Walk Number 23......Waterfall Bay to Fortescue Bay......21/10/2011

This is a walk that has been on my wish list for quite some time, even before I started on my little challenge.  It takes in some of the most impressive coastline on the Peninsula.  This is a full day walk covering 17 kilometres, so you will need to arrange transport at both ends.  We left one car at Fortescue Bay then drove around to Waterfall Bay to commence the walk.

On today's walk I'm accompanied by Janine, Andrea and my daughter Morgan....her first time on one of my walks, hopefully not the last!  To get to the starting point turn off the Arthur Highway to Eaglehawk Neck and turn right into Waterfall Bay Rd and drive to the carpark at the end.


The beginning of the track is clearly signposted and climbs from the path along the cliffs of Waterfall Bay through tall, slim, regrowth stringy bark gum trees and large clumps of grass. There are a number of places along the track to admire the stunning views back along the coast towards Tasmans Arch. After about 20 minutes walking the track descends to Camp Falls, where there is a very sheltered camping or picnic spot at the top of the falls.

Cross the creek and follow the left bank upstream past a sign marked "Fortescue Bay". This track will lead you on a steady climb up and over Tatnells Hill...the highest point on the Tasman Trail.  The climb to the top of the hill took about 45 minutes so by this time we were ready for a little rest and refreshment.  We set up the fuel cooker ready for a nice cuppa...unfortunately this area turned out to be alive with leeches which made our short break a little uncomfortable.  While leeches don't worry me all that much they are nasty little critters and do freak some people out...ie my fellow walkers....make sure you always have some salt with you on a walk....it does work a treat on the little suckers!  

Leech check!

Summit of Tatnells Hill

After we'd had a drink and something to eat, as well as a leech check we took off on the next stage of the walk.  On reaching the summit of Tatnells Hill the upward climb lessens as the terrain flattens out considerably.  The next hour or so is a pleasant ramble through a forest of Stringybark and Gum-topped Stringybark before reaching the clifftops which offer fantastic coastal views.  

At this point you will arrive at Junction Point, where the Hobart Walking Club cutting parties, constructing the track, met in October 1976....there is a sign commemorating this event.  A little further on from this point you will reach a rock platform at Eagles Lookout, which is the ideal spot for lunch.

making notes

Eagles Lookout

Fantastic views of the coast line can be seen from this spot onwards....Cape Hauy and the Candlestick in the south, and up the coast to the Three Thumbs, whilst offshore are the Hippolyte and Cheverton Rocks.

The Lanterns, Candlestick & Cape Hauy

A word of warning...this area is renowned for snakes, we came across one so you do need to be keeping a look out for them.  A couple of hours walk from Eagles Lookout is Bivouac Bay, which is a great place to camp with a camping area with toilet and fresh running water from Walkers Creek. it is also a great afternoon tea spot.  Remember when undertaking a lengthy walk such as this plenty of refreshment stops are a necessity even in our temperate Tasmanian climate.

The word Bivouac intrigued me so I had a look at the definition.... 'an encampment for the night without tents or covering'.  No way would I be camping out without a tent or covering in Tassie's temperate climate!


The next landmark is Canoe Bay, around an hour's walk away. The track is predominately downhill from Bivouac Bay through a damp section of forest containing Treeferns and some large Blue Gums.  Fortescue Bay is tantalisingly visible but is still around 2 hours walk away. A suspension bridge across Walkers Creek leads you to Canoe Bay.

Canoe Bay is a sheltered anchorage, with a sunken dredge the 'William Pitt' acting as a breakwater to a south-easterly sea.  There is a camping area on the shore and fresh water can be obtained from Walkers Creek at the head of the bay.  


With an hour of walking to go we are on the homeward journey. Descending along the clifftop to the white sandy shores of Fortescue Bay.

What a walk!.....17 km's and just on 9 hours...just fantastic.  This was such an enjoyable hike with fantastic coastal views and other than the initial uphill climb was a nice gentle walk that could be enjoyed by most people.


After a long walk like this the best advice I can give is to go home, run a nice bath with epson salts and take a long soak accompanied by a glass of Tassie's finest!

