Embracing Snowy Mount Field National Park (And Making it Home For Dinner)

We acknowledge that this adventure is located on Big River Nation, traditional Country of the palawa people of lutruwita, who have occupied and cared for the lands, waters, and their inhabitants for thousands of years. We pay our respects to them as the Traditional Custodians and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.

• A true alpine wilderness
• Gorgeous tarns and alpine vegetation
• Only an hour’s drive from Hobart

‘Hello Pa…’

Within 10 seconds of picking up the phone, my partner’s face said it all. Our weekend plans were out. Family birthdays take precedence – even over an awesome weather forecast.

I love winter bushwalking in Tasmania. Crispy cold weather, up above the treeline with snow underfoot and bluebird skies overhead – what’s not to like!

Fingers were crossed for lots of this!

Our characteristically unstable weather unfortunately makes such days a rare treat. Especially for those of us stuck in the five-day-a-week grind. Huey’s weekend wrath had already scuttled well-laid plans multiple times this season. Keen winter aficionados know the drill: it can be a fine line between fun, challenging, and deadly. Common sense and safety has to prevail when the cold fronts come in with vengeance.

Read more: Tips For Your First Winter Trip Into the Backcountry

Still, I was now positively chomping at the bit for a winter adventure, and the weekend was now out.

Evidently I’d done a poor job of hiding my tinge of disappointment. But my lovely lady – bless her – already had a Plan B by the time she hung up the phone.

‘Let’s head down early. I’ll catch up with my family, you go find some snow for the day and make the most of the forecast. Just make sure you’re back by dinner time.’

Mount Field National Park lies about one hour’s drive north west of Hobart and is best known as the state’s southern ski field. The 163km² park offers many more activities however, with a large network of walking tracks to waterfalls, lookouts, and mountain peaks.

The rugged beauty of Mt Field National Park

With only a short winter’s day up my sleeve, I settled on the popular Tarn Shelf circuit track. This narrow shelf holds no less than seven picture-perfect alpine tarns (high alpine lakes), ringed with endemic Deciduous beech, Pandani, and Pencil pines. Sheltered from the fierce south-westerly fronts, it holds snow well and is perfect for winter trekking in settled conditions.

The Plan Changes Again

The original plan was to follow the Tarn Shelf track to Lake Newdegate, up past The Watcher to K Col and head out to the summit of Mt Field West, before returning via the Rodway Range. 

That was before I properly realised the time required to get ourselves down to the other end of the state, drop off my partner in Hobart then head up the Derwent Valley to Mt Field itself. Despite an early start, it was almost 11:30am when I was ready to set off from Lake Dobson car park. Half the day gone already!

Thoughts of making it all the way out to Mt Field West were cast aside. Let’s just try to do the loop back over Rodway Range, I thought. Low cloud still clung to the top of the nearby peaks, but conditions were settled, at least. 

Along for the ride would be the newly revised Black Diamond Distance Carbon FLZ lightweight trekking poles. Combining the compact design and fast deploying action of Z-fold walking poles with an all-carbon fibre build, they come in a whippet-light 183 grams a side (on the 140cm model).

Black Diamond trekking poles – essential kit for a fast and light adventure on snow

I’m a huge fan of trekking poles, and have never understood why so many bushwalkers consider them unnecessary, gimmicky or – unfairly – only required by the, ahem, more senior hiker amongst us?

Trekking poles help immensely to support and propel our bodies when bushwalking or trail running, taking load off our lower joints while limiting the risk of falls over muddy or technical terrain. 

Thankfully, trekking poles also help you climb hills faster too, as the Urquhart Track soon obliged with the steep, steady climb towards the main ski field. 

Snow soon began to appear, and before long the track was well-covered in week-old cold stuff, compressed and smoothed by the bases of many toboggans. Families love this track for safe and easy access for their kids, and their plastic sleds had rendered the snow quite slippery! It wasn’t long before the Distance Carbon FLZs saved me from an embarrassing slide. The first of many, I might add!

Clearing the tree line, the ski tows sat idle as I walked past the main shelter. Signs that the sun was burning off the remaining cloud buoyed me, so I wasted no time locating the Tarn Shelf trailhead and making tracks towards the northern edge of the Mawson Plateau.

Stunning, slippery terrain

The boardwalk soon gave way to exposed stone and rock. Here, the trekking poles did a great job of keeping me upright over the icy rocks and frozen puddles.

Further ahead, the Tarn Shelf track split with the Rodway Range track, descending steeply into a gully. Seeing the healthy build up of snow below and ahead, I stopped to fit my other ‘secret weapon’ for the day – mini crampons. With these and my trekking poles working in tandem, I was rock solid as I charged down the snow-filled gully and past the Rodway Tow.

This sign is super clear, but many directional markers were buried beneath the snow

Onto the Rodway Range

The mist still hadn’t quite cleared ahead, forming an ethereal glow as the sun tried to burn through. The weather could turn either way it seemed, but for now, in lee of the Rodway Range, conditions were quite comfortable. Onwards!

Robert Tarn looked amazing, frozen over as I skirted its shore, walking between low alpine sedge and rocky outcrops. The track was well marked, but I did notice several marker posts were almost buried below the snow. A few times I’d check with my GPS to ensure I was still on track.

Mackenzie Tarn was next. By now the sun was finally breaking through and the shelf looked incredible. Pandani poked through the snow cover, their leaves rattling quietly in the gentle breeze. Flat, open expanses of firm snow made for joyous walking, but my forward momentum was slowing as I struggled to keep my camera in its bag for longer than a few minutes at a time!

Pandani (Richea pandanifolia) – the famous Giant Tasmanian Grass Tree – is a sight to behold in the snow

Passing James Tarn I noticed the snow was getting deeper, particularly when traversing minor gullies. Again, the Distance Carbon FLZs came to my aid, stabilising my progress down the steep slopes and helping to probe the snow cover ahead for soft patches.

