Southwest Wilderness Camp

Itinerary

For three days and two nights, we explore one of Tasmania’s most breathtaking and pristine wilderness areas. A genuinely remote place, where there are no roads or signs of civilisation.

DAY ONE

0900: Departure from Cambridge Airport

Our tour begins with a spectacular scenic flight to the Southwest National Park, a World Heritage-listed wilderness of over 4500 sq Km.

Following the coast, past Bruny Island to Cockle Creek, we fly along the tough South Coast track with its wild beaches, thick rain forests and mountain ranges. During the flight, we take in Precipitous Bluff, Mt La Perouse, Ironbound Range and remote Maatsuyker Island. We also overfly the ancestral home of the Needwonnee people, who occupied Louisa Bay for thousands of years.

1000: Arrival at Melaleuca

Landing at the abandoned tin mining settlement of Melaleuca, we visit the bird observatory to see the rare and endangered Orange Bellied Parrots before exploring the old tin mine and taking a stroll along the Needwonee walk. After enjoying some morning tea, we board our boat and head towards the Southwest Wilderness Camp, which is located in the rainforest on the pristine shores of Bathurst Harbour.

After enjoying a delicious lunch, we head out to Bathurst Harbour and visit the untouched Celery top Islands for a forest walk and stroll around these remarkable islands. Cut off and preserved since the end of the last ice age, these islands are a unique time capsule of the area. If time permits, we then stop at Clayton’s in Forest Lag for a walk up TV Hill and a look at Clyde & Win Claytons’ house.

We then head back to camp to settle in for the evening and enjoy a fully prepared dinner with Tasmanian wines.

DAY TWO

After breakfast, we travel by boat through the Bathurst Narrows with its 800-metre mountains rising from the sea towards the picturesque Bramble Cove, where we have the option of walking up Mt Milner with its beautiful views of Port Davey and the Bathurst Narrows (The walk is two hours return and is graded easy to moderate).

After lunch we head out to Breaksea Island, cruising along the protected side, witnessing the array of native bird life and the mouth of Port Davey and the Caroline and Shanks Islands.

We then explore an ancient aboriginal ochre cave at Schooner Cove, visit the grave site of Critchley Parker Jr and take a stroll along beautiful Balmoral beach before heading back to camp for dinner and rest.

DAY THREE

We enjoy breakfast and consider the option of taking a walk up Mt Beattie. This 2.5-hour return walk is graded easy to moderate and offers impressive views of the whole area. If the tide and weather permits, our other option is a visit to an ancient Huon Pine forest found on the shores of the Old River before heading back to the camp for some lunch and pack up.

We will have another opportunity to see the Orange Bellied Parrots at Melaleuca before your flight home to civilisation.

1600: Departure from Melaleuca

We return to Hobart via Port Davey, the Bathurst Narrows and then overland to the rugged Western Arthur Range, to spectacular Federation Peak, Mt Picton, the Hartz Mountain National Park and the Huon Valley.