
East Cloudy Head Track
South Bruny Island
Directions - Located on South Bruny Island, the East Cloudy Head Track can be reached by heading south on Bruny Island Main Road and turn left onto Cloudy Bay Road when you reach the small hamlet of Lunawanna. Continue along Cloudy Bay Road as it turns into a gravel road until you reach the small car park at the end. The walk starts by heading along the beach or if you want to cut out the beach walking and have a 4x4, then drive out to Cloudy Corner Campsite at the end of the beach.
The Hike - With my time on Bruny Island coming to an end, I had a long day of hiking planned that start on the Mavista Nature Walk and then continued on Mount Mangana and the Fluted Cape Walk. With one more hike to do on the island before I had pretty much completed everything, I drove south with the aim of finishing off the collection. Stopping off at the Inala Jurassic Garden on the drive here, I always enjoy a botanical garden and this was not a bad visit if you have the time.















Arriving at East Cloudy Head around 4pm, I was loving being in Tassie in summer and having the opportunity to get in a 14km hike at this time of day. Even so, I had about five hours to finish the hike and drive back to my accommodation in the daylight, as I didn't want to drive in the dark if I didn't have to, given the surprise wildlife that likes to bound onto the road. As I found out when I arrived, this spot is quite popular during the summer holidays and with a hard stretch of beach, it seemed to be just another road. Although I was planning to walk the beach section anyway, I don't think my Corolla hire car would have survived the crossing of Sheepwash Creek as it drains into the bay. Gathering all my gear, I was soon on the sand and hopping on rocks over the shallow stream of water that was the creek. With a bit under three kilometres of beach walking to get through before the end of the bay, I put my head down and soldiered on.
With flat and hard sand to deal with, it was a pleasant stroll along the wide bay, and with perfect weather, I was feeling lucky to be here. With the views not really changing too much, I settled into a rhythm, keeping an eye out for anything that peaked my interest. Early on that was a large flock of seagulls and larger Pacific Gulls. As I moved towards them, they decided that they didn't want to be my friend and flew off. With time a bit of a factor, I used this easy and flat walking to pick up the pace, only really stopping to take a photo or two, and to look at the washed up shells. Getting passed by many 4x4s, the inhabitants seemed to enjoy breaking traction and driving all over the shop at great speed. Spotting a few baby Pied Oystercatchers running across the sand near the dunes, I do wonder how many get run over by these hoons each summer.















One wholesome activity that I was enjoying was a family in the water trying to catch some small waves, with another family further up having a cracking game of beach cricket. With a long boundary on the leg side, I was hoping the ball would be hit skyward near me but I remained just a spectator. The scenery was slowly changing as I rounded the bay, with a sailboat in the distance being my point of reference for any change. As it got close, I was getting excited for a different type of terrain and with the end of the bay near, I crossed a creek that starts from the nearby slopes of Mount Bruny. Right after the creek I spotted the road leading off the beach and up towards Cloudy Corner Campground. I figured this would also be a popular spot given how many cars I had spotted driving along the beach and when I reached the proper campground, this was confirmed.
There were still spaces available at the back but much like the rest of the island, it seemed like the place to be these summer holidays. Looking a little lost, I was on the search for the official start of the East Cloudy Head Track, eventually locating a promising track that led away from the campsite and in the right direction. The thicker forest was a delight after the exposed beach walking and I was hoping for more of it as the hike continued. Rounding a corner I found the familiar walkers registration box that is common on most of the longer day hikes in Tasmania. Recording my details, I noted a few others had enjoyed the walk already today and that I might expect to run into a couple more. Heading off into the Bracken Fern filled forest, from here onwards it would be a slow climb to the cliffs of East Cloudy Head that sit 290m ASL.