The Overland Track in Tasmania is always listed as one of the worlds best multiday hikes, and has been on our list of must do’s for a very long time. This January, 2025 we finally got to experience it, and what a wonderful accomplishment it was! Mountains, waterfalls, cool climate rainforest and so much more. Although it was a lot of hard work we all enjoyed it so much more than expected.
Our adventure all began back in June 2024. We joined an online queue with 6 computers going, and attempted to obtain seven Overland Track passes for our desired dates. Once the queue was Live we saw there were over 3600 others in the queue with us, thankfully Judd’s number was only 211. Needless to say, we managed to purchase our seven track passes for our preferred start date, the 13th of January 2025. Unfortunately on this trip, we did not take our kids with us as they are a bit young and not used to hiking long distances, for multiple days with a pack. But we will practice with them, so in the future they can come along too.
Once we had our passes sorted, we quickly booked our accommodation in Tassie, for before and after the hike, Transport to Cradle Mountain, from Lake St Clair and the Ferry to Lake St Clair from Narcissus Hut. We decided amongst ourselves, not to hike along the Narcissus river, roughly an extra 17 km, to save time, as some of us needed to get home for work and young children. The only small hiccup we had at this stage was when booking the ferry, our preferred time of 1.30pm was already booked out (yes on the same morning as the passes became available). Turns out a tour group had booked that ferry already as they don’t require the passes in the same way as the general public. We ended up booking on the 9.30am ferry which would mean that instead of walking out to Narcissus on the last day to catch the ferry, we would have to arrive at Narcissus hut the evening before. So at least we had some flexibility in our plans, as we were planning to do the hike over 7 nights / 8 days to allow for side trips or rest days as required instead of the minimum 5 nights 6 days.
With the bookings all taken care of, over the next 6 months or so until the trip we trained, chatted, organised and purchased gear for the trip. One of the most discussed items to pack was the food. Belinda and I decided to make our own dinners instead of buying freeze dried meals and bought our own dehydrator. I think it worked out about the same cost to buy the dehydrator as it would have been to buy the meals from the shop. We can continue to use it for future trips as well. (the meals all came out really nice too).
About 2 weeks before the trip, we had all our meals ready and all the gear we needed (so we thought). We did a full practice pack only to realize that, Belinda’s 55 litre pack, wasn’t big enough to fit everything in. As previously we hadn’t anticipated how much physical space the food would take up, not to mention the weight. We decided to buy a larger 70 litre pack, of the same brand and model that she already had so that hopefully it would feel similar to carry. We could not buy one locally in Cairns, luckily we were able to get fast overnight shipping, so it arrived within 2 days.
For our meals as mentioned above, we made our own dinners which included Risotto, lamb stew and mash(deb), spag bol, laksa, shepherds pie and Penang curry.
Breakfast was either powdered scrambled eggs or an oats and powdered milk mix. We bagged up our own coffee and powdered milk mix too.
Lunches were mountain bread wraps with cheese sticks as they are shelf stable, and either tuna in packets or salami that also lasts well out of the fridge. Belinda brought tinned chicken, instead of tuna and we put it in vacuum sealed bags, but that didn’t work well as it spoilt quickly. We also learned to late of course, that the mountain bread cracks very easily if the packet is folded or bent at all, so we ended up with small broken wraps. We also took some protein bars, enough for 2 a day each, turns out that was way to many haha we brought half of them back home again. And something to note, if you eat more protein than your body needs, there’s only one way for your body to get rid of it. 😂💩😒
Saturday 11th of January 2025, we were up very early for a 6am flight from Cairns to Launceston via Brisbane. We had dropped the kids off at Nanna’s and the dog at the kennel the day before, so at least we only had ourselves to organise at that hour. The flights were quiet with no delays and after arriving in Launceston and collecting our bags we hopped in a taxi for a short trip to our accommodation at the Country Club Villas, just out of Launceston. We chose the Villas because it allowed our whole group of 7 to stay in the one (3 bedroom)unit which saved on cost and allowed us all to get together instead of just talking over the phone.
