10 Tassie Adventures That Are Out of the Ordinary

We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the Countries on which these adventures take place who have occupied and cared for these lands, waters, and their inhabitants for thousands of years. We pay our respects to them and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.

1. Hike Mt Amos

Location: Freycinet National Park
Distance: 3.6km return
Cost: Day passes for the national park are $20.60 per person or $41.50 for a vehicle (up to 8 people) annual passes are $91.35 for a vehicle or $73.10 if you’re eligible for concession.

Rising from the sea in spectacular hues of pink, Mt Amos makes up a chain of granite mountains known as the Hazards. This steep, challenging walk requires quite a scramble up slippery rocks – so prepare to get puffed – but from its peak, you’ll be treated to the most dazzling panoramic views of surrounding Freycinet National Park, including the desktop-background worthy Wineglass Bay.

Photo by Tourism Tasmania & Adrian Cook

If you’re good at dragging yourself out of bed early – pack a head torch and head up for sunrise; it’s totally worth it!

2. tulampanga / Alum Cliffs Walk

Location: Alum Cliffs State Reserve, Chudleigh
Distance: 1.6km return
Cost: Free

The sacred meeting place of three Aboriginal nations, tulampanga – Pallittorre for Alum Cliffs – is a place steeped with culture and story. Here, the bush is packed with reefs of prized ochre, which only Pallittorre women were allowed to gather for use in ceremony and trade. 

Today, a short bushwalk through the region opens up to a lookout atop the Gog Range with heart-stopping views of the Mersey River snaking through a narrow gorge. Keep your eyes peeled for the native cherries that line the hike: a sweet as snack harvested between March and December and enjoyed for tens of thousands of years.

3. Raft the King River

Location: Departures from Queenstown
Distance: 20km down the King River – a 6-hour journey
Cost: $260 per person

The temperate rainforest of Tasmania’s West Coast is bountiful, lush, and primeval – and what better way to soak in all its glory than from the wilds of the river as part of a white-water rafting experience? 

In the safe hands of King River Rafting’s experienced guides, you’ll be taken on an exhilarating six-hour voyage where you’ll conquer a series of cascading rapids, sightsee the magnificent Garfield River and observe the remnants of mining and industrialisation scattered throughout the forest – which nature is very much in the throes of reclaiming. 

There’s plenty of time to catch your breath on this trip too, with serene stretches in the lower reaches winding you past thousands of rare Huon and King Billy pines. This epic day out comes with all your gear and a satiating feed, along with transport to and from Queenstown.

4. Pine Lake Walk

Location: Central Plateau, just off the Lake Highway
Distance: 800m return
Cost: Free

It’s easy to feel like you’ve spun back in time and might get chomped by a rogue dinosaur when you cruise this gentle path to Pine Lake, which is conveniently accessed from a car park just next to the road. The raised boardwalk takes you to a ridiculously clear lake fringed with one of the island state’s endemic and rarest trees: the ancient Pencil Pine, which evolved long before flowering plants.

Seeing as it’s at an altitude of 1200m above sea level, be prepared for gnarly weather to blow in at any moment – but if you get it on a good day, it’s really quite spectacular.

Read more: Remember to leave no trace

5. Kayak Flinders Island

Location: Flinders Island
Distance: Variable with no fixed schedule – but six days and seven nights in total. You’ll be in your kayak for between four and six hours a day, but the paddling speed is consistently gentle
Cost: $3400 per person

Get intimately acquainted with the splendorous beauty and incredible biodiversity of Flinders Island by joining a trip with Roaring 40ºs Kayaking. At 70km long and half that in width, Flinders is the largest of the 52 islands in the Furneaux Group scattered across the Bass Strait – making it an ideal size for a week’s worth of exploration. 

With the local dolphins, two guides and just seven other humans as your travelling companions, you’ll glide from secret coves to offshore islands, marvelling at the staggering contrast between the sapphire blue of the sea and the flaming orange granite boulders that rise from it. 

The tour includes six nights of rest at Sawyers Bay Beach Shacks, along with all meals and refreshments – sourced as much as possible from local producers and providores.

