Tasmania Hikes and Bites: Mt. Field National Park and The Possum Shed Cafe

My perfect day consists of a long hike accompanied by a delicious treat. Nature and good food… what’s not to love? We are spending a few weeks in Tasmania, which just so happens to have top-tier hiking as well as a truly epic food scene.

So I’d like to introduce my newest blog series: Tasmania Hikes and Bites.

In this series, I’ll share the details on the cool hikes we do along with tips on the best places to get a bite nearby.

To kick things off, we headed to Mt. Field National Park with a stop at The Possum Shed Cafe. Let’s dive in!

The Park: Mt. Field National Park

Mt. Field is one of Tasmania’s oldest and most diverse national parks. It spans across 61 square miles, and there is an incredible range of experiences to be had. You can stroll through the temperate rainforest to look at impressive waterfalls whilst ogling at the towering swamp gum trees. Or you take the 16 km drive up the mountain to Lake Dobson to go on one of the many high-altitude trails around the numerous alpine lakes. Perhaps even go for a dip!

There are hikes and walks suitable for all ages and mobility ranges. Plus, it’s only 90 km outside of Hobart, making a day trip possible.

The Hike (s):

We started with the Three Waterfall Circuit. It’s a 6km circuit that takes you past Russell Falls, Horseshoe Falls, and Lady Baron Falls. It also follows the Tall Trees Walk, which goes past towering swamp gums that can grow to heights of 100ft/30m. This walk is classified as “moderate”, and it has a well maintained path with just a bit of elevation gain. It’s a good bang for your buck type of walk— beautiful scenery and a fairly easy path that’s just hard and long enough to make you feel like you worked. It took us 90ish minutes, but we are speed demons.

Next, we drove 16km along the gravel, pot-hole-riddled road to Dobson Lake. During the winter, Dobson Lake is a launch point for various winter activities, notably skiing. But for the other seasons of the year, it’s a hikers paradise. There are 10 (or so) different paths to choose from, ranging from an easy breezy 40 minute circuit around Lake Dobson to the 3 day/2 night Mt. Field West Circuit.

Our mission was Tarn Shelf. A tarn is a mountain lake that has formed in a hole that was excavated by a glacier. And the Tarn Shelf holds quite a few of them. While we would have liked to have done the circuit, in classic Katie and Jeremy fashion, we were unprepared. No food, no extra water, and limited time considering the fact we didn’t start until a little after 1pm. So we settled on just doing the return, and it was spectacular.

The path has some elevation and there are a few tricky parts where you need to navigate rocks and boulders. But a good chunk of it is along a boardwalk, meaning you can truly admire the other worldly scenery of crystal clear lakes nestled in the mountains. It’s a fantastic hike and my photos are no where close to doing it justice. We will certainly return one day to do the full shebang.

HERE’s a nice guide on doing the full circuit.

The Bite: The Possum Shed Cafe

The Possum Shed Cafe is a 10 minute drive from the Mr. Field National Park visitor center, and it’s the best place for a pre or post hiking treat. It’s situated on the Tyenna River, and there is picture-perfect outdoor seating that looks out over the babbling water. There are coffees, cakes, baked goods, and sandwiches on offer. We settled on sharing a flat white, scones, and a slice of carrot cake.

The scones themselves were perfectly fine with a fluffy, light texture and buttery flavor. But what made them superb were the toppings. The fresh raspberry jam was sharp and tart with just enough sweetness. And the cream was soft and velvety while being voluminous, but not airy.

The carrot cake was also a delight. I’d describe it more as a loaf than a cake– the texture was thick and more bready than cakey. It had a spectacular spice to it with noticeable pops of ginger and nutmeg. In hindsight, I would have gotten it to go to take as a mid-hike snack.

Plus, it’s dog friendly, and we got to play with Hugo.

The more popular option for a bite near Mt. Field National Park is Westerway Raspberry Farm. You can pick your own berries, and there’s also a shop selling coffee, sandwiches, and ice cream. I’m sure their raspberries are delicious, but you have to pay a picking entry fee on top of paying for the berries by the kilo. As Frugal Foodies, we decided against it.