In the afternoon, we re-organised our gear to have only what we would take down the track in the packs and spare gear in our suitcase which would be stored by the bus company taking us to Cradle mountain, had dinner and a couple of drinks before bed.
Sunday morning we had a yummy breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast. Thanks to Judd and Belinda who walked down to the Woolworth’s the afternoon before to get dinner and breakfast supplies.
After breakfast, we packed up to made sure we were ready and the bus came to pick us up at 10am, for a 2 hour drive to Cradle Mountain. We went with Overland Track transport to get to Cradle Mountain, and then back from Lake St Clair at the end of the trip. They stored our other luggage for us, while on we were on the track, and also organised gas canisters for us for cooking. Since you can’t bring the gas with you on the plane, it was extremely helpful. They also hire out various items. Judd and Angie hired a PLB (personal locator beacon) for extra safety, in case of an emergency. We have a Garmin with the Inreach features, which we always carry on hikes. We were able to send an email each afternoon, once we reached the hut, to our boys so they could see roughly where we were each day, and know that we were safe.
On the drive into Cradle mountain, we stopped about half way in Sheffield for an early lunch at the bakery. Belinda and I had very tasty Venison, bacon and cheese pies.
Its a beautiful drive watching the mountains get closer and closer. We arrived at Cradle Highlander Cabins, at 12.30pm. Which is just across the road from the National Parks Visitor Centre.
At Cradle Highlander, we had 2 really cute cabins for all of us. Belinda and I stayed in a 1 bedroom timber cabin with a wood fire in the lounge room. The others had a larger 2 storey timber cabin, that would sleep up to 6. Its a really lovely place here and I could easily see us staying here for several days on a future trip, and doing lots of day hikes around the Cradle Mountain area.
After settling in, we all headed over to the Information Centre to check in for the track and do the compulsory briefing at 3pm. We chose to get to Cradle Mountain the day before and do the briefing that afternoon, so we could get started on the track 1st thing in the morning. Otherwise, we would’ve been starting much later. This gave us a lot more time on the 1st day, which also included the steepest uphill sections of the hike, so we could take our time.
Once the briefing was done and we had our passes, we headed back to the cottages for a bit of a rest, then some dinner of Ravioli and sauce that we bought from the shops, Saturday afternoon. Something nice and easy to make and lots of carbs ready to start the hike. We also bought a very tasty bottle of muscat from the area, and had a couple of sips after dinner. I put the rest in a new hip flask my lovely wife bought me for my birthday, for drinks on the last night of our hike.
Monday 13 January. The day had finally come, we were all up early for bacon and egg muffins for breakfast. Before heading out with our packs to meet the 1st bus from the Visitors Centre at 8.10am, to take us to the start of the Overland Track at Ronnie creek. Its only about 15 minutes on the bus, it was very full with lots of day trippers and other groups starting on the Overland Track too.
We hopped off the bus, filled in the walkers logbook, took the compulsory group photos at the start of the track and then we were off.
The Overland track starts off easy with a nice walk through the grasslands on a boardwalk before starting a steady climb through the trees, past a small creek and crater falls up to Crater lake. We topped up with water here using our filter system and after taking a few photos, continued uphill towards Marion’s lookout. That 1st day, those 1st few hours, were the hardest I thought. You’re finding your pace, your body’s adjusting to the heavy weight of the pack and finding your walking rhythm.
Its a steady rise from Crater lake to the intersection with Wombat poo track which goes back downhill to Dove lake, before our track heads to the very steep section up to Marion’s lookout. Its quite a scramble up some of this section so hiking poles went on the packs, and we slowly hauled ourselves up this section, using the chain bolted to the cliff, it’s very steep. Then hiked along until we reached the lookout.
Once up at Marion’s, we all took a short break and enjoyed the view of Cradle mountain, Dove lake and the surrounding area. Once on the move again it was a more leisurely walk up and down through 3 small valleys on the plateau on well formed track and duckboards to reach kitchen hut for some lunch.