Walks Number 21 & 22......Devils Kitchen to Tessellated Pavement and beyond....14/10/2011

Oh my goodness, it's just on a month since my last Peninsula walk....how did that happen!! Well it's time to muster the troops and hit the trail again.  Janine, as always, was keen to come along; Andrea has also caught the bug after coming on the last walk; one of my tennis buddies, Mary had indicated that she'd like to be included on my next walk and Sue, a mutual friend of Janine, Andrea and myself had a free day so what better way to spend it. 


As there were five of us we decided to travel in two vehicles which worked out well as the walk I had chosen could be done as a one way trip of around 2 hours or as a longer return walk. This walk is a 10 klm shoreline trek from the Devil's Kitchen to the Tessellated Pavement which takes in cliff and beach walking.  After leaving Sue's car at the carpark adjacent to the Lufra Hotel we proceeded along the Arthur Highway to the turnoff onto the C338 Blowhole Road.  Follow this road for about 3km before turning right into Tasmans Arch Road. Drive along Tasmans Arch Rd to the Devil's Kitchen, a distance of approximately 1km and park here.

It is worth taking a little time and having a look at the strangely named Devils Kitchen....a remarkable natural formation in the cliff.  A narrow cavern has been carved from the pressure of the sea pounding the rock face.  Millions of years in the making, the deep crevice probably once had a roof- just like its mate Tasmans Arch which is only a 5 minute walk away.

Devils Kitchen

Tasmans Arch

After checking out the Devils Kitchen, walk back along the gravel path heading north to Tasmans Arch....on the way is a lookout with views to Cape Hauy and Tatnells Hill.

I must say this particular view always takes my breath away, it is just magnificent!  

Just before the Tasmans Arch car park is an unmarked track veering off to the right, follow this as it swings east and then north.  After about 5 minutes walking you will reach the first of several unfenced lookouts which provide wide-ranging views to Hippolyte Rock and the Forestier coast as well as extensive rock platforms below.  Take great care at these spots as the path passes very close to the crumbling cliff edges which have shear drops of over 50 metres.

After a little while the path leaves the cliff edge and descends to a track junction....ignore the tapes on the trees to the left,these don't lead anywhere.  Turn right and after 25 metres intersect Blowhole Road, it is possible to undertake a short side trip to have a look at the Blowhole.  On this particular day all was quite calm but in wilder weather the Blowhole is very spectacular.  

From this point you head north along Eggs Beach which is accessed near the Tuna Club shed, walking past the old boat sheds at the southern end of the beach.

The next part of the walk is a pleasant stroll along the beach, with some cliffs halfway along...no problem getting past today but when the tide is high care would need to be taken.  We found a sheltered little cove which was the ideal spot for a refreshment break....Janine even braved the chilly Tassie waters and went for a quick dip.

Eventually you will reach Eaglehawk Neck, the narrow isthmus where in the days of the Port Arthur penal settlement, fierce dogs were tethered to stop the convicts escaping off the Peninsula.

Once off the beach you will be onto the Tessellated Pavement which is a geographical phenomenon.  In short, rocks fractured by the movement of the earth have since been eroded by the waves and sediment of the Tasman Sea…...it is fascinating stuff, and the best example of this occurrence anywhere in the world is right here at Eaglehawk Neck.  You really can’t imagine just how spectacular it is until you’re standing right there.

It took us approximately 2.75 hours to complete the 10km walk from the Devils Kitchen which included our lunch stop.  You can finish your walk at this point and take the steps leading to a clifftop path and a lookout from which you will get a magnificent view across Pirates Bay.

We decided to continue on a little further to Clydes Island, which is a perfect walk for families especially at low tide so that the kids can examine the sea life in exposed rock pools.  It's only a 15 minute stroll to the Island which, if conditions are safe can be accessed.  On this occasion though the tide was up and we weren't able to make the trip across.  


Should you be lucky enough to catch the tide at the right time you can walk up the path to the summit of the island where there are two memorial stones to Edgar Percy Carter, who died in 1931 and to Chokey Nuroo, one time owner of the old Lufra Hotel, who died in 1941.

Clydes Island

I'm sure you will enjoy this walk, we all certainly did!

