Tassie locals, need your help with a trip plan!

Coming from Vic to Tassie for a couple of weeks in a GQ with 35's and a winch, and a GU on 33's with a winch. Both have snorkels. Doing a bit of pre planning (trip is around xmas time) and had a couple of questions.

Firstly, we are landing in Devonport, and the plan is to work out way around clockwise. To simply name the main towns we are planning on visiting, Devonport > Beaconsfield > Launceston > Bay of Fires > St Helens > Bicheno > Port Arthur > Hobart > Possibly Southport Lagoon (is it worth it, and anyway from Southport to Strahan without going back to Hobart and then inland?) > Strahan > Henty Dunes > Zeehan > Montezuma Falls > Zeehan again > Trial Harbour > Granville Harbour > Pieman Head > Balfour/Balfour Tk > Sandy Cape > Couta Rocks > Arthur River > Stony Point > Smithton > Burnie > Back to Devonport.

Sorry for the wall of text, it sounds like a lot but a lot these will be done on the same day (hopefully)!

So, the questions:

Any way from Southport Lagoon to Strahan by sticking to the West Coast? Or do I need to go back towards Hobart and north from there?

Is this 'lap' realistically achievable over a two week period?

And what places have I missed, or what should I wipe off this list? We are aiming to spend as much time offroad as possible, including Balfour and Climes Tk's (any others I should know about?). Will be doing the regular touristy stuff in the main towns, but the more time I can spend driving offroad/fishing suits me just fine.

Also, how long does the run from Strahan up to Smithton normally take (via zeehan/trial harbour/granville harbour/pieman barge/sandy point/balfour tk/balfour/couta rocks and then up to smithton)?

I've already looked up permits for the arthur pieman area, any other's we need to know about? And I've heard that the mudholes on Balfour can be quite deep, but are normally a solid ground so not normally too much trouble getting through. Has anyone been through recently that can confirm? Anything particular to watch out for in the area around xmas?

Sorry for the wall of text! Hopefully can get a few answers :)

Hey mate, sounds like a pretty good list of places already.
Probably going to take longer than you think though... Trying to do all that in two weeks means you'll be leaving camp very early everyday, driving long everyday, hardly stopping and having a perfect run everywhere, which can't be counted on. I'd be looking at taking a few destinations off your list and instead staying at a camp for two or three nights and exploring the area you're in. Most of the roads you'll be taking are highways, and while being scenic, they're not going to give much off road fun. If you camp up for a day or two you'll get a chance to do some fun tracks.

The Balfour track SHOULD be relatively dry over Christmas.

A downside is that the west coast (and most recreational areas) will be very busy over the holiday period. This can slow travel down.

Anything, and I mean ANYTHING can happen between strahan and Smithton...

This book is great. I highly recommend getting it

G`day mate
First up you will want to go back
As Lucas says you will not fit it all in so try and sort out you options,as your traveling in peak season some camping areas will be booked out and there will not be a lot of spaces at the popular free camps. For camping use the wikkicamps app as it is pretty much up to date and a lot of info is added daily. We spent 3 months down there last year, covered 8000Ks and still did not see or do all we had planed. If you plan on doing national parks a pass can be purchased on the boat also fishing license. You don`t need a licence to fish salt water only fresh water. There are so many things to see and do just scale down alittle and plan a return trip. A couple of places to relax or have lunch at are Richardsons Harleydavidsons in Launceston, the 60 cafe in Delorain, and for drinks after 4 at Joe`s garage Hobart Not into art neither am I but if you have time a visit to The Wall In The Wilderness at Derwent Bridge is worth a visit Track the book Lucas has posted up is a bible for Tas and we found the locals were very helpful as well, all so a lot of the loggin track can cut time and distance off trips but be warned alot have gates that are locked and this can frustrate you after a 20K drive in then a back track. The book above is great but check with locals and the info centers as to conditions and closures as we found that closures do happen quite often as fallen trees cause problems (carry a chainsaw) we had to cut up a couple blocking our path not only in the forest but on the main drag. I don`t know what your accommodation is but as Lucas has said a base and short sorties is the best way
Beers and Cheers Pearcey

Thanks for the help guys! Yeah, thought we might be pushing our luck a bit in terms of getting it all done.