Kitchen hut is an older hut, that can be used in an emergency if people get stuck up on the range in bad weather. It’s just before the intersection of the main Overland track and the track up to Cradle Mountain peak.
After a rest and some lunch as well as much discussion about whether to do Cradle Mountain Summit or not. Most decided not to do it as it looked like a very steep and rough climb, we still had a bit over 5km to get to Waterfall Valley hut to camp for the night.
Myself and Lara (18 yrs) decided we would give it a go, and would meet the others at the hut later. For the climb up to Cradle Mountain peak, we left our packs inside kitchen hut, covered them with our pack rain covers. This was to prevent the currawongs from getting into the packs and taking the food, (yes the currawongs know how to open zips) and headed off with just a day pack with snacks and water.
The climb is steep and only gets steeper the further up we went. Probably a little over half way the track disappears and becomes a scramble over large boulders, with the route marked by poles screwed into the boulders every 30 metres or so. At a certain point, we decided it was to technical to continue with our hiking poles in hand, so we left them next to a bush to collect on our way down. From there we kept on climbing up to what looked like the top, only to get there and realise there was another dip down and another almost vertical climb back up to the summit itself. It was a challenging but fun climb and when we reached the top the views were simply spectacular in every direction. We could even see the rest of our group on the track below (a long way below) on their way to Waterfall Valley.
We hung out and enjoyed the view for about 15 minutes, before heading back down the same track. Going down was probably harder than going up. No where near as physically tiring but we did have to be a lot more careful and take it slower, as a slip could mean a very nasty fall.
Back at Kitchen hut we had a quick rest and left there with our packs at 3.45pm for Waterfall Valley. The remaining 5 and a half kilometers were a bit more difficult than the 1st part of the main track, as it was less formed and we had to pay more attention to where we were stepping. On top of that, I was starting to feel pretty tired from the effort of climbing Cradle Mountain. From Kitchen hut, we dipped down a bit and through some trees before heading back up hill to the plateau and some impressive views of barn bluff and past an emergency shelter and then eventually down a fairly steep descent to Waterfall Valley hut. This last descent for me was quite difficult, my knees and ankles were hurting and the steps were very big at times.
We arrived at Waterfall Valley hut at 6.15pm, thankfully the others, having arrived at around 3.15pm had found us all a nice room with enough bunks for all 7 of us. I was exhausted but it had been a good day.
After a bit of a rest, I got into what would become the afternoon ritual of filtering water, preparing dinner, and getting our beds setup. The water at the huts is pretty good as its all rainwater from the tanks, but it is still best to filter it just in case. The last thing any of us want is to get gastro on the track. We used a Platypus gravity filter system which I think is much easier to use as you fill up the dirty water bag and let gravity feed it through the filter into a water bottle or straight into our bladders in our packs. Much easier than the pump type filters which require you to constantly squeeze a pump to push the water through the filter. Each afternoon we would filter around 10 litres of water, for drinking, cooking for that evening, and the next day. The filter will filter out 99.9% of all particles and bacteria so we felt safe using it in Tasmania. The others in our group had a similar type of filter but an MSR guardian one which also filters out viruses, this also comes at more than twice the cost and is slower to filter. The MSR, I think would be a great option in places where the water sources are less reliable in quality. The filtering time also gave me a great opportunity to sit, relax and take in the amazing scenery around the huts.
The days effort was about 13km, including Cradle mountain summit with a total ascent of 1550m and a descent 550m.
That 1st evening, I needed a bit of a rest before dinner so I laid down for a bit. When I got up and went outside to see a wombat, I immediately got a bad case of the shakes. From the temperature change, inside to outside late in the day, I think it was a combination of the exhaustion, temperature and sunburn that gave me the shakes. I went back and laid down under the sleeping bag for a bit and felt better.
