Third Time Lucky: Into Tasmania's Wild Southwest

Finally Going Solo

After two attempts at camping in Tasmania's Central Highlands, I was ready to give it another go. This time, I was heading into the Southwest, and I was determined to make it work on my own.

I packed up the Land Cruiser with my camping gear and cameras, with Lake Pedder as my intended destination. I had a few places in mind to visit along the way, but no particular timetable. I wanted the freedom to stop whenever something caught my eye, take my time with the photography and explore wherever I felt like going.

What followed was three days and two nights of historic railway stations, forgotten buildings, rugged mountains, moody skies, rain, waterfalls and a few unexpected detours. And, finally, my first successful solo camping adventure.

My first stop was Westerway, where I spent quite a bit of time photographing the old railway station and exploring the surrounding area.

Directly opposite the station stands Westerway House, a beautiful two-storey weatherboard building that immediately caught my attention. I was particularly drawn to its character, the old horse-drawn carts, farm machinery, sheds and all the little details around the property.

I later discovered that the house has quite a history. William Henry Westerway established tourist accommodation opposite the railway station and transported visitors from there to Russell Falls. It's a lovely connection to the early days of tourism in the Derwent Valley.

What appealed to me most was that, despite its age and weathered appearance, the house still looked lived in and loved. I could have spent hours photographing all its interesting corners.

Further along the road, I stopped at the little National Park railway station, and then Stephens Bridge, before continuing towards Lake Pedder.

Into the Wilderness

After spending far more time exploring the old railway sites than I'd originally anticipated, I finally continued towards Lake Pedder.

As I headed further into Tasmania's Southwest, the scenery began to change. The historic buildings and railway lines gave way to rugged mountains, open landscapes and the winding Gordon River Road.

Of course, I couldn't resist a few more stops along the way. The Sentinel Range and Bitumen Bones artwork both caught my attention, giving me another excuse to pull over and get the camera out.

By the time I reached Lake Pedder, the skies were overcast and the water was beautifully calm. It was just the sort of moody weather I enjoy photographing, and a lovely way to finish the day's exploring before settling in for my first night camping alone.

Lake Pedder — The First Night

By the time I reached Lake Pedder, the skies were still overcast, but the weather was calm and surprisingly pleasant. The clouds hung over the surrounding mountains, and the still water made for some lovely reflections.

These were exactly the sort of conditions I'd been hoping for. I'd visited this part of Tasmania before, but the softer light and moody skies gave the landscape a completely different feel.

After spending some time photographing the lake and surrounding mountains, it was time to set up camp. This was the part I hadn't managed on my previous solo attempt, so finally getting everything organised and settling in for the night felt like a massive achievement.

The rain arrived at bedtime, a comforting sound on the roof when you're tucked up in bed, and I slept right through until morning.

One night down, and plenty more exploring to come.

Day Two - Southwest Wilds

After a lovely night's sleep listening to the rain, I woke to a rather different Southwest morning. The wind had picked up, and showers were passing through, although it wasn't particularly cold.

I left camp and headed down to Ted's Beach Campground on Lake Pedder, spending some time waiting for the rain to pass and the moody clouds to feature, photographing the lake and surrounding landscape in the changing conditions.

From there, I made my way to Gordon Dam. I'd visited before, but on that occasion the bright sunshine and strong reflections had made photography quite challenging. This time, the cloud cover and occasional rain gave everything a completely different atmosphere.

The dark skies, rugged mountains and enormous concrete dam made for some wonderfully moody photographs. It was exactly the sort of weather I'd been hoping to capture on this trip.

Detour to Marriotts Falls

After leaving Gordon Dam, I began making my way back towards Hobart, but decided on a last-minute detour to Marriotts Falls, near Tyenna in the Derwent Valley.

The weather was still a mixture of showers and cloudy skies, and when I arrived, there wasn't another soul around. The track started off well enough, following the river through some lovely forest, but as I continued, things became increasingly muddy.

At one point, I actually lost the track altogether! With so much mud and overgrown vegetation, it was difficult to work out where I was supposed to be going. Thankfully, I had the AllTrails app on my phone, which helped me find my way back onto the track. It was the second time on this trip that I'd managed to wander off course, so perhaps my navigation skills still needed a little work!

Along the way, I came across the word LOVE spelled out on the grass with sticks. A sweet little surprise in the middle of the forest, and of course I stopped to photograph it.

Eventually, I made it to Marriotts Falls, where I spent some time photographing the waterfall before retracing my steps through the forest.

By the time I returned to the car, it was around 6 pm. The afternoon had taken considerably longer than I'd anticipated, and rather than driving all the way home, I decided to head to Mount Field National Park and spend another night camping in the Land Cruiser.

Day Three — Mount Field National Park

After spending my second night camping at Mount Field National Park, I decided to finish my trip with the Three Falls Circuit.

Rather than taking the usual route, I decided to tackle it backwards, starting with Lady Barron Falls. On a previous visit, the track had been closed, so I'd missed seeing this waterfall and was keen to finally get there.

From Lady Barron Falls, I continued through the forest to the Tall Trees Walk, before making my way to Horseshoe Falls and finally Russell Falls.

The rain from the previous day had done the waterfalls a favour, with plenty of water flowing over the rocks. Thankfully, the rain had stopped by the time I set off, making for a lovely day wandering through the forest with my camera.

Mount Field is one of Tasmania's most popular national parks, and it's easy to see why. The waterfalls are beautiful, the forest is magnificent, and there's plenty to photograph along the way.

What is normally around a two-hour walk took me closer to four. But that's hardly surprising when I stop every few minutes to take another photograph!

It was a wonderful way to finish three days of exploring Tasmania, and I headed home with plenty of photographs and a little more confidence in my ability to get out and do these adventures on my own.

Third Time Lucky

Three days, two nights, countless photographs and quite a few more stops than I'd originally planned.

After my earlier attempts at solo camping in the Central Highlands, it felt good to finally get away and spend a couple of nights exploring Tasmania on my own.

It wasn't all smooth sailing. I managed to lose my way on a couple of walking tracks, underestimated how long some of my adventures would take, and changed my plans more than once. But I also discovered how much I enjoyed having the freedom to stop wherever I wanted, take my time with my photography and explore without a particular schedule.

From the old railway stations of the Derwent Valley to the rugged mountains of the Southwest and the waterfalls of Mount Field, I'd covered quite a bit of ground.

And perhaps the biggest achievement wasn't the distance I'd travelled or the photographs I'd taken. It was simply getting out the door, heading off on my own and finally doing what I'd been wanting to do for so long.

Now, where to next?