Granite Beach to South Cape Rivulet

Getting frustrated as it wouldn't clear naturally, there was a large splotch in the middle of my shots that no amount of dehazing in Lightroom would fix. I soldiered on for a while, being a bit of a grump and hoping it would clear naturally. Reaching the first big mud patches of the day, it was just getting worse and I was thinking of all the galleries on this post being well below par. Finally I stopped and just stuck my hand over the lens and kept it there, my reasoning being the warmth of my hand would defog the lens. It worked a treat and after wiping the lens clean with my camera cloth, the photos were coming out crystal clear and as expected. A giant relief, I was a happy boi again, as I caught up to the others on the final part of the first climb. Entering an exposed section, the wildflowers through here were lovely and it wasn't long until we were on top of the first hill, having ascended 310m already. Popping out into the open summit was a bit of a change as it felt weird to have that much space. The clouds helped with that, as the views weren't very good, with limited visibility looking towards the ocean and the hills inland. 

We could just make out the far end of Granite Beach but it wasn't looking anywhere near as good as it did yesterday. Realising we were sort of near the high point for the day (but not really), I whipped out my phone and switched it off airplane mode. I got the slightest ray of hope with a single bar of reception but that was it before it went away. After five and a bit days without reception, this was a bit of a tease and was a distraction I should have saved for closer to the end. We eventually got going again after realising reception wasn't going to happen, and after some nice boardwalk, we entered a sloshy section of mud. This was the South Coast Track experience you hear about from people when they talk about the mud and unknown bogs where you might lose an ankle or end up thigh deep. For the most part it was ankle deep or better but there were some where we all lost limbs to the muddy puddles. It was all good fun and there were smiles and laughs all round as we photographed each other trying to retrieve our legs from the depths. This was a relatively short section and we were all relieved to enter the forest once again for that start of some of the best walking of the day. 

Leaving the exposed ridge behind, we entered the forest once again, and it began a memorable but slow few kilometres of walking. One thing we had noted when we got to the summit was that there were plenty of trail markers around. Given there is really only one way to go for most of the time you're on the track, it became funnier as we ventured further into the forest and saw more and more nailed to the trees. After a while we started to clue on that the track had been realigned through here, as there were plenty of muddy bogs running parallel to where we were. It seems Tas Parks decided that waist deep mud wasn't a good hiking experience and probably more importantly, having people try to avoid it and create their own track was more damaging than just cutting a new track. Walking through the puzzle of different tracks, linking up the track markers to make sure we stayed on course, we eventually reached a point where there was only one trail and so began the tree root and muddy slog that would slow us down. This is no bad thing as the scenery through here is stunning, with the multitude of green from the temperate rainforest providing some excellent visuals. 

This type of forest fills me with immense happiness and I was quite alright if this lasted for a few hours. It is similar to what I hiked the Savage River Walk and Whyte River Track while visiting Corinna in 2021, with that trip being one of the most enjoyable of my life. The combination of mossy logs, deep greens of the ferns and lots of bundles of Hypnodendron (the coral looking mosses). No one was in a great rush through here and the mood was high as we pointed out all the fantastic details that we kept finding. Getting up and over tree roots, fallen logs and through the mud was all part of the fun and with nowhere else to be today, I was happy as a pig in mud taking photos and soaking it all in. Having never visited Tassie in the height of summer, I knew it wasn't going to be as warm as WA but my worry was that it would still be super sunny with a high UV all the time. I now know that isn't the case and it's not unusual to have overcast and rainy days, something I was quite happy for on this day in particular. I'm happy with how the photos have turned out as sometimes it's not easy translating what is out there with what appears on screen.

My favourite part of the day arrived and this little stretch is something that will be etched into my memory for a while. Photos 2-4 in the above gallery was a stop and stand in awe moment for me on the track, as you stare down the hill and your gaze is naturally drawn to the mossy tree overhanging the track. It was like a scene out of a fairytale and so I've included pretty much the same photo but from three angles, as sometimes these wow moments get lost if there is only a single photo. We all stopped here and looked knowingly at each other before verbalising just how much enjoyment we were getting from this spot. The stunning scenery didn't stop there, as we discovered a whimsical little spot at the bottom of the hill. Completing the fairytale scenery was an open space of white sand, a tannin stained creek and more epic temperate rainforest. Having not come across anything like this before in the temperate rainforests of Tassie, this felt like a special spot that we decided to take a break at. There is a natural sitting point at the end of the white sands, and while sitting here I noticed some extra large fungi clinging to the underside of an overhanging branch. 

I didn't want to leave this place, so was happy when the others took their time also. I'd be really grateful if this spot could be modelled and put into some kind of VR experience so I could wake up and take it all in before starting each day. The little bubble or shroud feeling you get from being enclosed in the forest like this was very soothing and adding in a babbling creek made it all the better. All good things must come to an end and this wasn't the end of the temperate rainforest. With three main hills to go for the day, we were on the home stretch as we started climbing up a small hill to reach Trackcutters Campsite and our planned lunch stop. One interesting feature as we starting the ascent was a waist deep channel carved into the hill, that I imagine would be a flowing creek after even the smallest amount of rainfall. It's a 60m vertical climb before you reach the summit and the basic campsite at the top (just room for tent sites). We dropped our packs, got out our jackets as it was getting cold, and enjoyed a lengthy break. Having my Helinox chair was a luxury here as the ground was wet and a bit muddy, so I could enjoy my Clif Bar in relative comfort.