We were all a bit lucky late in the day with the wildlife, we saw a Wombat mum and baby and also a very light colored wallaby just near the hut which is not a common occurrence.
That 1st night we had chicken laksa for dinner, as this was the only dinner with a fresh component with the noodles not being dehydrated and therefore heavier. I learned throughout the trip, our dehydrated meals do take a bit longer to rehydrate than the commercial freeze dried packets. All we needed to do was put it in the pot with some cold water and let it soak for 30min or so before reheating it and it came out great.
The 1st night was a bit restless, getting used to the mattress and pillow and the noise from all the others in the room but we got more used to it as the trip went on.
Tuesday morning, we all felt refreshed and eager to start day 2 of the trek. Which was set to be much easier, with only about 8km and a total climb 189m and descent of 223m.
After breakfast and packing up our gear, we got away at about 9am. It was a really enjoyable walk through mostly alpine meadows, occasionally dropping down just a little into some treed areas. We stopped for a snack and a rest at the intersection of the side track to Lake Will. We ended up deciding not to do this side trip as we discovered that we could swim at Lake Windermere, near our next hut. While at the intersection we had a chat with a guide from one of the guided tours for the track. She was catching up to the group after packing up their hut after they left in the morning. She had lots of great information for us about the track and other places too. We were shocked at the cost the trip she guides cost for the 5 nights, $4500 each. Granted they do have private huts with showers and all their food is provided and prepared for them, but for us we prefer the challenge and achievement of doing it all ourselves, without the guides.
We continued on to Windermere Hut, and arrived at about 2pm. The good thing about getting in early, was we had plenty of time to walk back to Lake Windermere for a very refreshing swim. It was only about 10 minutes back. It felt amazing to wash off the sweat and dirt from the 1st 2 days on the track.
Windermere hut is one of the newest huts on the track, and was completed in about 2022. The facilities are fresh, clean with multiple bunk rooms that would sleep varying amounts each, from 6 to about 14 in a room. The kitchen area has stainless steel tables and benches and are long enough for a decent size group to eat and cook. All the newer huts also have a sink outside near the water tanks, to collect water and do washing up but the older huts only had a tap coming out of the tanks.
As the weather was good, Belinda and I decided to sleep in the tent as it would be a lot quieter than in the hut with a combined total of 30 plus people staying in there. Each day 34 people, not including the private groups are allowed to start the track. So depending on how people travel, there could be over 40 people either in the hut or camping near it each night, as sometimes people stay 2 nights in a hut, either to rest or do side trips.
On the day we started there were also 3 other groups that had kids with them which was wonderful to see the kids doing the hike. However, at times the huts became very noisy with the kids playing, talking and running around. On the positive side, this gave us incentive to get our 2 boys ready for future trips, but it made us miss our boys even more, particularly my wife. Belinda actually overheard a conversation between some other hikers, complaining about all the kids out on the track. But we think it’s great for teaching confidence, resilience, and building a sense of adventure for kids.
After our swim we hung out at the hut, did our afternoon duties of camp setup, water filtering, getting dinner ready, and had a nice relaxing time enjoying the views. For dinner it was one of our delicious lamb stews and mash(deb).
It was much quieter in the tent, listening to the birds and other wildlife in the area. We both slept alot better, getting more used to the mattress and pillow.
Wednesday morning we had all decided the night before, to get going earlier as this would be the biggest day of hiking at just under 17km from Windermere to New Pelion hut. The weather forecast for the day also predicted a good chance of showers increasing in the afternoon and evening. So after breakfast we were all geared up wearing our rain jackets, in case it rained and to keep warm as it was windy, and headed off up the track.
The start of the day involved an uphill section through the trees and onto the higher alpine meadow area, where the wind really had a chill to it and at times, we were walking in the cloud. When we did get a good view of the surrounding area, we could see down the valleys either side which was cool.
Each day the teenagers in our group,(14, 16 & 18) were always ahead of us slower oldies. They are responsible and wait at intersections for us to catch up throughout the day. This 1st catch up point today was just at the start of a forested hill after the 1st part of the treeless meadow, and gave us all a nice break from the cold wind blowing across the plateau.