Walk Number 20.....Plunkett Point to Lime Bay 16/9/2011

After her soiree to Vietnam and Cambodia Janine was eager to start racking up the walks again so after checking our diaries we decided that Friday the 16th was the day to hit the trail again.  So contagious is her enthusiasm that 2 of her friends were keen to join us...yay newbies!!


At 7.00 on an overcast morning Janine, Andrea, Jenny and myself took to the road and headed to the Coalmines Site at Saltwater River to tackle the 3 hour one way walk. The walk from Plunketts Point to Lime Bay is graded as easy as it is over level to undulating terrain with well marked tracks....hmmm well that's what we had been led to believe, anyway I'll get to that later.  To get to the start of the track turn right off the Arthur Highway (A9) onto the B37 road just south of the Tasmanian Devil Park at Taranna.  Travel for approximately 9km and turn right, onto the C341 Saltwater River Road near The Old Trading General Store at Premaydena.  Follow this road for 9.7km to an intersection, turn right into Coalmines Road and drive for 2.3km and park in the Coalmines car park. This is a one and a half hour drive from Hobart.

Entrance to the Coalmines Historic Site

Walk through the Coalmines Ruins, which if you haven't been down that way lately is really worth a visit. Quite extensive restoration work has been undertaken and the result is very impressive...well worth a look with the added bonus of no admission fee.  Head north for 200 metres and at a junction take the right fork.  A five minute walk will bring you to Plunkett Point.  This is where the coal from the mines was loaded into ships for transportation to Hobart Town. Time for a quick history lesson....


The Coalmines Historic Site was Tasmania's first operational mine, established in 1833 as a much needed local source of coal, but also as a place of punishment for the 'worst class' of convicts. Convicts were sent to work in the dark, hot, damp tunnels of the mines which operated until 1848. The number of solitary cells and floggings indicates a place of severe punishment. With its reputation for harshness and homosexual activity, the place contributed to the failure of the probation system and its eventual demise.  This site is the only surviving penal coal mine with remaining surface features relating to extracting and transporting coal.  This significant convict site was included in the National Heritage list on 1st August 2007.


The track leaves the clearing on the north side and heads north until it swings left near a small stone ruin.  

Unfortunately, there is no signage to indicate what this ruin once was. After a further few minutes walk, the route turns right at a junction and from here is marked with intermittent tapes of various colours. The track is clearly defined with views over Norfolk Bay to MacGregor Peak.

After 10 minutes walk you will pass a small quarry on the right.  The marks of the convict picks can be seen on the quarry face.  Half finished blocks of stone lie where men abandoned them when they downed tools on the day the mines closed.

The track now leaves the coast and after around 20 minutes intersects a fire trail. Cross over this and continue on the walking track in a northerly direction.  There are a number of wild flowers evident along this track.

After 40 minutes walking, the track approaches a small beach to the south of Ironstone Point.  According to the walks book there is a short side track down to the beach, unfortunately we missed this so am assuming it is not that evident.  It's at this point things got a little more difficult as a bushfire had obviously been through the area in recent times and all evidence of the track had disappeared.  While there was no chance of getting lost we did have to make our own way to Monk Bay which according to the tracks book was the next destination. So following the map we had we did make our way onto the shingle beach at the southeast end of the bay.

Bush fires have been through this area in recent times

We proceeded along the shore past a headland of volcanic rock and onto two small sandy beaches.

Once again, according to the walks book there is a track at the far end of the northern beach which climbs the bank and continues along the clifftops.  While we did follow a track along the clifftop still not sure it was the one described in the book.  At times it was quite precarious so we decided to head inland a bit to avoid any injuries.  Due to the extensive damage done to the area by fire we could not locate a track so all we could do was head north with the coastline in view.  After about 30 minutes we came across a fire track which we decided was probably the most sensible trail to follow.  This track did eventually turn towards the coast however we did miss a portion of the walk described in the book.  All was not lost though as the route we took was very pleasant and did eventually descend onto the eastern end of Lime Bay Beach.  From here it is a further ten minutes walk along the beach to the camping area.

We spent a very pleasant 30 minutes or so having a snack and a cuppa at the camping ground before heading back to the car via the road which was an easy hour walk.

