TheLostGlobe

I booked our day to start the Overland Track last night, 27th December. The booking system only opened on the 1st July and I found that January already had a few days with only a few spots left in the 3 days the system had been open. The cost was $300 for two, steep really. Plus we need to renew out parks pass in December. Earlier in the year the minister announced the fee would increase from $100 to $150, citing that it brought the cost in line with similar popular walks in New Zealand (Eg, Milford and Kepler Tracks), what she didn’t mention is how much better managed those tracks are and how you get your value for money. The huts on the NZ walks are of a much higher quality and in bad weather you even get choppered to the next hut, the tracks themselves are also apparently in better condition.

The track is also apparently in danger of being “loved to death” and so a new walk of similar length is being planned on the Tasman Peninsula called the Three Capes Track, there seems to be a few problems with this plan.

1. It’s a completely different type of walk, it’s coastal not highland like the Overland. People walk the OT because they want to do a highland walk.
2. They are planning a similar booking system and fee before the track has even proven itself worthy.
3. New huts to be $40 a night, for a bunk in hut!
4. It can be walked in sections for free anyway.

Obviously I’m not really convinced it will lighten the load on the Overland Track, by itself though I think it could be good. I know the new walk wouldn’t sway me to do that instead of the Overland and I think there are a number of other walks they could have simply improved infrastructure on. The $40 a night adds up to $200 for the walk, $50 more than the OT, this probably means we can expect further increases to fees on the OT in the future.

I think the Walls of Jerusalem are an alternative now because they are not far from Cradle Mountain are free, plus you are more free to explore. If there is one thing I can suggest to the Tasmanian government it is a “Tasmanian Card”, Tasmanians should at least be able to do these walks at a discounted rate if not for free. Tasmanians only account for 6% of OT walkers so it wouldn’t be a huge blow to the budget, plus it could be extended to businesses. There are far to many places in Tasmania where locals are forced to pay tourist prices. And why the hell does everything have to be Gourmet? It seems we call it gourmet here even if it’s far from it. Gourmet goes beyond presentation.

[tags]Tasmania, Overland Track, Three Capes Track, Tasman Peninsula[/tags]

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