We continued over the hill and back out onto more open areas for a while before starting a steady descent down to frog flats, where we stopped at a river for lunch. It was a very quick lunch of wraps, we got going again as we were getting cold sitting around in the misty weather. The track today was quite wet in parts, and in some places we could step around it. But it is definitely better to just walk through it, as going around had awkward foot placement and risks rolling ankles or hurting knees. Or as Belinda did, slipped and fell into a tree. Plus, if everyone tries to walk around the muddy water puddles, it unfortunately widens the track, as it damages the growing flora and fauna surrounding the track.
From the river (a creek really) it was a steady up hill for a couple of kilometres, then more level track the rest of the way to New Pelion hut. The last few kilometres we did get rained on a bit. Our friends who were behind us however, did cop a much heavier downpour than we did as we got to the hut just ahead of it.
About 1km before reaching New Pelion hut is the turn off to old Pelion hut. Which would have been nice to check out, but we were pretty pooped by that stage and couldn’t wait to get to the hut to dry off and get the packs off our backs. The days walking was 16.8km with 460m of ascent and 560m of descent.
Because it was wet, we all decided to sleep in the hut that night. New Pelion, despite its name is actually one of the older huts on the track. It’s still a nice place to stay with a nice deck all the way around with views back across a big clearing to old Pelion and north east to Mt Oakley. The only problem with this hut was that when trying to get to sleep, all footsteps even all the way up the other end of the hut could be heard and felt quite clearly.
When doing the Overland track, some people stay at New Pelion hut for 2 nights and do Mt Oakley as a day trip. One of the families that started the track the same day as us did this.
Thursday, brings us the possibility to do a side trip of Mt Ossa, Tasmania’s highest mountain. It was a bit cold to start the day and I was wearing a thermal top under my shirt, and the rain jacket to stop the wind chill. The days walking started relatively flat but then went into a steady climb over about 3km up to Pelion gap, which was the high point for the day, and also the intersection to do either Mt Ossa or Mt Pelion east. Walking through the forest almost to the top of Pelion gap was very pretty with lots of moss covered trees and rocks, and not to may muddy parts.
At Pelion gap we caught up to the faster members of our group and had a rest. The views from here were breath taking! Mt Ossa was completely covered in cloud, and the side trip would add another 5km to the days walking. So we all decided to give it a miss. Alot of the other groups did climb Mt Ossa, and they all said it was beautiful. There is a section along the track up Mt Ossa, that is called the Japanese garden, which is particularly beautiful, but most said they couldn’t see much from the top due to the clouds.
Up at Pelion gap when a gust of wind came through it got quite chilly, so we took some pics with the sign and of the surrounding mountains before starting off again, down hill towards our next hut Kia Ora. The 1st part of the walk down through mostly treeless areas provided spectacular scenery of the surrounding mountains, and all down the valley where we would be walking in the next day or so.
It was mostly a gentle descent all the way to Kia Ora hut. Because we had not done any side trips, we were the 1st to arrive at the hut and had our pick of the rooms to sleep in. By the time we arrived at the hut , the weather had cleared into a nice sunny afternoon and we all took the opportunity to hang our wet clothes on the deck railings to dry. Belinda and I were thinking about camping in the tent again, however the tent platforms were quite a long way from the new hut, so we decided to stay in the hut with our group.
Kia Ora is a nice new hut and is quite comfortable. We picked the room furthest from the kitchen. This room was big enough for the 7 of us, and another family of five we had become friendly with.
It was really nice here, laying out on the deck looking at Cathedral mountain in front of us and soaking in the quiet of the area before everyone else arrived.
The ranger came around in the evening to make sure everyone had arrived safe, and also had a weather report for the next few days. Fortunately for us, the weather looked quite good for us for the rest of our time on the track. She also had some good info on the best swimming spots over the next few days. Each hut has a sign-in book, where we fill it in when we arrive and state where we are heading the following day. This way the rangers can check to make sure everyone has arrived at their destination for the day.
