Lake St Clair

We kicked off the new decade in grand style during our Tasmanian road trip. Our first two nights in 2020 were spent chilling out in a luxurious cabin on the shores of Lake St Clair. The lake marks the southern end of Tasmania's famous Overland Track that starts at Cradle Mountain.

The lake itself is simply magnificent.  Its shoreline is completely undeveloped with the exception of two accommodation venues; the Pumphouse and the national park lodge.  We stayed in one of the lodge's cabins, a stone throw away from the lakeshore. The view was as peaceful and pristine as you'll ever get.

We made our way to the lake on New Year's Day stopping several times to enjoy a handful of scenic highlights along the incredibly remote Lyell Highway.  This is literally the only road through the middle of Tasmania, linking Strahan to Hobart and east coast. We stopped to admire Queenstown from Spion Kop Lookout, then on to the Iron Blow Lookout set above an abandoned open cast mine and finally stopping to take in the picturesque Nelson Falls.

While at Lake St Claire we took a cruise one afternoon to Narcissus Bay at the lake's northern shore, stopping midway at Echo Point.  Narcissus Bay simply breath-taking.  It's honestly one of the most tranquil and scenic locations I've ever seen.  Sadly the ferry only stopped for less than 20 minutes.

However, the most memorable highlight would have to be our hike to Platypus Bay.  The bay really did live up to its namesake. Visitors to the national park are encouraged to complete a log of wildlife sighting at the nearby visitor's centre.  Several people had recorded sighting at dusk or dawn.  Therefore we had modest expectations for our mid-afternoon hike.

However, much to our delight, after waiting for almost half an hour we were finally rewarded by the sight of lone platypus frolicking in the lake.  We spent more than 10 minutes watching it diving and swimming progressively further and further into the distance.

We also drove down to nearby Derwent Bridge to see The Wall in the Wilderness. It's billed as one of Australia's most ambitious art projects.  Artist Greg Duncan is progressively carving the history of Tasmania's central highlands in a series of timber panels that stretch 100 metres.  Many of the panels are carved from rare Huon Pine. 

The installation proved to be well worth the effort.  The artist's skills were impressive, to say the least. Unfortunately, photography isn’t permitted so I’m unable to share some of the wall’s most memorable highlights. For example, his still-life carving of a pair of work gloves draped over the handle of a shovel simply has to be seen to be believed.