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Enchanting Tasmania @ Cradle Mountain

No trip to Tasmania is complete without a visit to Cradle Mountain. What's more, the region is easily accessible from Launceston, approximately 2hrs drive away. Cradle Mountain as seen from the various travel blogs is truly a magical world of mossy rainforest, spongy alpine grasslands, glacial lakes and jagged mountain peaks. It is the most iconic natural attraction in Tasmania, rivalled only by Freycinet National Park and perhaps Bruny Island. Nevertheless, in my opinion, Cradle Mountain is the most iconic attraction and should never be missed!

Although it was summer time, the weather at Cradle Mountain can be very unpredictable. It actually snowed when we arrived, some shower and then sunny for the rest of the day. While the rain made our climb more treacherous, it was a memorable climb as we carefully trekked the entire trail. Trekking is the most popular way to explore the alpine landscapes of Cradle Mountain and there are various variation to choose, from a 10 min Rainforest Walk to a Multi Overland Track. 




Dove Lake Circuit 

One of the most iconic short walks in Cradle Mountain is the Dove Lake Circuit that meanders around the gorgeous Dove Lake in the shadow of Cradle Mountain. We do this walk clockwise and finish at the iconic boat shed. If you are not a fan of climbing a section of steps uphill, then head in an anticlockwise direction. Overall, the walk can be completed within 2-3hrs. Once we reached the end of the lake, we saw some benches and decided to take a break and have some snacks. I  personally like the boatshed view looking out towards the jagged mountain.






Cradle Valley Boardwalk (approximately 2-3 hrs, one way)

This is yet another gorgeous walk that is fairly easy to trek between the interpretation centre and Ronny Creek. Unlike the Dove Lake Circuit, the valley walk is more open, meandering across button grass plains and alpine bogs. We started from Ronny Creek and crosses a few wooden bridges over Dove River and then meanders across the open plain of alpine fern, occasionally ducking into a patch of wet eucalypt forest or open woodland. 










King Billy Walk  

King Billy walk is the most shortest walk ever and definitely one that is relaxing and enjoyable. Starting at Peppers Lodge, it meanders for 2km through the lushest temperate rainforest which feels really ancient (akin to Jurassic Park). Some of these King Billy pines are over a thousand years old.  

Enchanted Walk 

We combined the Enchanted walk with King Billy, which is equally enchanting as well. The walk starts and ends at Peppers Cradle Mountain Lodge. 

The walk is made more beautiful after rain as the mosses glisters and shimmers in pretty green. Also, the waterfalls and creeks will be in full flow. The Cascade falls on pencil Pine Creek were downright raging when we visited. Truly and amazing sight. 

Where to stay in cradle mountain? 

There are only a handful of accommodation choices up in Cradle mountain and some of the accommodations are not cheap. Perhaps, the most luxury would be Pepper Cradle Mountain Lodge, King Billy Suite that is equipped with an outdoor hot tub facing the enchanted forest and a beautiful indoor bathtub. We settled for the Cradle Mountain Wilderness Village forest lodge which came with an indoor hot tub facing the forest. The forest lodge is spacious and cosy for couples who wanted to enjoy the tranquility of the nature and yet at an  affordable price. Overall, I enjoyed my stay at the forest lodge and would definitely recommend this place for couple or family retreat. 























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