DOUGLAS APSLEY NATIONAL PARK

Welcome to Douglas Apsley National Park

Step away from Tasmania’s countless sun-soaked shores and majestic mountains for a moment and discover a pristine pocket of forest dappled with natural pools.

Set back from the east coast’s dazzling beaches, sometimes-overlooked Douglas Apsley National Park features quiet waterholes and deep gorges, and a refreshing reprieve from the summer heat.

Once mined for coal, the area was declared a national park in 1989. It protects one of Tasmania’s last remaining stretches of uncleared dry forest.

Spanning the Douglas and Apsley rivers, this is the rarest of Tasmanian national parks – focused on neither coast nor mountains, but instead on the forest and waterways.

Explore the bushland beneath a canopy of rustling gum leaves, and wander beside the clear waters of the Apsley River, which beckon for a cooling swim on a warm day.

Apsley Waterhole

Locals and travellers alike flock to the turquoise Apsley Waterhole on hot days – jumping, floating and swimming in its fresh and invigorating waters.

Take a short walk from the dirt car park for 1.2 kilometres through open woodland. If it’s a hot day, you might pass families lugging their beach towels and lilos back from a refreshing dip. Continue down a few steps to arrive at this large river pool offering swimming in a picturesque natural setting.

Fresh water travels about 20 kilometres down the Apsley River to spill hypnotically in and out of Apsley Waterhole. Hop across a patchwork of warm dolerite rocks and find a spot for your belongings at the water’s edge. Tiptoe closer and dip your feet in – feel the smooth rocks underfoot and lunge into the sun-patterned pool before you. You might float on your back and listen to the underwater echoes, or take a leisurely swim past people and families splashing and giggling in the sun. Enjoy the clean, earthy scent of this pristine Tasmanian environment and tread water in the centre of the waterhole. Swim upstream to where a gentle flow cascades over rocks into the shallow mouth of the waterhole – sit here and allow the soothing stream to massage your legs and feet. Or shimmy to the western side of the waterhole, where large, slanting slabs of dolerite form ideal beds for lazing lizard-like in the sun.

If you’re here on a quieter day, you’ll hear birdsong and a gentle breeze whispering through the eucalypt trees that blanket the sloped hills either side of the river. Listen out for the quiet splashes of tiny fish darting across the turquoise surface of this cooling oasis.

Walk to Apsley Gorge

Continue from Apsley Waterhole, where a walking track climbs through the east-coast bushland and leads you upstream to another grand body of water: Apsley Gorge. This two-to-three-hour sojourn is known as the Apsley River Waterhole and Gorge walk.

Green, spiney undergrowth fans out between blue gums, stringybark and white peppermint trees. The dry eucalypt forest blanketing the park is one of the last areas of its kind in Tasmania. Take in the distinctive eucalypt scent as you hike gradually uphill along a narrow dirt track.

Hear the rush of the river grow softer as you move deeper through heathlands and forest. You may come across rare wildlife, such as echidnas foraging in the dirt and dead leaves for ants. Eleven of the 12 bird species endemic to Tasmania can be found in this national park, so listen for a symphony of chirps and tweets. You may hear the high, repetitive call of the spotted quail-thrush, or the scratchy-squawk of the wedge-tailed eagle – Australia’s largest bird of prey. Even the multicoloured, endangered swift parrot is known to pass through.

Distant river sounds gradually swell as the track bends back towards the waterway. Descend some steps to arrive at Apsley Gorge – where cascades fall into a pool surrounded by large, flat dolerite slabs. Swim here, walk beside the gorge, or sit upon the smooth rock and listen to the soothing gush of the river. The Australian grayling swims in these waters – a slender creature with a brownish-grey back and silvery-white belly.

The track returns the way you came, or you can take the loop which pushes the journey out to four or five hours. This loop requires you to wriggle and rock hop your way back through Apsley Gorge, and should only be attempted when water levels are low and no rain is forecast.

Accessibility

Douglas-Apsley National Park is halfway up Tasmania’s east coast near Bicheno. The national park is a 90-kilometre drive north-east of Hobart, and a 170-kilometre drive south-east of Launceston.

Calows Coaches offers public transport from Bicheno to Hobart via Swansea and other east coast towns. Tassielink offers a bus service from Hobart to Bicheno seven days a week, however there is no public transport available between Bicheno and Douglas Apsley National Park. Visit transport.tas.gov.au for bus timetables and more travel information.

Trained dog guides assisting people who are blind or have low vision are permitted in national parks. However, you will need to obtain a permit for them and carry identification with you. To obtain this permit or for enquiries relating to other assistance animals, please phone the Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service or email parkfees@parks.tas.gov.au ahead of your visit.

There are some steps on the walking track, and visitors should note that the full Apsley River Waterhole and Gorge loop requires traversing a river and hopping along rocks and uneven surfaces. Returning to Apsley Waterhole the way you came (along the dirt track) is easier to navigate and therefore may prove more accessible.

There are basic campsites near Apsley Waterhole and along the Leeaberra Track – a multi-day hiking trail for experienced walkers that traverses the park from north to south. Other varied accommodation options are available in Bicheno, 12 kilometres from the Apsley Waterhole car park. The park’s only visitor facilities are an information booth and toilets at the Apsley Waterhole car park.