Walking to the Friendly Beaches Scenic Lookout

Photograph of long stretch of beach ending in a rocky point.

The Friendly Beaches are a long expanse of beach in Tasmania, Australia. They are just north of the famed Freycinet Peninsula on Tasmania’s East Coast. A scenic lookout overlooks the beaches.

Getting there

The Friendly Beaches lie within the Freyincet National Park, so visitors will need a current National Parks Pass.

The access to Friendly Beaches was from Cole’s Bay Road, which also led to Freycinet Peninsula. Friendly Beaches Road turned east off Cole’s Bay Road, then divided after about 1.9 kilometres. North (left) from the fork passed the Friendly Beaches Scenic Lookout.

Friendly Beaches did not have extravagant amenities at the time of our visit in September 2016. All of Friendly Beaches Road was unsealed, and the only facilities were toilets without running water at each end of the road. However, Friendly Beaches also experienced a fraction of the crowds that flocked to Freycinet Peninsula.

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The view from Red Knoll Lookout

Photograph of mountains surrounding artificial lake.

Southwest Tasmania is famous for its rugged landscape. Hardy bushwalkers recommend walking it for days for the best experience, but you can catch a glimpse from your car if you drive to Red Knoll, on the southern edge of Lake Pedder.

Getting there

Red Knoll lies within the Southwest National Park, so visitors will need a current National Parks Pass.

As of January 2014, there was no place to buy petrol southwest of the town of Maydena. From there, the drive was along Gordon River Road for 31 winding kilometres followed by turn south onto Scotts then a turn onto Scotts Peak Road and 38 kilometres from there.

All of these roads were built to admit construction vehicles for dams and power stations. They were wide, solid and had smooth bends. However, the entire length of Scotts Peak Road was unsealed.

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Walking the Fern Glade Track, Marakoopa Cave

Photograph of creek flowing under ferns and over mossy stones.

The Fern Glade Track is a short walk through rainforest near Mole Creek, Tasmania, Australia. It follows Marakoopa Creek to the mouth of Marakoopa Cave.

The Fern Glade at Marakoopa Cave should not be confused with the Fern Glade Great Short Walk along the Emu River in Burnie, the Fern Glade at Fern Tree on Mount Wellington or the Ferndene fern glade in the Dial Range, Penguin.

Getting there

The Fern Glade Track lies within the Mole Creek Karst National Park, so visitors will need a current National Parks Pass or to buy a ticket for the Marakoopa Cave tour.

To reach the start of the walk, we drove along Liena Road, then turned south onto Mayberry Road and followed it to the Marakoopa Cave ticket office. A car park here gave access to the north end of the Fern Glade Track. Another 500 metres beyond that was the car park for Marakoopa Cave itself, and the south end of the track. All roads and car parks were sealed.

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Walking Postmans Track, Sisters Beach

Photograph of coastal cliffs.

Postmans Track is a walking track along the north coast of Tasmania, Australia. In the early days of the coastal towns of Burnie and Stanley, this track was the shortest land route between the two. It was only suitable for people on foot or on horseback.

The “Postmans Track” seen here was a short segment in the middle of that original route, passing along cliffs at the eastern edge of Rocky Cape National Park.

Getting there

Postmans Track lies within part of the Rocky Cape National Park, so visitors will need a current National Parks Pass.

The route to both ends of the track began by driving along the Bass Highway, turning north onto Port Road, then following Sisters Beach Road after Port Road diverted to Boat Harbour. All of these roads were sealed.

The car park for the southern end of the track was on Sisters Beach Road itself. The car park for the northern end of the track was on Sisters Beach. The road to this car park was unsealed, with large ruts that would be inconvenient if filled with water. Drivers wishing to avoid this could park on Honeysuckle Avenue and walk an additional 1.6 kilometres along Sisters Beach.

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Walking in Honeycomb Cave, Mole Creek

The karst landscape of Tasmania’s Mole Creek area is famed for its caves. One of the most accessible is Honeycomb Cave.

Caves are not safe places, and the open nature of Honeycomb Cave can be deceptive.  In June 2015 a visitor to Honeycomb Cave suffered a serious fall.  Watch the ground and do not step anywhere you cannot see clearly.  Do not go out of sight of daylight if you are not a trained and equipped caver.

Getting there

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Walking to Westmorland Falls

Photograph of waterfall between tree ferns.

Westmorland Falls flow off the Great Western Tiers, south of Mole Creek, Tasmania, Australia. The falls are short but picturesque and surrounded by rainforest.

Parts of the walking track to the falls were destroyed by floods in January 2011. Replacement work in 2013 included a new bridge and lookout platform. The bridge survived further floods in 2016 but the lookout platform did not. A replacement platform was built further downstream.

These photographs show the state of the track as it was in January 2015. As of January 2017, the repaired track was about 1.8 kilometres long (3.6 kilometres return).

Getting there

Westmorland Falls lie within part of the Mole Creek Karst National Park, so visitors will need a current National Parks Pass.

The simplest way to navigate to the falls was to drive to Mole Creek, then turn south onto Caveside Road (sealed). We turned west onto Wet Cave Road (unsealed), south at Honeycomb Cave, and then it was a short drive uphill to the Westmorland Falls car park.

If you are approaching from Launceston and are familiar with the area, turning onto Caveside Road at Chudleigh may be more scenic.

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Walking to South Cape Bay

Photograph of coastal cliffs with waves breaking on rocky foreshore.

South Cape Bay lies at the southern tip of Tasmania, bordering on the Southern Ocean. It has views of South East Cape, the most southern point of all. A walking track runs from Cockle Creek to South Cape Bay. This track is one of Tasmania’s Great Short Walks.

Getting there

South Cape Bay lies within the Southwest National Park, so visitors will need a current National Parks Pass.

The road south to Cockle Creek was long and winding. Sections were unsealed, including everything south of Ida Bay. For residents of Hobart, the 148 kilometre distance will take a minimum of two hours’ driving time one way. For anyone farther north, add the time needed to drive into and through Hobart.

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