Photo by Luke Tscharke

6. Leven Canyon Walk

Location: Loongana – in inland Northern Tasmania
Distance: 1.2km circuit
Cost: Free

Sensational all year round, this absolute ripper of a short walk takes you through a steep ravine that acts as a wildlife corridor, connecting the coast to Cradle Mountain. What this means is that as well other hiking enthusiasts, you’re likely to encounter all sorts of critters on your journey. 

The views from the lookouts – of which there are two – are phenomenal, and you’ll feel like a speck as the Leven River charges through the 300-metre tall limestone cliffs below. Note that if you want to avoid climbing hundreds of stairs, go anti-clockwise – you’ll thank us later!

7. Fly Fishing

Location: Central Highlands
Distance: Variable – guided tours with Miena Village Guiding run for around nine hours, and a two-day one-night camping and fishing adventure is also offered
Cost: Fishing licences in Tasmania are compulsory and cost between $25 and $79.50 for one adult with a rod depending on the timeframe required. A fly fishing day trip with Miena Village Guiding costs between $525 and $750 per person, whereas a two-day fishing and camping tour costs from $1750 to $2500 per person

Given that Tasmania’s Central Highlands have more than a thousand lakes and streams literally groaning with fish to catch, it’s kinda no wonder the area is considered one of the world’s best wild Brown trout fisheries. 

There’s a certain romance to casting a line tipped with a delicate fly amongst this stark grandeur – not to mention a skill, but there’s something here for anglers of all levels of experience. 

If you’ve got your own fly fishing gear, head out to the Nineteen Lagoons or Little Pine Lagoon to try your luck; or if you’ve come without (or need instruction), hop on a tour with a company such as Miena Village Guiding and be shown the ropes by literal national and world champions.

8. wukalina Walk

Location: North East Coast (Pick up and drop off is in Launceston)
Distance: wukalina Walk stretches across four days and three nights – spanning roughly 33km in total
Cost: $2695 per person

Be led on foot by palawa/pakana guides on a multi-day journey along parts of lutruwita / Tasmania’s enchantingly beautiful north east coast – past rocky headlands, dazzling sands, and turquoise seas. 

This award-winning tour will have you listening, learning, and soaking up invaluable knowledge, perspectives and stories about the Country you’re on as you wander through wukalina (Mount William National Park) and larapuna (Bay of Fires). 

When you’re not walking, you’ll be feasting on bush tucka and traditional foods such as mutton bird, wallaby, and doughboys; partaking in cultural activities like kelp basket making, mixing ochre, playing clapsticks, and weaving; or simply relaxing.

9. Trowutta Arch

Location: Along the Tarkine Drive in Trowutta Caves State Reserve
Distance: 1.1km return
Cost: Free

Hidden in the tangled rainforest of Trowutta Caves State Reserve is a prehistoric-looking oasis that formed when the roof of an ancient cave collapsed, leaving a sinkhole framed perfectly by the towering arch that remains above it. 

Photo by Tourism Tasmania and Rob Burnett

Surrounded by tree ferns and filled with algae-covered water that shimmers mint-green, the mystical landscape that is Trowutta Arch looks like something from another planet. To reach it, take a gentle stroll from the designated car park just off Tayatea Road: a segment of the Tarkine Drive.

10. Snorkel Ninepin Point Marine Reserve and Tinderbox Bay

Location: Ninepin Point Marine Reserve is in Verona Sands; Tinderbox Bay is in Tinderbox at the northern edge of North West Bay
Cost: Free

lutruwita / Tasmania’s underwater gardens are a veritable feast for the eyes: think seagrass meadows, granite drop-offs, sandstone reefs, kelp forests, and plenty of caves and caverns. Best of all, much of this treasure can be accessed from the shore. 

Great places to explore with a snorkel (while wrapped in the thickness of a wetsuit, or even a drysuit!) are dotted all around the island, but two of our favourites lay in the south: Ninepin Point Marine Reserve and Tinderbox Bay. 

At the former, tannin-rich freshwater overlays saltwater, restricting light penetration and creating an environment that attracts species usually only seen in the ocean’s darkest depths – such as Jackass morwong and sea whips. At giant kelp-filled Tinderbox Reserve, close to Hobart, the protected waters are perfect for beginner snorkelers and are home to abalone, rock lobster, wrasse, urchins, and Bastard trumpeter.