up featuring more then 500 steps integrated into the walkway.
› Prepare with: water bottle, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

Maria Island can be referred to as a Noah’s Ark for native Tasmanian species. The Maria Island National Park provides an ideal sanctuary, and is one of the best places in Australia to observe endemic birdlife as well as wombats, Cape Barren geese, Forester Kangaroos, Bennett’s Wallabies, and pademelons

Guests will have the option of:

BISHOP AND CLERK
620m above sea level, this hike climbs through grasslands, open forests, tall woodland, to rocky slopes towering dolomite columns of the summit. It involves steep up and down sections, and an extensive field of boulders with a short climb to the summit.

Walk Details
› 4-5 hours return
› Grade 4 walk – Bush-walking experience recommended. Tracks may be long, rough, and steep. Signage may be limited. Hazardous cliffs, unprotected track edges, rock screed scramble
› Prepare with: A raincoat, woolen jumper or polar-fleece jacket, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.
Other recommendations may include: Thermal pants, warm gloves, and woolen beanie.

FOSSIL CLIFFS LOOP
54m elevation – This is a loop walk starting at the jetty and finishing at the Darlington Settlement. It follows gentle but uneven grass areas and well-maintained tracks it is mostly gentle ups and downs but does feature one steep hill climb. It visits the old buildings and the fossil cliffs where fossils were deposited some 300 million years ago.

Walk Details
› 2-2.5 hours loop return (4.5km)
› Grade 2 walk – Mostly on a well maintained track. plenty of places to rest and feature only one steep hill climb.
› Prepare with: Water bottle, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

PAINTED CLIFFS
56m elevation – A relaxing loop return coastal walk that features the stunning painted cliffs at Hopground beach, best done on a low tide to allow safe access to the rock platform beneath the cliffs.

Walk Details
› 2-2.5 hours loop return (4km)
› Grade 2 walk – It is mostly flat with only gentle incline along the trail. The rock platform at the painted cliffs require care as it can be slippery.
› Prepare with: Water bottle, sturdy walking shoes or boots, and a sun hat.

Our Tasmania adventure concludes in Hobart this morning as we bid farewell to new-found friends, the Master and crew, disembarking at 8:00am. A complimentary transfer is provided to CBD hotels, or the airport is included.