While I look forward to the following journey alternative, I’ve yet one more belated (and pre-COVID) publish to jot down. This one’s from a late Summer stroll right down to Waterfall Bluff on the Tasman Peninsula. With Lachie in childcare and each of us having a break day, we determined to do a not too strenuous stroll as when you’ve got a child to take care of, the very last thing you need is to be further drained.
We arrived at Devil’s Kitchen, a preferred spot with the day tripping crowd who positive sufficient had been out in drive at this spot proper subsequent to the highway. We had been headed for Waterfall Bay, a cliff face alongside the Peninsula that has a waterfall flowing over it following heavy rains.
If you’re studying this in late June 2020, you’ll most likely be considering of some other place that piques individuals’s curiosity following numerous rainfall. In current days, we had an enormous downpour in Hobart and with restrictions lifted, a sure spot on Mount Wellington grew to become a magnet for LOTS of individuals. I really feel a little bit little bit of guilt in regards to the elevated reputation of Disappearing Tarn as my pictures of it went a little bit viral again in 2018 with entrance web page newspaper articles and options in National Geographic Australia and the BBC. Sure it was a pleasant increase however it additionally led to the place changing into rather more identified which as we’ve seen globally isn’t such a great factor.
I’m in two minds about it, as on the one hand it sucks to see what was a pleasant quiet place turn into overrun with Instagrammers seeking to get the shot. The observe in has most likely turn into fairly degraded and little question not everybody was respectful of the place both there or on the way in which out and in. However, however, I can think about lots of bushwalkers have been “born” the previous couple of days. People visiting the location and pushing by way of the lengthy stroll in on maybe their first ever bushwalk would possibly hopefully have ignited a spark in themselves, a spark of appreciation for nature and a need to see extra of it. This in flip will hopefully result in an elevated respect for our pure locations and extra advocates for preserving our wild locations and leaving them as untarnished as we will by our presence. It’s a tough one as in fact no person ought to be denied the expertise of seeing a phenomenal wild place however you additionally don’t need that space to lose what made it particular within the first place. It’s one thing that I feel Tasmania has been grappling with fairly a bit in recent times with ever rising numbers of holiday makers drawn in by the quite a few accolades this lovely State retains on successful. Striking that steadiness goes to be key going ahead and I don’t envy the individuals having to handle that.
Off matter ramblings apart, let’s get again right down to the Peninsula. The stroll in to Waterfall Bluff is kind of a pleasing one, first following alongside close to the cliff edge earlier than snaking its approach inland a little bit into some open forest earlier than re-emerging again out onto the precipitous clifftops.
It was an overcast day however a sticky one with excessive humidity and though the observe in is essentially straightforward, the situations made it a bit extra a slog than maybe it often is. We seen a gradual scaling down of numbers as we progressed additional alongside the observe and households with younger youngsters turned again earlier than their little ones grew too drained or cranky.
The Waterfall Bay observe finally runs out on the Waterfall Bay lookout which is one of the best spot to witness the falls pouring over the cliffs……after they’re flowing. Being late Summer and with a really dry Summer they in fact weren’t flowing however that’s only a seasonal bonus on this in any other case pleasant stroll.
Your stroll doesn’t have to finish right here, you possibly can proceed on to the Tasman Trail which continues all the way in which right down to Fortescue Bay. Definitely eager to try this full stroll sooner or later! We determined to only proceed on to Waterfall Bluff, a brief aspect observe that gives superb views out to Cape Hauy.
A number of weeks earlier I had the pleasure of occurring a Pennicott Wilderness Cruise on the base of those very cliffs. You actually get an appreciation for the size of this shoreline from the water however it’s additionally actually attention-grabbing strolling alongside it and seeing what the view is like from the identical cliffs towering above you. I extremely advocate BOTH choices 🙂