That afternoon the 3 teenagers had all their snacks out on the table bartering with each other, for the goodies they wanted. Belinda even got in on the act and swapped a hot chocolate sachet for a single serve Nutella.
The last group to arrive that night was the family of five, with the young kids at around 7pm, as they had summited Mt Ossa. I think they were grateful we saved some beds all in the same room for them, as previous nights, they were separated.
Friday was supposed to be a fairly easy day of about 13km including side trips. A nice walk through the valley and some stops at waterfalls along the way, we got that wrong……
The day did start nicely, the track was a bit tricky in sections with lots of tree roots and rocks, but the scenery was just beautiful. Mossy trees, boulders, ground and so peaceful. About 3km into the days walk as we approached Du Cane hut, we heard the helicopter come over us slowly and just missed out on seeing it drop a slung load to the rangers at Du Cane hut.
There were quite a few other groups, including guided groups, there taking a break. So we opted to keep on walking once the helicopter had gone, to avoid getting stuck in amongst several large groups of people. Around 4.5km into the days walk we arrived at the intersection to the 1st of the side trips, to both D’alton falls and Fergusson falls. We stopped at the intersection and waited for the rest of our group to arrive which was only a few minutes, and then left our packs and headed down to the falls.
D’alton falls was 1st. The track stops opposite the falls giving us a magnificent view directly across from the waterfalls as the water came down from above.
We then we walked back up, over a creek crossing to Fergusson falls. Which are a single drop falls, and we could only get to about half way down the side of the falls. Still a beautiful spot and well worth a visit.
After taking all the expected photos and soaking up the atmosphere at both falls, we all made our way back up the hill to where our packs were, and continued along the main track until reaching the next side trip intersection to Hartnett falls.
Again we left our packs at the intersection, and headed down to the falls. Its a bit further down to Hartnett falls at about 2km return. OMG what a magical place! My favourite spot of the whole track, is the little section just at the bottom of the stairs to the river, that looks like something out of The Lord of the rings. Stone stairs leading to a magical path between moss covered trees beside a clear rocky river, just magical. (The gorgeous video below, does not do it justice, but here you are…… )
Just up from there are the bottom of the falls themselves, and a great spot for a swim, but I was a wuss and just soaked my sore feet in the water. The water was only 6 degrees after all. The others did have a quick swim and all felt refreshed afterwards.
After eventually tearing ourselves away from this special place, making our way back up the hill to our packs. Belinda and myself were starting to feel pretty tired, but with over 4km to go we just needed to chuck our packs back on and keep plodding along.
From the intersection of Hartnett falls it was a constant and in parts reasonably steep climb up to Du Cane pass, before a steep descent back down again to get to Bert Nichols hut at Windy Ridge. We were having to concentrate on where we put our feet, so not to twist an ankle or knee, as the terrain was extremely rocky, lots of large tree roots to navigate over the whole way. There were a few small water crossings, Belinda slipped on a rock while crossing one. She felt a jolt of pain from her ankles up to her neck, but we kept going. This last 4km or so really took it out of us, my back and feet were killing and Belinda was feeling exhausted too.
We eventually stumbled into the hut a little after 6pm absolutely stuffed. Shortly after arriving Belinda passed out. Thankfully, I saw it happening and caught her before she fell. Judd and I sat her on a nearby bench. Judd and Angie sat with her while I organised some hydrolyte, and a few other people in the hut were very kind and offered her m&ms and chocolate bars. The passing out was the result of a combination of not eating enough throughout the day, exhaustion, heat and her POTS which causes her blood pressure to decrease, and her blood can’t get to her brain fast enough. Thankfully, with the medication she has for it, she bounces back from an episode fairly quickly.
