Walls of Jerusalem NP
We had a mad dash across from the Victorian border to meet up with peak hour Melbourne traffic and get onto the Spirit of Tasmania for our overnight trip to Devonport. We arrived bleary eyed, and had a coffee with Vicki at the lovely place where she works, before heading off for Launceston to leave our computer for fixing.
From lovely Launceston we started looking for a place to spend Xmas and New Year, expecting it to be really busy in campsites all over the island. Spent a couple of nights at Lake Rowallan, which was one of our first rude awakenings. That ‘Lake’ in Tassie means flooded river for hydro purposes, and is likely to be fringed by dead trees, and be surrounded by logging. When we read Lake on a map I think we were expecting pristine, forested lake with trout leaping out of the water and a lovely campsite next to a bubbling stream.
So we only stayed by Lake Rowallan long enough to do a big day walk into the Walls of Jerusalem NP. It was our first big walk in Tassie and I think still the most amazing. It was a beautiful clear sunny day, which as we’ve discovered are to be TREASURED when you’re up high or in fact anywhere in Tassie! The walk started with a steep walk up about 500m, through some very tall eucalypt forest, with fabulous views through to some imposing rocky bluffs.
Then we got high enough for it to start getting distinctly alpine. Being such Tassie newbies at the time, we thought this was amazing and rare and fabulous and accessible only by foot. Little did we realise that there are alpine environments accessible by car all over Tassie!
Anyway, this was a particularly SPECIAL alpine environment, with little perfectly clear lakes in amongst the spagnum moss and pencil pines, and snow gums leaning out of piles of lichen covered rocks.
We walked right through to Herod’s Gate (someone was in a very Old Testament frame of mind when they named all the features of this NP – Solomon’s Jewels, something or other Damascus). By the time we got back down the mountain we’d been walking for 7 hours and were feeling a little toe sore.
From lovely Launceston we started looking for a place to spend Xmas and New Year, expecting it to be really busy in campsites all over the island. Spent a couple of nights at Lake Rowallan, which was one of our first rude awakenings. That ‘Lake’ in Tassie means flooded river for hydro purposes, and is likely to be fringed by dead trees, and be surrounded by logging. When we read Lake on a map I think we were expecting pristine, forested lake with trout leaping out of the water and a lovely campsite next to a bubbling stream.
So we only stayed by Lake Rowallan long enough to do a big day walk into the Walls of Jerusalem NP. It was our first big walk in Tassie and I think still the most amazing. It was a beautiful clear sunny day, which as we’ve discovered are to be TREASURED when you’re up high or in fact anywhere in Tassie! The walk started with a steep walk up about 500m, through some very tall eucalypt forest, with fabulous views through to some imposing rocky bluffs.
Then we got high enough for it to start getting distinctly alpine. Being such Tassie newbies at the time, we thought this was amazing and rare and fabulous and accessible only by foot. Little did we realise that there are alpine environments accessible by car all over Tassie!
Anyway, this was a particularly SPECIAL alpine environment, with little perfectly clear lakes in amongst the spagnum moss and pencil pines, and snow gums leaning out of piles of lichen covered rocks.
We walked right through to Herod’s Gate (someone was in a very Old Testament frame of mind when they named all the features of this NP – Solomon’s Jewels, something or other Damascus). By the time we got back down the mountain we’d been walking for 7 hours and were feeling a little toe sore.
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10:39 am
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