The Five Best Huon Valley Hikes
Hartz Peak Walk, Hartz Mountains National Park. Photo credit Stu Gibson.
Here’s our pick for the five best walks in the Huon Valley and we should know, we tested them all!
Franklin Forest Walk Huon Valley’s best kept secret, this walk at the top of New Road is a patch of forest threatened by clear-felling. The forest is magnificent, containing areas never logged before, rainforest and habitat for endangered species, like the swift parrot. With an incredibly diverse range of fungi, it truly is magical and feels like you’re entering another realm. It’s maintained by a passionate group of volunteers who are working to save this precious forest from logging. Find the location here
South Cape Bay Track is a 4 hours return (15.4km) walk within the Southwest National Park. The walk starts at Cockle Creek, the end of the most southern road in Australia. The Southwest National Park is part of the Tasmanian World Heritage Wilderness Area and this walk passes through an impressive range of landscapes, forests, plains, cliff tops and sandy beaches to reach Lions Rock. If you only have time to do one amazing walk in the far south this is it. Read more here
Mount Misery Worth the hike for the name alone, but rest assured the name doesn’t reflect the reality of this brilliant climb. A three hour return hike beginning from the impressive tall tree rainforest above the Huon Bush Retreats in Ranelagh. The 5km return Mount Misery trail climbs 280m through dry sclerophyll forest before reaching Mount Misery’s lovely sub-alpine heathland. From the heathland there are spectacular views of Bruny Island and the Southwest World Heritage Area. Read more
Hartz Peak On a clear day, Hartz Peak will give you one of the greatest views of a southern chunk of Tasmania; looking south-west you can see Federation Peak sticking out of the rolling hills, and further north you might also be lucky to catch a look at Mt Anne. On the way to the peak, you will cover some breathtaking alpine scenery as well as passing Lake Esperance, worth a detour for a cheeky cold water swim. It’s a busy walk in summer, or when there’s been snow in winter, so we’d recommend getting there early in the day. Read more
Echo Sugar Loaf 3.9 km A beautiful hike in the rural town of Randall's Bay. There are glimpses and views of surrounding hills and the waters of the Huon estuary throughout the walk, and expansive views to the wilderness peaks from the lookout at the old trig point. The charm of Echo Sugarloaf is the variety of vegetation with open white peppermint eucalypt forest on the northern slopes, stands of old growth eucalyptus along the ridge, open grassy areas and, on the western descent, communities of casuarina and dogwood. Lots of viewing stops and benches on the way for snacks (very important!). We also highly recommend a post-walk swim at the beach at the glorious Randall's Bay. Read more
Lake Skinner Not going to lie (NGL) this 6.6-km out-and-back trail near Lonnavale, is a challenging route, it takes an average of 3 hours to complete, and most of the is walking uphill. It’s steep going all the way up, but you pass through some breathtaking forests before reaching the plateau and Lake Skinner. Lake Skinner, is wild, remote and windy, just the way we like it. Read more
So what are you waiting for? Get your boots on and get outside!
