To visit Cradle Mountain has long been a dream of ours. We had seen plenty of pictures of THE mountain, but there is nothing quite like being there in person and taking our own pictures to sustain our memories. It was a truly great experience and one we will not forget. But we are also conscious that we only touched on what the NP offers on this visit. We may need a return trip so see its many other wonders.

We visited Cradle Mountain on Monday 7th October 2019

Kerry’s snippets in fuchsia

History

A short history of Tasmania, from First Nation times to the arrival and growth of English colonial development, to the decimation of the First Nation Tasmanians, can be read here.

About 10,000 years ago, during the last ice age, Cradle Mountain was covered by a 6km deep ice cap, and glaciers flowed from its edges carving the landscape into the remarkable shapes we see today. The Lairmairrener First Nation people moved into the area as the glaciers began retreating. They engaged in extensive burning which produced the button grass plains and attracted animals to the tender shoots of the new vegetation. They built durable huts. There is evidence that the people moved mostly through the valleys and only visited the high country during the summer months.

In 1827 the explorer, Joseph Fossey, named Cradle Mountain because he thought it bore a similarity to a miner’s cradle. In 1831 the explorer Henry Hellyer became the first European to reach the summit of Cradle Mountain. In 1835 Surveyor General George Franklin travelled through the area. He was followed in the 1830s and 1840s by prospectors, trappers and a few settlers.

By the 1890s there was some tourism in the area particularly on Lake St Clair where Governor Hamilton built a house and boat shed. In 1911 the Austrian-born naturalist Gustaf Weindorfer bought land in Cradle Valley where he built ‘Waldheim’, which he opened to guests who wanted to explore the area. He died in 1932 and is buried near ‘Waldheim’. Weindorfer is credited with naming Dove Lake, Crater Lake and Hansons Lake and is seen as the father of tourism in the region.

In 1922 the area from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair was set aside as a ‘scenic reserve and wildlife sanctuary’. In 1927 63,990 ha, including Cradle Mountain, was set aside. Generations of bushwalkers knew it simply as ‘The Reserve’. It was eventually enlarged to 124,942 ha. The Reserve became a National Park in 1971. In 1978 the National Parks and Wildlife Service built a replica of ‘Waldheim’.

In 1982 Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park was placed on the World Heritage List in recognition of its outstanding natural, cultural and wilderness qualities.

Today Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park is one of Tasmania’s most accessible wilderness regions. It has numerous walking huts, a wide range of walks through the mountains, and the shoreline of Dove Lake, and walks around Cradle Mountain are easily accessible.

Getting There

We were based at Shearwater for a week so had flexibility as to when to do things according to the weather – we wanted to go to Cradle Mountain on the very best day possible. On the Monday morning we woke to a very cold but crystal clear day, counter to the forecast, and made a snap decision to go for it.

Shearwater > Sheffield (43km) > Moina (34km) > Cradle Mountain (35km) ~ total 112km

To Sheffield

We drove towards Devonport and Latrobe before turning south to Sheffield. It was a lovely day bringing out the best in the country side. We saw a lovely looking house as we approached it, and then as we passed it there was a clearing in the trees providing views directly up to the front of the house.

We passed again the wind turbine, and many lovely farmlands. At Railton we saw some other topiary plants but we did not stop to have a look around as we wanted to get to the Mountain as quickly as possible in case the weather changed.

We say many of the flowering cherry trees that Kerry loves. And so many even more delightful weeping cherries – some of them enormous.

As we headed further south the landscape was very pretty and gradually rugged mountains were closer and closer – magnificent.

Past Sheffield we drove down into a steep valley and up the other side – quite a windy and steep road – to the highlands plateau. We could then see the higher mountains with patches of snow adding a contrast to the black of the rock. We crossed some barren looking areas.