Will pickup a copy of that book too! Cheers :)

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Originally Posted by Throbbinhood

Thanks for the help guys! Yeah, thought we might be pushing our luck a bit in terms of getting it all done.

Will pickup a copy of that book too! Cheers :)

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And dont forget to book in some time to have a beer with me!

I'm in the Northwest

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Originally Posted by taslucas

And dont forget to book in some time to have a beer with me!

I'm in the Northwest

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Will do mate! I'll get in touch a bit closer to us coming across!

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Originally Posted by Throbbinhood

Will do mate! I'll get in touch a bit closer to us coming across!

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Yeah cool, do that for sure. You never know, we may be having a drive and you'd be more than welcome to come along.

If Lucas wont put you up for the night a good stay not far away is at the Rocky Cape Pub, Camping fees go from free to powered sites at $13 a night plus the meals are great.
If meeting up with Lucas don`t for get your crash helmet then he can take you 2 wheeling. LOL

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Originally Posted by pearcey

If Lucas wont put you up for the night a good stay not far away is at the Rocky Cape Pub, Camping fees go from free to powered sites at $13 a night plus the meals are great.
If meeting up with Lucas don`t for get your crash helmet then he can take you 2 wheeling. LOL

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About time I got the bike out again.......

Definitely agree with Taslucas. Can't fit tassie in two weeks. I live here a haven't seen many of the places mentioned. The ferry across the Pieman river is out of commission atm for repairs. Not sure how long for. Honestly two weeks between the Pieman River and Smithton isn't long enough for me lol. Some of the brochures aren't very accurate about the tracks around this area. Like you can drive to Balfour in a standard Commodore. ..... but there is also a track that requires several busses (tassie talk for 4wd's ) with big tyres and a winch or two. Sandy cape...... don't go alone! Hundreds of rigs lost on that beach. The beach can and does change in hours. If you would like to know more about this area ( nw tip of Tassie) pm me your number. .... I'd be happy to have a yack

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Originally Posted by taslucas

About time I got the bike out again.......

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Why didn't you take me for a moto ride???

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Originally Posted by rusty_nail

Why didn't you take me for a moto ride???

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You barely had time for a burger and beer!
Oh, and that thing about still being in a back brace lol

We planned a similar trip to you, for just under two weeks, and only really got down the West Coast, and then across to Port Arthur, then zip back to the ferry........

There is so much to see and do, and only staying one night in places, doesn't do it justice in my opinion.

Plan to be flexible, and you will have a ball.

Mic

.......beware the west coast!

What they fail to mention is he's driving a rav 4 lol

Is that today Lucas?

Yeah It popped up today

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Originally Posted by taslucas

.......beware the west coast!

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We'll be taking it easy up there, that's for sure. Will have another vehicle with us. We are both winched, have recovery tracks, snatch straps, all the usual recovery gear, hopefully enough to get us out of trouble should we find it!

Have you got onto a copy of that book yet?

Not yet mate, hopefully picking one up this weekend.

Sorry we didn't update this or get in touch with anyone, was a bit of a rush before Christmas!

Well, we managed to see a heap! It was pretty full on, only staying one night in a lot of places, but we managed to see 90% of what we had aimed.

Only things we missed out on that we had originally planned to see was the Tahune Air Walk, and doing Balfour/Sandy Cape - I staked two tyres up around Conical Rocks, one was unrepairable and the other we managed to patch, but it meant no spare and I didn't want to risk it. Bit unlucky but oh well.

We arrived at Devonport and spent the night there. From there we headed to Leven Canyon, which was awesome, then to Sheffield to check out the artwork and stuff. Here in Sheffield I noticed some fluid leaking from the rear of the car... Uh-oh! Checked all the obvious places, all fine. Maybe a brake line has cracked on top of the chassis and is dripping down? Nope, not that either. Hmm. Luckily, noticed the carpet inside the car was wet... Ohhhhh the esky is leaking and it's finding it's way out a grommet and down the chassis! PHEW!!!

