All too soon we completed the gentle 2½-mile stretch to that first night’s halt, Surveyors. It’s more sophisticated than I’d expected: cabins house four and eight-bed bunkrooms (bring your own sleeping bag), while “hubs” provide cooking facilities and a library covering Tasmania’s flora and fauna. Modern toilet blocks and a welcoming deck complete the picture.
A maximum of 48 hikers are allowed to depart in each tranche, though only 11 of us – mostly mainland Aussies – gathered around a glowing wood-pellet stove for host ranger Robin’s briefing that evening. He paid respects to the region’s traditional Aboriginal owners before outlining practicalities. “Don’t leave food or rubbish lying around, or we’ll be overrun with possums,” he said, smiling ruefully. “They’re smart enough to open doors, so close them all carefully.”
A rain forest in Tasmania CREDIT: FOTOLIA/AP
Then came warnings that were to become familiar. “Watch out for snakes on the trail. We have three species, all of them venomous.” (They’re also shy, and a single antivenin covers all three.) “And be prepared for bad weather. But as the cliché goes: if you don’t like the weather in Tasmania, wait five minutes and it’ll change.”
Next morning I woke to mizzle, offset by the joyful sight of Bennett’s wallabies grazing around the cabins. But by 8am the skies cleared, revealing glorious vistas across to Cape Raoul jutting into Storm Bay. This is the third cape alluded to in the track’s name, though it doesn’t actually visit Raoul.
Source by: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/oceania/australia/tasmania/articles/three-capes-track-tasmania-walking-holiday/
A maximum of 48 hikers are allowed to depart in each tranche, though only 11 of us – mostly mainland Aussies – gathered around a glowing wood-pellet stove for host ranger Robin’s briefing that evening. He paid respects to the region’s traditional Aboriginal owners before outlining practicalities. “Don’t leave food or rubbish lying around, or we’ll be overrun with possums,” he said, smiling ruefully. “They’re smart enough to open doors, so close them all carefully.”
Then came warnings that were to become familiar. “Watch out for snakes on the trail. We have three species, all of them venomous.” (They’re also shy, and a single antivenin covers all three.) “And be prepared for bad weather. But as the cliché goes: if you don’t like the weather in Tasmania, wait five minutes and it’ll change.”
Next morning I woke to mizzle, offset by the joyful sight of Bennett’s wallabies grazing around the cabins. But by 8am the skies cleared, revealing glorious vistas across to Cape Raoul jutting into Storm Bay. This is the third cape alluded to in the track’s name, though it doesn’t actually visit Raoul.
Source by: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/oceania/australia/tasmania/articles/three-capes-track-tasmania-walking-holiday/
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