Bushwalking in Mount Field National Park, Tasmania
What do you do when there’s a long weekend coming up, you can’t get rid of the travelling bug and there’s still so much more to explore in your own country. We decided to add an extra few days to the weekend and fly to Tasmania to do some walking in Mt Field National Park.
Flying to Tasmania is fairly expensive so we decided to do everything on a budget, That meant catching a bus (not hiring a car) and staying at the youth hostel. So beforehand we had to find out the timetable and book the hostel. The hostel is in a great spot just 500m from the park entrance.
On our arrival in Hobart we dropped our bags off at the bus station and went into the city for some groceries. I also wanted to get a map of the area. I really had no idea how far the alpine walks were from the park entrance. At the store the man behind the desk said “Ah, you’re just in time to see the Fagus turning”. Not wanting to look silly I nodded a yes. After leaving I wondered what a Fagus turning was. We picked up our groceries and walked back to the bus station to wait for our bus. The road follows the Derwent River through some typically English scenery. The golden colours of the trees stood out starkly in the afternoon light.
The youth hostel at National Park (yes, the town by the national park is called National Park !!!) has fairly basic accommodation with bunk beds but we did manage to get a room to ourselves. It has a big kitchen area and a fireplace in the living room. We settled down to a scratch meal then went to bed. The first morning started with a cold but beautiful sunrise with a bit of mist covering the higher slopes.
We decided to do the easiest and closest walks, covering the rain forest area and waterfalls. As I paid for our entrance fees the lady in the booth said “You picked a good time to see the Fagus turning, the colours should be great!”. She handed over our passes, and a brochure of the park. This Fagus was becoming more mysterious!
Russell Falls (wheelchair access), Horseshoe Falls, the Tall Trees circuit (where you can measure the height of one of the tallest trees), and Lady Barron Falls can be walked in one continuous circuit. Most see the beauty of Russell Falls and then turn back without realising there is more. Further along the walk is Horseshoe Falls, though no where near as high or as grand is still a very beautiful waterfall.
The walk continues with the Tall Trees circuit which takes you through stands of giant Swamp Gum or Eucalyptus Reganis. This tree is the largest hardwood tree in the world, towering up to 100m high. You can either walk back via the road or continue on to Lady Barron Falls and follow the river back to the start.
At night, with the log fire blazing we studied the map and discussed what to tackle next. The main walks are all on the plateau some 16km from the park entrance. These walks start and finish from the car park at Lake Dobson. From there you can walk to Mt Field West, Tarn Shelf, Newdegate Pass and others. In winter a ski lift operates to take skiers up the slopes. In summer you have to walk.
I had a quick look at the brochure the national parks provided. They give some information on the park, its flora, fauna and a basic map showing the walks. As I turned to the last page I noticed a picture of leaves in autumn with a caption reading “Fagus in autumn”. Then at last it struck me what a “Fagus turning” was. Being autumn, the Beech trees were changing colour. That made the trip to Mt Field extra special.
At Lake Dobson we sat down to decide how much ground we could cover in one day. Neither of us felt like a long walk given we just walked 7km uphill. So we strolled around the lake taking in the tranquillity and looking out for any “Fagus turning”. The reflections off the lake are quite beautiful and a walk through the Pandani grove at the northern end of the lake is a must.
We had lunch by the lake then made tracks back home. 16km is a long way to go. As we made our descent the alpine landscape gave way to masses of tree ferns lining the road. I managed to take a photo of one looking directly down the centre due to the steep angle of the mountain side.
Next day we were lucky to get a lift to Lake Dobson fairly early. We consulted the map and set our sights on Tarn Shelf, about a 4 hour return walk from the lake. Tarn Shelf is higher than Lake Dobson and dotted with a series of small lakes called tarns. It’s there we hoped to see the golden colours of the Fagus.
The walk to the shelf is steep and passes the ski lifts but once on the ridge the walk is pleasant with a board walk for part of the way. Being this high the weather can turn quite suddenly. While we were walking the weather turned from a sunny blue sky to overcast and threatening, The wind picked up and it got cold. So much so that we debated whether to go on or not. Just as well we did because within half an hour the wind dropped and the sun came out again.
The walk along Tarn Shelf is well marked with 2m poles in case of snow. From the path you can see the ridge of the Rodway Range. On the slopes of the ridge we caught our first sight of the Fagus turning. The golden colours stand out amongst the other greenery. Further along, the Fagus or Deciduous Beech lined the path and we got our first close up of the plant. It is a fairly low growing plant with leaves about 2cm long. Most of the Fagus had turned yellow but there were still green splashes in amongst it. I took out my camera and shot a close up while Britta took some shots of the landscape.
We walked as far as the edge of the last lake, Lake Newdegate and decided to turn back. We weren’t certain of a ride down the mountain and so we wanted to leave ourselves plenty of time.
Walking back through the Tarn Shelf we were amazed to meet several couples with young children out for a family walk. As we passed 2 small children playing by the edge of one of the tarns we reflected back on the weather earlier in the day and wondered if they still would have made the journey from Lake Dobson. The weather was still warm and sunny but it can change easily.
Back at Lake Dobson we looked out for the car we hitched a ride with. It was still there where it was parked this morning. The couple told us they would give us a lift down again if we were there when they were ready to leave and so we sat down and waited. It wasn’t too long before our couple returned and gladly gave us a lift to the park entrance.
At night we recapped our day’s adventure and the beauty of the alpine landscape in autumn but it was much too difficult hitching to the top. We only had one day left and so we decided to walk to Marriotts Falls next day. About 8km from the hostel.
It was a bit of a hike dodging the odd cow and ducking under branches but we made it. There was another set of falls further upstream but you needed to be a mountain goat to get there. We had lunch on a grassy patch away from the falls before heading back.
The bus taking us back to Hobart would arrive at 8.30am so we had dinner early and went to bed. On the bus we talked about the wonderful walks and perfect weather we had. Autumn is a great time to visit Mt Field National Park.
Article by Ken & Britta Johnson
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