We made our way to Launceston slowly and spent the night in Lilydale. The next morning we did some sightseeing in Launceston and slowly headed towards Scottsdale on our way to St Helens. St Helens and Binalong Bay were beautiful We camped near Sloop Lagoon for the night, and did some fishing and kayaking while we were there.. From there we headed towards Bicheno and into Freycinet NP. Wineglass Bay was amazing, though the walk to the lookout almost killed me. The lighthouse lookout at Cape Tourville was amazing too! We pressed on through Sorell and eventually made our way to the Port Arthur Caravan Park. One of the best parks I've ever stayed at, private spots, nice new amenities too. Port Arthur was cool, though our ghost tour guide was super boring.

The next day we left Port Athur for Hobart. What a cool place. We drove to the top of Mt Wellington, it was freezing but the views were incredible, and I'd recommend to drive up there! Loved Bruny Island, we camped at Cloudy Bay via the beach track, was so peaceful there, and we were the only ones there. Russell Falls were awesome, but another walk that almost killed me (not the fittest bloke in the world). From there we headed to Derwent Bridge and camped somewhere near Lake King William (it was freeeeeeezing).

After that super cold night, we headed to Strahan! What a cool little town! Stocked up with meat and booze, and topped off our fuel while we were at it before enjoying a drive around Henty Dunes and eventually camping somewhere near Hells Gates - this was an awesome spot to camp! Sheltered, warm, with a great view of the ocean! The next day we packed up and headed to Zeehan. We grabbed some lunch and then decided to do the Ring River Tk to Montezuma Falls. This was an awesome track and with a bit of rain had us picking our lines carefully! The falls were amazing, though as someone with a huge fear of heights, crossing the suspension bridge was certainly an experience. We took the regular track out and the potholes drove me bonkers! We headed back to Zeehan and then made our way towards Trial Harbour. Trial Harbour is a beautiful little town, though all the camping spots were full, doh! Fortunately we struck up a conversation with some locals who advised us we could camp a little South, at a place called Goat Rock. Hear we had a great view of the ocean, it was a magical place to camp! We awoke early the next morning hoping to do some fishing, and headed a bit further South to the Little Henty River. Didn't catch a thing, but enjoyed some kayaking around the river and some more beach driving!

After this, we thought we'd try the Climies Track to Granville Harbour. Everyone had recommended doing the track North to South, but it wasn't the way we were hoping to head so we figured we'd just go for a look... For the most part, it wasn't too bad. There were some massive ruts and steep sections, and plenty of places that had us testing our suspension. The waterfall crossing was difficult, coming around the bend downhill and the Patrol's just kept wanting to push wide towards the cliff. It was slow going with plenty of adjustments, but we eventually made it down that part and across the falls, then back up the other side. We had a great sense of accomplishment, which was quickly sobered by the plaque for the three people who got washed away. Not too long after this we saw a couple of cyclists who were slowly making their way down the track. Crazy if you ask me!!

About half an hour or so after this, we were travelling up another steep rutted section. I chose the wrong line, and ended up with the car balancing on two wheels, sideways to the hill. It wasn't a great feeling, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't think it was going over and all the way back down. Thankfully my girl was out of the car, and she quickly grabbed the corner that had a wheel a few feet in the air. I don't know how she held it, but everytime she moved, the car wobbled with it. She held on through her tears (she thought I was going over) and thankfully my old man managed to bring his GU around on the line I should've taken. He winched the corner that was floating in the air back down, and was able to slowly pull me to safety! PHEW!!!! Got out of that one, and I reckon I would have been in a bit of strife if it had gone over. But, we still had to finish this track! Thankfully, the rest of the track was relatively tame compared to what we'd done, which was a bit of relief! We camped at Granville Harbour and enjoyed a few cold ones to celebrate. Also pulled out a few clumps of hair at my next shower, showed me how stressed I actually was haha!

From there, we headed up to Conical Rocks and eventually the Pieman Head area. It was magnificent, the river was beautiful, just a shame it was packed! We ended up heading back to Conical Rocks and finding a place to camp! Though the weather was warm, the wind was howling! We threw a couple of cray nets in hoping for some good news, but we ended up losing one of them to the ocean, oops! We setup the tents as best we could, and when the rain hit it was time for bed (at an early 6pm). The canvas tent stood up well, though the wind blew so hard it blew the rain vertical under the windows. We realized this pretty quickly and a put a couple of towels down just in case. Next morning I realized one of my 35's were flat.. Dang, changed it for the spare, we packed up and headed back towards Granville Harbour and then Zeehan (to top up fuel and food).

