Walks in the North East
Swansong is now in its third year of slow stays, and I’ve finally started a blog for our guests and for kindred spirits who love the same thing we do: immersing in nature. I’m here at Swansong for the weekend, and the signs of spring are popping out at me. New growth on the banksias, a sea of pink Indigofera flowers sway in the breeze. It’s sunny, warm and the outdoors calls. here are some of our favourite nature walks.
Toward the Summit of St. Patrick’s Head (694m)
St. Patricks Head
Driving east from Launceston along the Esk Highway,the familiar bend where the idyllic town of St Mary’s comes into view, nestled beneath the rocky peak of St Patrick’s Head. We’d been talking about climbing up for more than ten years. The main reason we never took the detour was that we were always in a big rush to get to Swansong! Our plan to finally take it on was partly a training exercise, and partly to just tick it off the list. It’s a few km’s off the highway, down unmade roads. Pulling into the car park, it felt like we were in someone’s backyard – but we spotted the standard Parks trailhead sign letting us know we weren't trespassing. The 3km track began gently through a small gate opening to a grassy meadow, but soon turns rocky and steep and the path narrows. Up and on through the dense bush we got glimpses of how rapidly we were climbing. Near the summit, there were steeper sections where we had to haul ourselves over rocks. When we scrambled out of the bush onto the peak, the view was huge: it gave us a whole new perspective of the coastline we’d only seen from ground level. We sat for a while, watching the clouds play hide and seek with the coastline. Fairy wrens darted in the shrubs and sheoaks. Our timing had us there in the middle of the day, but I might be tempted to try this again for a sunrise, considering the eastern aspect.
St Patrick’s Head has always been a landmark in this part of Tasmania. To the Paredarerme people, it was known as Lumera Genena Wuggelina “the great molar tooth” with its distinctive triangular shape standing out from the surrounding hills. Made of hard volcanic dolerite, the peak reaches 694m. After so many years of looking up at it from the road, sitting on top of the magnificent rocky outcrop felt like a milestone.
Deep into the forest at The Blue Tiers Forest Reserve (Moon Rim Valley Circuit)
Blue Tier Forest Reserve
This scenic 45-minute drive through Gould’s Country and Lottah takes you to the start of the famous Blue Tier mountain bike trails; it’s also a day walker’s wonderland (Don’t know why we had no idea about this for so long!!). There were many options, from a quick 20-minute stroll to half-day adventures. We chose to explore the Moon Rim Valley circuit, only 3.5 km long, but it took us about two hours because we were dawdling and needing to pause often to take in the details. The extensive spread of lichen looked like light snowfall on the ground or blooming pale flowers. The landscape had that ancient alpine feeling, with a carpet of moss and twisted wind-shaped shrubs hugging the ground. The weather gods were shining on us with clear skies granted sweeping views all the way to St. Helens and the Bay of Fires. Along the track, we spiced things up by tasting mountain pepperberry shrubs, both leaves and fruits are edible. The mossy path gently winds through changing vegetation; the walking is easy, undulating, and soft underfoot. The air here is so cool, clean, and fresh -perfectly capturing the “come down for air” mantra of Tassie tourism. We saw a pair of wedge-tailed eagles circling overhead. Spotting these birds in this semi-alpine wonderland was pretty special. The forest valley is where lichens give way to lush green moss, fernery and babbling clear streams. Well worth a visit!
Afterwards, we drove to Pyengana and rewarded ourselves with a hearty Pub in the Paddock meal.
Lichen granite and rough seas at Humbug Point Nature Reserve
Humbug Point Reserve Trail
Most of our walks take place along the Humbug Point coast. Not only is it nearby and easy to get to, but it’s beautiful (rivalling the Bay of Fires if you can separate the two!) It epitomises everything we love about this part of Tassie. Sometimes we start from Dora Point and head towards Grant’s Point; other times, we begin at Skeleton Bay and make our way along the coast. There are many options.
It’s a trail that never feels the same twice. The coast here is shaped daily by tides that move the sands and expose different stretches of rock and reef. The orange-lichened granite shines in the sun, the view opens out into wide blue, and then the path pulls you back into the sheoak forest before returning to the sea again.
We’ve seen extraordinary things: a white-bellied sea eagle dropping from above to snatch a fairy penguin for dinner, and a tiger quoll slipping quietly and swiftly through the undergrowth. Our guests even captured videos of whales passing through as they strolled here. It’s the kind of place where nature shows its finest moments if you take your time to notice. The walk itself is gently undulating, accompanied by twittering fairy wrens and laughing kookaburras. Always varied and interesting, each bend reveals a new horizon or a change of vegetation. For us, it’s become a favourite: a few hours immersed in a landscape that reminds us why we come here, and why Swansong exists at all.
