Czeching Out Tasmania

Testing, testing, one, two, one, two, is this thing on? So it’s been a little while since I wrote a blog post….like over two years. My bad. Life’s been pretty busy but that shouldn’t get in the way of adventure.

The most recent one has been to venture out to Lake Skinner, a beautiful alpine lake in the Snowy Ranges above Judbury. My friend Brodie who I got to know through Instagram reached out a few months back and we’ve gone on a few bushwalks since. It’s been great. Solid intelligent conversation and epic beautiful scenery, a good combo.

Lake Skinner has been on our to do list for years and it felt so good to finally tick it off. Funnily enough, Gemma got to do it herself a couple of days later with our friend Hannah who’s previously joined us on many a walk I’ve written about in this blog.

Getting there is fairly straightforward from Hobart. Drive down to Huonville, hang a right after the bridge and then carry along till Lonnavale Road. Drive along there for another few ks and then turn right on Denison Road. Follow that for a bit and then right onto McDougalls Road. You’ll see a couple of signs for Lake Skinner and then just keep driving until the road runs out.

Before you get there, you’ll be confronted by a rather upsetting sight, made all the more upsetting on the way back out. A huge chunk of forest has been cleared. It’s confronting, it’s stark and it was still smouldering when we drove through. When you return back this way after having immersed yourself in a beautiful rainforest, it kicks you in the guts.

Once you start walking, you’re immediately reminded of the beauty that’s been annihilated just down the road. The forest closes in around you, its canopy dappled with light, those incredible Tasmanian greens bursting out from every branch and frond. It’s a beautiful rainforest environment to treat you on the way to the main goal.

This is definitely a keep an eye on your feet kinda walk, there’s roots and puddles galore, so try and stay off the phone as you go. The gradient up to the lake I’d describe as gentle…ish. We paused for breath a couple of times but it wasn’t too taxing on the lungs or ever ageing almost 40 year old body haha.

As you get nearer the lake, the forest starts to dry out a bit and looks quite similar to the bush you see around the back of kunanyi/Mount Wellington. We were scheduled to get to the lake around lunchtime, the usual 99% of the time we arrive on our walks. That usually means full overhead Sun, no atmosphere, not great conditions for photography.

On this walk however…..oh boy. As we rounded the last corner, the view opened up. The slopes surrounding the lake were bathed in a carpet of cloud, flowing over the sides like dry ice in a spooky Halloween punch bowl. The cloud raced towards the lake but would always dissipate and vanish just before it hit the water. Absolutely incredible and such a treat to see!

This walk took us about 4-5 hours, with lots of stops to take pictures and a nice long lunch at the lake. It’s speedwalkable in 3 hours easy if you’re wanting to get in, get the selfie and get back to civilisation. But don’t do that. Savour it. Take it all in. Stop to notice the pandani groves, the fungi growing on hidden logs, the whirlpool near where the lake flows out. Genuinely one of the best short walks in Tassie, very highly recommend.

And now for some more photos.

Well there you go, first blog post in two years and the first one I’ve ever published solely on an iPad. I’ve always done these on a laptop but this worked well. Who knows, I might even get round to posting some of those other walks I’ve been on since 😀 Thanks for reading.