Well this walk showed us that sometimes the forces of nature have to be taken into account when venturing out into the great outdoors.....we were expecting a fairly easy walk along a well marked track, but it didn't turn out that way.  Still very enjoyable though. The trip home included a stop off at the Lufra Hotel at Eaglehawk Neck for a bite to eat and a drink, which was a nice way to finish off the day.  It was also nice having Andrea and Jenny join us and hopefully they'll be keen to come along again.

Walk Number 19..... Lime Bay to Lagoon Beach 21/8/2011

Well, pretty excited as I get to do a walk 2 weeks in a row...yahoo!!! Jane's pretty keen to see me achieve this challenge and as she's going away for a month has offered to come on another walk this week. 


The list of remaining walks contains a mixture of easy, medium & hard but many of the medium and hard graded walks should really be undertaken in the warmer months (well that's my philosophy anyway, would you really want to be out on the track for over 6 hours in the rain??) Although today is forecast as being fine we decided to notch up another easy graded walk......Lime Bay to Lagoon Beach.


To get to the start off point at the Lime Bay Camping Ground turn right off the Arthur Highway (A9) onto the B37 road just south of the Tasmanian Devil Park at Taranna.  Travel for approximately 9km and turn right onto the C341 Saltwater River Road near The Old Trading General Store at Premaydena.  Follow this road for 9.7km to an intersection, turn right into Coalmines Road and drive 6.7km to the Camping Area.

The walk starts at the northern end of the camping ground, where a fire trail leads behind the beach.  The trail, which turns into a westerly direction across the peninsula, is very easy to follow.  It passes through open woodland and coastal heath with a wide variety of plant species.

The track is good for observing wildlife and we had a wallaby jump out in front of us at one stage, there was also evidence of echidnas in the area from the numerous holes along the track, as well as a lot of the peculiarly shaped wombat poo! 


To the south of the track there is a large lagoon which hosts Black Swans and other water birds after a wet season.  It only took us about 35 minutes to come across the sand dunes which lead onto the beautiful Lagoon Beach.

This is an idyllic location....long white beach with crystal clear water and not another person in sight.....paradise!


After taking in the fabulous views of Sloping Island, Mount Wellington, Betsy and Bruny Islands, head right to the end of the beach to a small headland.

Sloping Island

Headland

To get over the headland follow the taped track through the sand dunes to a number of small shell-covered beaches further on. We spent 2 hours in this area admiring the view and the unusual rock formations at the waters edge, as well as having a snack and a cuppa of course.  

This is really a very tranquil spot and the chances of running into any one else is quite remote.  You know people pay a lot of money to be able to enjoy the luxury of a secluded beach as beautiful as this one, and here we have it right on our doorstep...and we don't have to pay a cent to enjoy it.


Once you've finished having a look around the coves, head back to Lagoon Beach. To return to the camping ground either take the same route or walk to the southern end of the beach and cross through the sand dunes where you'll come across a track running north behind the dunes.  Continue close to the base of the dunes until the track meets up with the lagoon, which is about a 20 minute walk.  Once at the lagoon turn left and walk to the end of the lagoon where a track veers off to the right, this will lead you back to Lime Bay.  Returning via this route will take almost an hour.

Lagoon Beach

exiting from the beach

Sloping Lagoon

The sandstone cliffs in this area are quite a contrast to the dolerite formations of the three Capes (Hauy, Pillar & Raoul).  From what I understand from some research is that the constituent rocks of the Peninsula are sandstones deposited in the sea between about 300 and 200 million years ago.  About 165 million years ago, the landmass which is Tasmania was raised violently from beneath the sea.  During this process, molten dolerite was intruded between the sandstone strata. After millions of years of erosion, a large part of the sandstone surrounding the dolerite intrusions has been eroded away. This would account for the areas of the peninsula which are exposed to the harsh southerly conditions being predominately dolerite cliffs and those areas such as Lime Bay which are within the sheltered waters of Frederick Henry Bay being predominately sandstone.  The map below shows the orientation of the whole peninsula.  As I mentioned, this is my take on the situation, if I'm wrong please let me know....I find this all very interesting (sad I know).

Overall, this is a very pleasant walk and suitable for the whole family.  The weather on Sunday was perfect which just added to the experience.

Lime Bay

Lime Bay