Cradle Mountain and the Dove Lake Circuit

A visit to Cradle Mountain has to be on the top of any Tasmanian road trip. To get there we drove the long way, through the national parks of Franklin-Gordon River and Cradle Mountain - Lake St Clair. It was an amazing drive through winding roads which took us deeper into the heart of "Cradle Country".

For a beginner hiker aka “non-walker” like myself the Dove Lake circuit is an easy introduction to hiking suitable for all ages. All you need is sturdy walking shoes and warm, wet weather gear for the 6.6 kilometre journey in the shadow of Cradle Mountain.

Along the walk we met hikers of all different nationalities who greeted us with a warm hello. However a German couple warned us that we had a fair way to walk when we had almost neared the southern most part of the circuit - the closest you can get to the base.

We were incredibly lucky that Cradle Mountain was clear, as we were warned at the visitor centre that it had been a cloudy day and the peak hadn't been visible. It made the late afternoon visit perfectly timed!

Throughout the walk Ryan kept stopping for photos and I couldn't help but capture heaps of video footage as I took in the miniature "waterfalls", small pebbled beaches, stairs and walkways down to the lake and just enjoying the sheer beauty of the UNESCO World Heritage Area.





The ballroom forest is a highlight of the circuit. It's a secluded area walled in by Myrtles and the deciduous Beech trees which are covered in moss. Pity it was too dark to take photos though.

When we finally left Cradle Mountain night had fallen. Thus far, we had seen lots of unpleasant roadkill on the side of the road but very little live wildlife. At dusk all of Tasmania’s creatures came out to greet us from kangaroos to wombats and wallabies. Still there was no sign of any Tassie devils...

More photos of Cradle Mountain can be viewed at Ryan's Flickr page.