After filling up, we headed to Corinna! Cool little place, and we crossed the pieman on the fatman! Not long after crossing, and I feel the rear is really loose. A quick pull over and yep, my spare's copped a stake as well. Pretty unlucky, but that's life. Changed one of my front tyres onto the rear, and popped my old man's 33' spare on the front and slowly made our way towards Arthur River. We were originally going to do Balfour and then head down towards Sandy Cape, but with no spares between us it wasn't worth the risk.

We stayed at Arthur River in the Prickly Wattle Campground for a few days, it the day before New Years Eve, so we did some fishing and kayaking and fishing. We headed to the caravan park for a shower and this is where we met the owners Darren and Helen. Lovely people, and it was great to have a shower! Here I told Darren of my wheel issues, and he was kind enough to help patch up the stake in my spare (as there is no tyre place until Stanley, and they didn't have anything to suit 35's). Once repaired, we put it back on the rear and enjoyed the warm showers and calm weather at Arthur River. Managed to catch an eel too!

From there, we headed to Stanley! What an amazing little town. The Nut was spectacular, and the beaches like a postcard. We took the opportunity to do some snorkeling, and although freezing, the marine life was spectacular. We had another crack with the Craypot, but only got a starfish! We left the pot with a local fisherman who was pretty happy to take it, and headed for Ulverstone where we'd booked some accommodation to enjoy a warm bed and a fresh shower. While there, we did the Gunns Plains Cave tour, checked out some penguins and ate at some really nice places in Burnie. Nice way to get some R&R. Then back on the boat, and now we are home! :)

Fantastic write up! Whilst I've been to Tassie many times (most recently over Christimas to visit family) I've never had the chance to take the patrol down and drive around, but definately on the list to do!

Did you take any photos along the way?

Phew. Talk about a trip report . Need another beer after that read. On a positive note!
Sound like an awesome trip mate. Never been to Tassie, maybe one day.

Well done ..... Sounds like a fantastic trip

Mic

It was an amazing trip, and I'd like to thank those that contributed here for helping!

We did get pictures, but that's the missus department so I'll have to get them off her and upload them :D

Sounds like you got to see a fair bit mate.
Glad to hear you enjoyed yourself. Yep, looking forward to some pics.
"west is best" though hey!? Although some of those little towns look like something out if wolf creek mixed with housos Hahahaha.
Next time you got to hit up the centre. Cradle Mountain and the great Lakes area.

Oh crap! We did Cradle Mountain as well haha!

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Originally Posted by Throbbinhood

Oh crap! We did Cradle Mountain as well haha!

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Yeah cool, did you walk anywhere?

Yeah, we did the walk up to the big rock thing that overlooks the lake, and a few walks near the small falls as you enter the NP. We were hoping to kayak on the lake but didn't get time.

G`day mate.
you sure squeezed a lot in, so now you`ve had a taste you can start to plan the next trip.
Glad you had a great trip and survived a near disaster.
Cheers and Beers pearcey

So I can drink these beers I was saving for you?

G`day Lucas.
Sorry we were unable to get to see you but I only had a week in Hobart, and being new year we were flat out with appointments down there, and only got one day to myself.
Was just speaking to Garry, my traveling mate, who you met when we dropped in last year, he said to say g`day and hopes to meet up again, possible some time this year.
Yes you can enjoy the beers as we will bring some next time we`re over, hopefully soon.
Cheers and Beers Mate

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Originally Posted by pearcey

G`day Lucas.
Sorry we were unable to get to see you but I only had a week in Hobart, and being new year we were flat out with appointments down there, and only got one day to myself.
Was just speaking to Garry, my traveling mate, who you met when we dropped in last year, he said to say g`day and hopes to meet up again, possible some time this year.
Yes you can enjoy the beers as we will bring some next time we`re over, hopefully soon.
Cheers and Beers Mate

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Ahh cool, I didn't even know you were down, I was actually talking to the op Haha. But thanks for the kind words anyway! Say G'day back to Gary and I look forward to seeing you again next time

Haha sorry mate, drink away! Don't let them go to waste!

.......Done!