Planning Hikes in Australia especially Tasmania or Victoria

When we first started going to Tasmania hiking it required a lot of effort to organise the trip smoothly. How would we get to the start of the track and back? Should we fly or take the Ferry? Should we take our car with us or rely on public transport. Over a few trips we have been able to plan our trips quickly and easily. With a few emails we arrange transfers, gear and accommodation. Usually all goes smoothly (often because Tasmanians are great people and they WANT you to have a terrific holiday)

Today I decided, that because I love organising trips and getting people out in the bush, that I would offer to help people plan their hiking trips to Tasmania or Victoria. Why give free advice you ask? I bet he is getting a cut off the places he refers us to! Well the answer is NO, no commissions from any of the places I might recommend. Besides, the advice may be the best time of the year or whether you can light a fire ...hard to make money from that!

All of the people we use are just ordinary Aussie small businesses, run by nice people who are just trying to make a living. They love their own environments and are great at looking after people.

A potential risk, of course , is to increase the number of hikers in some areas but my assumption is that you will be doing the walk anyway so why not get some help in sorting out transfers, food or gear issues easily. It may also help keep these small businesses afloat and successful and that would give us a "warm and fuzzy" feeling.

I AM interested in increasing site traffic and having people click on one of the few ads I have here , more as an academic exercise to see what interest can be generated rather than making my fortune topping up my retirement funds!!

If I get some email requests I may post them on the blog with our answers so others can share in the knowledge and comment if they think our suggestions are stupid or otherwise.

So, don't hesitate to contact us via the email link here - we may be able to help and, if not, will definitely point you in the right direction.

7 comments:

Maple Kiwi said...

My partner and I are tackling the South Island of New Zealand over the coming summer, but once we get that out of our systems I think a trip to Oz is definitely on the books! Is there an off-season for those tiger snakes???

http://loveinatent.blogspot.com

Frank and Sue said...

Excellent question young lady LOL!
If you are planning a visit to Tasmania and the Overland Track, in particular, I think "off season" is the best time. There is a booking system for the Overland Track for each walking season (1 November to 30 April). During this period you must walk the track from North to South (Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair), and pay the $150 fee.(plus park entry of about $30 for a month)
We usually try going either side of these dates as it is REALLY busy, like you may see 50 people in one day ...hardly wilderness :-(
(see the posts on our last trip in JULY (mid winter), we still shared the huts with up to 10 people)
As regards snakes... well summer is obviously their peak season and we have occasionally seen 2 or 3 in the one day. They are generally very docile and if you take a wide berth around them (Sue usually like 2 metres or so!!) you are fine. They tend to lie along the track in the sun so you soon become aware of what is a fallen branch and what is a snake!! On our July walk we didn't see any but then again I reckon they hate the snow LOL

Post again or send me an email if you would like any more information...like how to avoid the fee (legally) and other naughty ideas.

Alan D. Holzman, Ph.D. said...

What is your e-mail address?
Thanks
Alan Holzman

e-mail: adhphd@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

Hi there,

My partner and I are heading to Cradle mountain next Sunday (24th August), we're staying in the scout hut for three nights and we can't wait!
My partner has never been in snow before and my experience is limited, I intend to be extra cautious but would love to see the top of the mountain if the weather permits.. do you have any advice?

Frank and Sue said...

Hi Andrew,
Should be a great weekend.
I am hopeless and never climbed to the top of Cradle Mountain and I am not sure if it would be possible or very safe to do in winter. A guy died up there last year.

I would check out this post on the Bushwalk Tasmania Forum for some "warnings". This is pretty current information.

http://bushwalk-tasmania.com/forum/
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=966

Other than that. Warm gear, good boots, layering of clothes, caution and a bottle of port for in the evening.

Have a great trip and let me know how you go.

Frank

Anonymous said...

Thanks guys,
we've got lots of gortex and the port is already in my kit. I'll check the warnings as you recommended.

thanks again

Brumby said...

Hi Frank and Sue
Well Lani and I are back from our walk. Sadly visibility up on the plateau was very poor for the duration of our stay so we really didn't come back with much to share (even my camera froze up!). I've decided to go back up in a few weeks to try and beat the weather..
I was horrified to see so many people in the vicinity of kitchen hut in no more than jeans and sneakers! perhaps there should be stronger warnings?
thanks for your advice.