At the NP visitors centre, the first area we came to, everyone needs to stop to pay the fees and get a pass. We ended up getting an annual pass for $38 – would have cost nearly as much for just 1 day and this covers us for all Tasmanian NPs for a year. From there we took a shuttle bus down into the park. We had heard that you could take your own car in when it is not busy – but this was school holidays.

Dove Lake

And then we were there – at the start of the lovely Dove Lake looking at that iconic view. Simply stunning, so great to see it with the blue sky backdrop. Before we started the walk, we did as instructed and entered our walk in the log.

We started the Circuit from the Dove Lake carpark. We took the track on the eastern (left hand) side of the Lake, as advised, and followed it clockwise around the lake. The newly-completed track takes you right under Cradle Mountain, through the tranquil Ballroom Forest and back along the western shore. The sign said to allow 2-3 hours.

The first part of the walk is in generally open scrubland along a well formed path. Then we climbed a knoll up some constructed steps (not difficult) and got to a lookout. Great views, naturally.

The path took us down to the lakeside and we enjoyed the views across the lake the high mountains that separates Dove Lake from Crater Lake. We then reached a beach where we could really see the tannin in the water. Some of the reflections were amazing too – an easy walk so far with so many different trees and colours to delight our senses. We are really loving this.

Nearing the southern end of the Lake the path became a raised timber platform to get us around the walls of rock. It is a great track!

Approaching the end we could see the some lovely trees, little islands and the path across the water on the opposite shore.

Further around we heard and then saw a waterfall coming down from the snow area on the mountain top. We could see the falls up high but the path did not take us anywhere close. Up top some misty clouds had started to drift in.

The Ballroom forest is quite delightful Like a magical fairy dell – just waiting for an Ent to come to life – some of this is captured on the video – click here

The views on the second part of the circuit are equally good, but providing a different perspective as the whispy clouds drifted in. Still spectacular though. We came to another beach and then to quite a long climb up the side of the mountain. It was all constructed steps but was a bit of a hike. We passed many people having a rest while taking in the wonderful views. We had a rest too – this section was quite steep and I found it very hard work. And speaking from the future, my calves were sore for a couple of days.

Close to the end we came to a dilapidated hut on a little beach. A boat house! Would be great shelter if you were desperate.

Then on the final walk out we could see Lake Lilla, nestled between the mountains.

There were hints of rain as we completed this wonderful experience. Our watches showed we had done about 7km. And we were lucky as a shuttle bus arrived, giving me just enough time to sign off the walk. We just got on the bus as the rain started – not heavy but constant… we would have been saturated so our timing was perfect.

Enchanted Walk

Back at the visitors centre we had some lunch before driving back down to the Interpretative Centre. We walked back to the lovely Pencil Pine Cascades. There are just next to the road – at the entrance to the NP proper.

We really enjoyed the Enchanted Walk – I think Kerry liked the fact that it is a short walk as she was feeling it a bit on her troublesome hip from the walk around Lake Dove. The path is excellent. We got a little rain during the walk.

After that I walked back to get the car while Kerry found a shop, and as I approached the car park, I spied a furry little creature on the pathway. It was a gorgeous pademelon, with a baby in its pouch.

The Devils and Quolls

Next up was the Devil@Cradle, a unique Tasmanian conservation sanctuary located at the entrance to the National Park. Whilst the sanctuary concentrates primarily on the Tasmanian devil, it is also home to the closely related Spotted-tail and Eastern quolls. Tasmania’s three largest carnivorous marsupials are all now threatened in one way or another in the wild.

Visitors to the sanctuary can view these animals wandering between the the various large pens, or join a personalised guided tour which ensures a close up encounter with the animals. We had missed the last tour so wandered around. We saw many Devils, including 2 very small babies, many juveniles and older devils, and 2 spotted quolls. The baby devils are very cute – and while we didn’t see any Eastern Quolls, there were a few Spotted Tailed Quolls – one female fast asleep and an older male giving himself a good wash – they have such delicate hands and fingers.