Read more: Everything You Need to Know About Hiking Poles

I wasn’t always successful on the later though. Despite passing the ‘poke test’, I postholed in a number of spots, often up to my thighs. Now, forward progress was being stymied not by my overenthusiastic photography, but by the snow itself.

Poles helped me move quickly as the snow got deeper

I soon met a local trail runner. He immediately commented on my trekking poles, bemoaning that he’d not brought his and was sorely regretting the decision. We discussed the gorgeous conditions, but when I mentioned the remainder of my plans – namely getting up to K Col and back across the Rodway Range – his face straightened immediately.

‘Ummm, you’ve been up there before?’

I hadn’t explored the K Col track past The Watcher, no, but was familiar with the Rodway Range and its large boulders across the top.

‘The snow gets really deep and soft up there. It’s really tricky around the bigger rocks, you posthole and fall into the gaps. I tried to do it last winter and spent hours wading through snow. That’s why I avoided it today…’

I looked at my watch. It was almost 2pm and hadn’t even made Lake Newdegate yet.

‘I mean, you look like you’re well prepared and equipped…’

I was, but I also was on a tight schedule, and was counting on managing a decent pace to get back to the car before it got dark.

Alpine huts are good in an emergency, but definitely a last resort

I thanked him for the advice, we both wished each other a safe trip, and continued around the eastern side of Newdegate Lake. Aiming for the small hut adjacent to the track junctions of K Col and Lake Webster, my mind buzzed with the unfortunate reality that I still had several kilometres to go and precious little daylight left to do it in. Even if the conditions further up towards K Col weren’t so bad – and that was a big ‘if’ – it seemed unlikely I’d be off the range before dark.

Read more: Can You Ever Really Fail an Adventure?

The sun was sinking quickly

The Weather Calls the Shots Out Here

I took a short break at the rustic Lake Newdegate Hut to down some food and assess my options. Behind the hut, the mist swirled around its snow laden ridge leading up to The Watcher. Further north, there seemed to be some kind of cloud build up, but I couldn’t really make out its form. I then noticed a thick band of low cloud suddenly whip over the top of Rodway Range.

Low clouds call for a quick end to the day

That was the clincher. The weather was telling me to start heading home.

I briefly considered dropping down onto the Lake Webster track for the return journey – a more sensible option if the weather had been turning bad fast. But this trip had been all about making the most of the snow, so I started heading back the way I’d came. This time making much quicker progress in my old tracks and managing to keep the camera packed away – well, most of the time!

It was just as well. Once up on the shoulder east of Johnson Tarn I could finally make out the vague cloud formation. It looked like a sizeable storm cell and was slowly making its way east. Behind me, the tarns were disappearing fast under bands of low cloud.

In a white out this terrain would be slow going

‘Ok Huey, you’ve made your point!’

I managed to keep pace with the advancing weather until Robert Tarn, where the cloud had already wrapped around the south-eastern end of the Rodway Range. It glowed orange as I climbed back onto the main track – an amazing sight – but I could feel the chill filling the air as the sun began setting.

Thankfully it was all downhill from here, so it was time to play the Distance Carbon FLZ’s ace card – height adjustability.

When going downhill, extending your poles a bit beyond their usual length helps them reach the oncoming ground sooner, maintaining better contact and stability.

Most Z-fold trekking poles are fixed height though, which helps keep them lightweight and packable The Black Diamond FLZ trekking poles however counter this with 150mm of adjustability built into the top of the pole, thanks to the improved FlickLock Pro clamps. The best of both worlds – lightweight and adjustable and fast deploying and more compact folded up. Nice!

We love a secure clip

I dialed in an additional 50mm of height on each pole and got cracking, practically bounding down Urquharts Track through the snow. With light fading, the trekking poles kept me steady and upright until the white stuff petered out and I was back at the car. All with 15 mins to spare before the sun disappeared below the horizon.

And yes, I made it home in time for dinner – just!

It had been a strange day, a comedy of lost time and silly errors made up by stunning snow, scenery and serenity. It’s easy to get frustrated when plans don’t work out, but I try to remember, simply, that the mountains will always be there tomorrow. Family birthdays, sadly, aren’t as endless. But hey, I got to have my snow and eat my cake!

We’re gonna make it!

Essential Gear

• Black Diamond lightweight trekking poles
• Warm layers including gloves and a waterproof shell – the weather can turn nasty quickly at any time of year. Be prepared!
• Map/compass and/or GPS for navigation.
• PLB, first aid kit and an emergency thermal bag
• Food/snacks and adequate water
• Sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat! Even in winter, the Tassie sun can bite
• Parks Pass
• While not essential, mini-crampons or anti-slip devices will give an extra degree of security over firm snow and ice. 
• Snow shoes/skis may be required after heavy snowfall

Read more: How To Read The Weather Like A Pro

How To Get There

Mount Field National Park is situated off Gordon River Road, west of the small Derwent Valley township of Westerway. Lake Dobson lies an additional 16km into the park along Lake Dobson Road. The narrow, winding gravel road is generally well-maintained and manageable by most vehicles, however in winter 2WD cars must carry snow chains.

Skill Level

Tarn Shelf Track is rated Grade 3, suitable for bushwalkers with some previous experience, due to some rocky sections of track. In winter, it should only be attempted by more experienced hikers fully prepared for snow and ice. More beginner-oriented walks abound at lower elevations within the Mount Field National Park, including the wheelchair-friendly Russell Falls walk.

Distance Covered / Elevation Gain / Duration

Approximately 14km / 620m elevation gain. The total trip took five hours, of which about four hours was spent walking.