Greetings.
Welcome to Day 2 of my Cradle Mountain adventure. If you haven't already, be sure to read my previous blog post of Day 1. To keep up to date with my photo adventures be sure to subscribe to my blog. Now, on with my adventure.
Saturday 26 Oct:
Saturday dawned cold and drizzly, and the Cradle Mountain Webcam (https://parks.tas.gov.au/explore-our-parks/cradle-mountain#CradleMountainwebcam) showed zero visibility of the peak. I decided to spend the morning doing the short walks near the Cradle Mountain Rangers Station and Interpretation Centre. So I donned my waterproof gear and off I went on the shuttle bus. In hindsight, I could have driven my car to this first stop instead of taking the shuttle. It is only after this stop that personal vehicles are not allowed into the park between 8am and 6pm.
All 3 walks run through forests of moss and lichen covered trees. I came across a couple of very shy pademelons and a Green Rosella on the Rainforest Walk. Otherwise, there was nothing really much else on that walk other than the fact that there was quite a lot of soggy animal poo on the walkway railings. Actually, there was alot of soggy animal poo everywhere.
Anyhoo, onto the Enchanted Walk, where I saw another Green Rosella, and more mossy trees. Not much wildlife here and it was too dim for good bird photos anyway.
And lastly, I saw a few Tasmanian Shrubwrens and even and echidna (however, due to the dimness of the forest, I was unable to get a good photo) on the Knyvet Falls Walk which included Knyvet Falls and Pencil Pines Falls.
Knyvet Falls was a disappointment because the lookout platform showed a view of the falls from the top. I didn't manage to see the falls from the bottom. Perhaps if I had continued onto the Dove Canyon Walk I would have been able to see the falls from below? I'll never know.
After that, I decided to head back to the cottage for lunch, which was a wise decision, because just as I got back to the Visitor Centre, the on and off drizzle which had been happening all morning, turned into icy rain. Too bad it wasn’t snow.
After lunch and a siesta, I decided to head out again on the shuttle to Dove Lake, even though it was still raining. At least it had stopped sleeting. This time I stopped at Ronny Creek, intending to walk part of the Overland Track and then veer off to the Waldheim Cottage. But again, I got distracted by the wildlife at Ronny Creek.
The Black Currawongs are such characters and really interesting to watch. They remind me of the Magpies in Melbourne. There were also a few wombats around, grazing on the open plains. Too intent on eating to give you any notice. I got so close to one so busy eating next to the boardwalk that I could have reached out and touched it if I was so inclined.
By the time I finally started on the walk, the sleet had started again, and I made the decision to walk to the cottage via the main road instead of the track. I'm glad I did, because then I got a lovely view of the Overland Track from above. At which point, I called it a day and headed back to my cabin for a hot shower and dinner at the restaurant onsite. Oh, and in case you were wondering, it continued to rain.
All. Night. Long.
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