Introduction to today's journey
Today's journey departs Launceston heading to Cradle Mountain at the start of the six day Overland Track. From here there is a long climb up to Marion's Lookout and over the saddle behind Cradle Mountain before descending to our first camp at Waterfall Valley.
Today's Journey
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Departing Launceston in the early morning, we travel westward stopping at Sheffield before heading into the mountains. Mount Roland stands over the town on this perfectly sunny morning. |
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Heading inland to the Cradle Mountain information centre, we catch a shuttle to the start of the six day Overland Track and set off along the boardwalk. The start of the track is 870 metres above sea level. |
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Reaching the end of the swampy area, the boardwalk gives way to a rocky trail heading up the hill into the forest to our first stop here at Crater Falls. |
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From Crater Falls, the track initially rises steeply before moderating as it follows the stream up to its source at Crater Lake. Here we stop at this small historic hut. |
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From Crater Lake, a long and steep climb rises nearly three hundred metres to Marion's Lookout. The last section has a chain to help us up. The going is tough with our heavy packs but the views from the top back over the lake and across to Cradle Mountain (see top picture) are amazing. |
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From Marion's Lookout, the trail rises moderately towards a saddle at the back of Crater Mountain. Here we reach Kitchen Hut just before the highest point of the 1250 metre high saddle. Here we stop for lunch. |
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Once over the saddle, the rocky track maintains elevation for nearly two hours as it passes through dense scrub under the impressive cliffs of Cradle Mountain. |
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A long flat ridge extends between Cradle Mountain and the slightly higher Barn Bluff in the distance. The scrub is very low on this windswept ridge at twelve hundre metres above sea level. |
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Descending from the ridge, we drop about two hundred metres into Waterfall Valley. Here we pass the new Waterfall Valley hut before reaching our camping ground where we set up for the first night. |
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The subalpine air quickly cools as we have dinner. I descend out of the bush to watch the sunset behind the jagged peak of Barn Bluff. |
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