Judd and Angie’s 14 year old son was amazing, he got Belinda’s sleeping mat inflated so she could have a bit of a rest, and I went to do the evening duties of water filtering and getting dinner ready. Thanks to all the other families who showed their support, and of course Judd, Angie and the kids for their help and support with Belinda, and helping me with dinner and washing up etc.
The totals for the day were 13.3km, with an ascent of 327m and a descent of 360m
Another great thing about traveling with our friends Judd, Angie and the kids, was the desserts they were kind enough to share it with us! The chocolate pudding and apples and butterscotch sauce were very yummy. Delicious!
Bert Nichols hut is one of the older huts and the sleeping areas have 2 wide platforms in a bunk style with each one able to sleep 4 people easily, so the oldies slept on the bottom and the teens slept up the top. This was a standard theme whenever we slept in the huts, the teens up top and the oldies down the bottom. It wouldn’t be very safe trying to scamper down the ladder in the middle of the night to go pee! Although someone might get a laugh…..
Saturday January 18th, we had a bit of a slower start to the day and thankfully Belinda was feeling much better. After packing up and breakfast, we were off down the track again. Today we continued down the overland track for about 5.5km, a relatively straight forward section of track with a few ups and downs through more traditional native Australian bushland, past the end of the Acropolis to the intersection of the Pine Valley track. The track was a bit rough with rocks so we still had to be cautious.
We all had a quick bit of lunch at the intersection, but didn’t want to hang around for too long as there were lots of flies. From the Overland track to Pine Valley hut was about another 5km, a gentle uphill walk but not to strenuous. There is even a couple of suspension bridges to cross on the way. Once into Pine valley it was very pretty winding between the moss covered trees, lots of large tree roots, and walking beside the river to reach the hut.
The hut at Pine Valley is a lot smaller than the luxurious new huts on the Overland track. It’s all 1 room, with 1 long table, bench seats and a sleeping area that has the same style of bed platforms as Bert Nichols that each would sleep 4 per level. This hut had 2 sets of these, at one end of the hut so could sleep 16. We all decided to camp in the tents, and we found a nice big tent platform fairly close that would fit all 4 tents. Just needed to remember which one is ours or you might get a rude shock in the night, as we all had the same type of tent.
Being a Saturday afternoon there were quite a few weekend visitors. You’re not required to have an Overland track pass to get to Pine Valley, from Cynthia Bay, and there are several day trips that can be done from the Pine Valley hut, which was our original idea when we did our planning.
The original plan, was that if we didn’t have a rest day somewhere, we would stay at Pine Valley for 2 nights, and do a day trip to either the Acropolis or the Labyrinth. Then walk from Pine Valley to Narcissus, in the morning and catch the ferry on the last day.
We all decided together not to do this, and instead headed to Narcissus hut on Sunday. We’d checked the ferry bookings closer to the start of the hike, some of us were on the 11am ferry, and some on the 1.30pm ferry. We didn’t want to risk missing the 11am ferry by walking out in the morning, or giving ourselves an injury rushing to get to the ferry on time.
The rest of Saturday afternoon was spent resting and chatting amongst ourselves and others we met at the hut.
Sunday morning once we were all packed up and ready to go. Angie, Judd and the kids headed off back toward the Overland Track, while Belinda and I decided to head a little further into Pine Valley to a nearby set of cascades. It was only about 10min up the track before coming back and collecting our packs from the hut and heading back out to the Overland Track, towards Narcissus hut. This being the last day of hiking, I think we were all a bit pooped and looking forward to finishing the track.
Walking out was mostly a gentle downhill trip which made it easier, but didn’t stop both Belinda and myself from tripping over branches while distracted by the beauty of the area. The funny part was that Belinda saw what I tripped on, and safely stepped over that log only to trip up on the next branch less than 1 metre away 🤣. We were both fine though so we can joke about it now.
