An epic drive and paddle to Lovers Falls
- delphinegargula
- Apr 18, 2022
- 4 min read
The road to Corinna
One of our favorite moments of the trip was the drive from Sumac Lookout to Corinna via Norfolk Rd. A 78km white gravel road that gives you unbelievable views of the Tasmanian Wild West and the many Mounts it hosts.
Norfolk Rd (C249)
The drive took us about 2 hours to complete and I would strongly recommend doing it in the late afternoon, ideally around the golden hour. Avoid sunset however, or night, as there is lots of wildlife around and no fences or barriers to prevent them from crossing the road. Roadkill is the one of the top, if the not the #1, death causes for a wide variety of native animals across Australia and is particularly high in Tasmania, where millions of animals are killed, orphaned or injured each year. A collision with wildlife would also risk to seriously damage your car and most insurance companies in Australia have clauses that exclude collisions with wildlife from dusk to dawn.
The prettiest road we took in Tasmania
While it is a gravel road, a 4×4 is not needed unless weather conditions have been bad. As much as possible, avoid driving around sunset or sunrise, and if you do end up on the road during those times remember to drive slowly and be alert.
Corinna Wilderness
We finally arrived at Corinna Wilderness Experience which was like an unexpected mini-village in the middle of nowhere (more info at www.corinna.com.au). It has an actual pub/restaurant, cute cottages all around, some nice enough bathrooms and showers, and quite importantly some great wooden tent platforms by the river.
Each tent platform is elevated and surrounded by either the lush rainforest or the beautiful Pieman river. There is an outdoor dining area by the river, with some tables under cover and the possibility to cook over woodfire (bring your own wood though). The showers are cold by default but with a $2 coin you can get a few minutes of hot water, just about enough to wash your hair if it is long. I would not quite call it the best shower experience of my life but it does the job!
The outdoor kitchen, courtesy of Corinna Wilderness Experience.
Pademelons
There are heaps of friendly pademelons around and you can be sure to meet a few. The pademelons at Corinna are quite used to humans and very curious. They will come closer to you the minute you start getting food out. Make sure you do not feed them as this can make them dependent on human presence and eventually turn them aggressive.
Cute pademelon on the way to the showers
Pademelons are not commonly seen in Australia’s mainland and Tasmania is a great place to see them. The Tasmanian pademelons or red-bellied pademelons can be confused for small wallabies, and look a little bit like a mix between a wallaby and a quokka.
Curious pademelon
The red-bellied pademelons can now only be found in Tasmania, although it was believed they lived all across Australia’s South East years ago. They are marsupials just like wallabies and quokkas, which means they carry their adorable joeys around in their pouch.
Pademelon and joey
What to do in Corinna
After setting up our tent we decided to go for one of the few walks around Corinna Wilderness and picked Whyte River Walk which was literally departing from around our tent platform. It was a nice walk and a great way to clock in a few steps at the end of a big day but it was not spectacular either and I would not go out of my way to do it again. The Whyte River loop takes about 1.5hrs.
Whyte River Walk
We have heard Huon Pine walk is very nice and only 20min or so. It is listed as one of Tasmania’s Top 50 Short Walks. Other options include Savage River Walk which is longer (4hrs) but seems stunning.
Lovers Falls
We rented a kayak directly at Corinna Wilderness Experience in the morning for a half-day and headed to Lovers Falls. The falls have become famous thanks to their iconic wooden stairs in the lush forest which are very Instagrammable. The actual stairs were further than we originally expected and it took us about 45min to reach them by kayak.
The stairs to Lovers Falls
The falls themselves are pretty but not exceptional either, and it is more the journey to the falls and the unique stairs to the water that makes them so special!
I would absolutely recommend the kayak experience in Corinna, but make sure you allow enough time for the return trip to the falls (at least 2 hours). There is also a small detour towards Savage River where you can see an underwhelming “shipwreck” and the floating platform that leads to Savage River Walk.
Savage River’s floating platform
Fatman Barge
Important: if you are coming from the North you will need to cross the river to get to Corinna Wilderness Experience and take the barge which operates from 9-7pm in Summer and 9-5pm in Winter every day. Do check crossing times beforehand.
The crossing is $28 one way for a normal car and can be purchased directly with the “fatman” or at Corinna Wilderness Experience. If you are coming from the North (via Norfolk Rd) you do not need to cross to get to Corinna.
Fatman Barge
The Nitty Gritty
Kayak Rental: $35 for 4 hours via Corinna Wilderness (can be booked on their website)
Campsite: $40 per night and $2 for a hot shower. Campsites can be booked via email or phone although payment needs to be done over the phone. Insider tip: ask for one of the sites closer to the forest or by the river.
More info on the excellent Corinna Wilderness Experience website here.
Activities and walks in Corinna, courtesy of Corinna Wilderness Experience.
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