JBK TEAM - Tracy Gibson Touring Tassie

Stepping off the boat in Davenport to the fresh Tasmania air I think it is the first time I have seen my car register the temperature at 6 degrees, during the DAY!!. This Trip to Tassie was our first and my husband John and I were excited about the vast paddling opportunities that lay ahead. We headed straight to Hobart to meet some friends and organize our first kayaking of the trip. After an afternoon visit to the Cascade Brewery we decided to meet near Port Arthur the following day. The Tasman Peninsula has so many options, it is hard to choose where to dip your paddle. We put in at Stewarts bay and paddled south along the coast past the Port Arthur heritage sight. It is a beautiful stretch of water and once past the Isl. of the dead you can paddle straight down the arm and out toward Cape Pillar and the dramatic southern Tassie Cliff lines.

Tracy Gibson - Port Arthur Historic Site

This is also a great way to see the Port Arthur ruins, both sides of the waterway have sheltered beaches for landing sites and rest breaks and can also shelter you from prevailing winds.

Our next planned paddle was to launch at Fortesque Bay and paddle to the well known landmarks of the Lanterns and the Candle stick (or the Totem pole).

John Gibson Tasman Peninsula - Lanterns and Candlestick in the Background

There is a great remote camp site in the national park just inside the tree line from the beach. Campsites are $13 a night and your can purchase tokens for the hot water in the showers and buy firewood from the ranger. There is nothing there however so make sure you bring everything you need before driving out there. We launched at dawn as the forecast was for very strong winds again. The sunrise was gorgeous and with the swell picking up and conditions a little bumpy we paddled out to the spectacular coastal monoliths. The water is very cold and dark in this part of the world which makes for an imposing environment and it is seriously important to dress for the water temp and conditions and carry the right safety gear as there is no phone reception in the area. With a PLB in my pocket and VHF radio and flares handy we had to stay about 500m off the cliff line to minimize the rebound but the lanterns where as awesome as I had imagined they would be and I envied the fur seals carefree play amongst the kelp. With the wind picking up we paddled north along the coast before coming back to the shelter of the outskirts of Fortescque bay. With many coves and small bays hiding more seals and the William Pitt ship wreck, we had our choice of stops to enjoy a morning snack before heading back to our launch point.

Tracy Gibson - Inspects the William Pitt Shipwreck Fortesque Bay Tasman Peninsula

Waking one morning to snow around our tent we packed up quickly and took off for slightly warmer conditions (air temp not water temp) along the east coast where we had a tough time again choosing our places to kayak. One to come back for would be Maria Island but we headed for the Freycinet Peninsula for our next kayaking adventure and then onto St Helens and the Bay of Fires which were each stunning beautiful in their own way. With wind and big swell forecast and delivering, it was extremely important to get an accurate weather forecast before venturing out on an unfamiliar coastline (any coastline for that matter) but we found sheltered areas to land and launch and used coastal features to protect us from the wildest conditions.

Mt Amos Frecinet Peninsula

As our Tassie experience moved into its final days a highlight of the trip was getting to paddle around Dove Lake at Cradle Mountain. We were so fortunate with the weather here, where you can normally expect “four seasons in one day”. With sun beaming down from a cloudless sky I felt a bit of vertigo as I paddled across the open lake. You couldn’t see the water around you only the mirror reflection of rainforest and snow touched mountains, a sensation that will stay with me for some time. It is a 6klm round trip on the lake and a very unique way to experience it.

Paddling Dove Lake Cradle Mountain - Mirror like conditions

We also enjoyed many great walks in the areas we visited and with such a diverse range of paddling environments in such a relatively short distance from one another this will definitely not be my last sea kayaking trip to our southern most state.

Tracy Gibson - JBK Training Cordinator / AC Sea Kayaking Instructor