Cradle Mountain, Tasmania [Review]

On the drive to Cradle Mountain, we had first rain, then hail, and then snow. We saw a wombat waddle across the highway.

Our cottage was in a private, secluded location, which was what we had hoped for.

We realized right away that possums were likely to visit because we noticed a few enormous possum poos on the porch. The possums were much larger and rounder than Queensland possums. The ones at the cottage were not very timid. We saw several wombats wandering around in nearby locations, and we met pademelons for the first time. The pademelons also appeared quite accustomed to the presence of humans.

While staying here, we visited Marakoopa Caves, Trowunna wildlife park (here we were to pet a koala, wombat, baby pademelon and even a Tasmanian Devil, and GK held/hugged a wombat), we went to the wilderness photo gallery at Cradle Mountain Chateau ('Tasmania's largest wildlife photographic collection' - something along those lines, many beautiful images, and many come with amusing commentaries), we went to the Grey Gum restaurant (fantastic) and Brushtails bar (both also at Cradle Mountain Chateau - on the walk there we saw a mother and baby wombat), we tasted honeys at The Honey Farm, cheeses at Ashgrove Farm and wines at Barringwood Park Vineyard (we bought some of each to bring back with us - the gourmet vineyard platter at Barringwood Park Vineyard was gorgeous and delicious), had pancakes at The Pancake Parlour (tasty, and impressive presentation) at Tasmazia, and went on the Dove Lake circuit walk. The 65 km Overland Track is nearby, and in addition there is a wide range of short and medium- sized walks. There is a lot of variety with regards to scenery, and weather changes in themselves can add further to the sense of variety. When it is sunny, the weather is quite comfortable, but at night it can feel pretty cold if you are not sitting in front of a fire.

Weather conditions can be extreme and changeable, and can make for dangerous driving on the winding roads.

GK's photos include: main exterior cabin photo, possum (Darth) photo, pademelon photo, Tasmanian Devil photo, spotted quoll photo, wombat photo, and the last two Dove Lake/Cradle Mountain photos. Xesce's photos include the first one that shows the walking trail at Dove Lake, the photo of Pademelon cottage porch, and the two interior photos.

[Photos: right arrow]