Once we descended out of Pine Valley and back into the more typical Australian bushland area, I think I got a bit of “Get-there-itis” especially as the last few days my back had been giving me a fair bit of grief. I would choof along at a reasonably quick pace, then find a log or rock to sit on, take the pack weight off my back while Belinda caught up before starting off again. I find with this type of hiking, everyone moves at their own pace, and it is more comfortable for them to do so rather than either try to keep up with faster walkers, or walk slower to stay with slower ones so this way seemed to work well for Belinda and I. She would move along at a pace comfortable for her and I would go ahead a little at my pace then stop and wait for her without getting too far ahead. As a hiker had said to Belinda on day one, she stepped aside to let him pass her. He said “thank you for letting me by, thank you for not impeding on my walking rhythm”.
Once back at the intersection of the Overland Track, we had a quick rest and a snack before continuing down the last section of the track towards Narcissus Hut. This only took us about an hour and a half, it was lovely to see the Narcissus river and great to get there.
Once we got to the hut we found the rest of our group at a tent platform, so we set up our tent as well, and then I decided I needed a swim, clothes and all. There is a lovely spot to swim just in front of the hut, on the Narcissus river so I waded in for a very much needed wash and freshen up. I didn’t stay in for too long as the water is very cold, and once out I got changed, hung up my wet clothes and went into the hut to join the others for lunch.
Now I know some will say that the Overland track includes the 17.5km hike all the way to Cynthia Bay. For us, our 1st time on the Overland track, with various injuries and muscle aches, we were more than happy to call it done at Narcissus Hut, and catch the ferry to Cynthia Bay.
After lunch we all walked down to the jetty where the ferry would pick us up tomorrow, Belinda, Angie, Judd and the kids had a swim and a refresh at the jetty. (I already had my swim and was nice and dry)
On the way back to the hut, Judd even spotted an Echidna having a feed on an ants nest just off the track.
That evening we ate our last dinner of lamb stew and mash, (we had 2 of this one because it was sooo good) and all enjoyed a celebratory drink of musket that we had carried with us for this exact occasion.
We were all feeling very happy, but a bit sad at the same time, that we had finished the hiking for this adventure, and were already talking about our next trip.
In the morning the rest of the group decided to try their luck and see if there was any space on the earlier 9.30am ferry. We didn’t have to hike anywhere, and as it turned out there was plenty of room as a group of 8 didn’t show up for the ferry. That meant, Belinda and I would be on the 11am ferry and we would all be back at Cynthia bay with enough time to get our passes stamped, enjoy a well deserved burger from the café and get some souvenirs before our transfer bus arrived at 2pm.
As we were boarding the ferry we were very lucky to get a glimpse of a Platypus swimming near the ferry.
The bus ride back to Launceston took a little over 2 hours, after about an hour we stopped for the toilet and a snack, at a roadhouse near Arthur’s Lake. We stayed at the Country Club Villas again. Enjoyed a long overdue shower, before some really good takeaway pizza from the restaurant and a few rums. In amongst that, we re-packed our packs and other bags ready to fly back home in the morning. I tapped up the straps on my pack, to avoid them getting caught in airport equipment and Belinda’s pack went inside a duffel bag for protection.
Tuesday morning we were all up very early for the taxis to pick us up at 4.45am, so we would be at the airport by 5am for our flights to Melbourne and then home to cairns.
We said goodbye to Judd in Launceston, and goodbye to Angie and the kids in Melbourne, as they were flying back to Hervey Bay. We were super excited to see the kids again after a week and a half away from them. The flight home was uneventful and it was good to be home a bit after lunch. Nanna and the boys even surprised us at the airport when we landed, needless to say, lots of cuddles and kisses were exchanged! It was so nice to sleep in our own bed that night.
The Overland track was an amazing adventure that we had been wanting to do for a very long time and it certainly did not disappoint. Despite the aches, pains and tiredness, we loved every minute of this adventure. We are already thinking about the next one. We are hoping to do the Overland track again probably in a few years, with our kids, once they are able carry some weight and take on some longer distances. Hopefully next time we can take more time to enjoy a few more side trips and hike all the way to Cynthia Bay.
Click on the link below to see our route.
A Love of Adventures 