Mount Field National Park

Mount Field National Park sits in southern Tasmania, roughly 75km north-west of Hobart via New Norfolk and Westerway. The visitor centre and main entrance are at the small township of National Park, on the edge of the Tyenna Valley. From there a sealed road climbs to the lower park, with an unsealed road continuing 15km up to Lake Dobson in the alpine zone.

Allow about 75 minutes for the 73km drive from Hobart to the Mount Field visitor centre. The route follows the Lyell Highway through New Norfolk before turning off at Westerway. It is an easy day trip, although many visitors stay overnight to see Russell Falls lit up by glow worms after dark.

Yes. Mount Field was proclaimed a national park in 1916, on the same day as Freycinet, making the pair Tasmania's first national parks. The Russell Falls area was protected even earlier, set aside as a nature reserve in 1885. That gives the park more than a century of continuous conservation history.

Russell Falls is one of Tasmania's most accessible waterfalls. The walk from the visitor centre is just 1.4km return on a sealed, wheelchair-friendly path through tall rainforest, taking around 25 minutes. The three-tiered cascade is the park's signature image and can also be visited at night to spot glow worms in the damp recesses beside the track.

The Tall Trees Walk is a 1km loop of about 30 minutes through groves of swamp gum (Eucalyptus regnans), the world's tallest flowering plants. Many visitors combine Russell Falls, Horseshoe Falls, the Tall Trees Walk and Lady Barron Falls into a single circuit of around two hours. All three waterfalls flow strongest in winter and spring after rain.

Yes, a Tasmania Parks Pass is required for every vehicle. A daily pass is $47.70 per vehicle (up to 8 people), a holiday pass valid for two months is $95.50, and an annual all-parks pass is $101.70. Passes can be bought online before you travel or at the Mount Field visitor centre on arrival.

The Tarn Shelf is a string of glacial lakes set into the alpine plateau in the upper park, reached from Lake Dobson. The full circuit is about 12km and takes 5 to 7 hours, rated Grade 3. Late April is the peak window, when the deciduous beech (fagus, Nothofagus gunnii) turns gold, orange and red across the hillsides, an event Tasmanians call "the turning of the fagus".

Yes, in good seasons. Mount Mawson, in the upper park, is one of only two ski fields in Tasmania and is run by the volunteer Southern Tasmanian Ski Association. Three rope tows operate on weekends and public holidays when there is enough snow, typically between mid-July and mid-September.

Mount Field is one of the easier places in Tasmania to spot native wildlife. Bennetts wallabies, Tasmanian pademelons, possums, wombats and echidnas are commonly seen around the campground and picnic areas, particularly at dusk. The park is also home to Tasmanian devils, eastern quolls and platypus, although these are far harder to glimpse.

Mount Field is genuinely a four-season park. Spring brings the heaviest waterfall flows, summer suits the longer alpine walks, late April delivers the famous fagus colour change on the Tarn Shelf, and winter dusts the upper park with snow for skiing at Mount Mawson. The lower park near Russell Falls stays open and walkable year round.

Inside the park you can camp beside the Tyenna River at Mount Field campground or book one of the Government Huts in the alpine area near Lake Dobson. Just outside the boundary, the township of National Park has cabins and a hotel, while Westerway and Maydena (a short drive west) offer cottages and B and Bs that suit visitors also exploring the Florentine Valley and Maydena Bike Park.

Mount Field lies on the Country of the palawa peoples of lutruwita (Tasmania), within the territory of the Big River nation, whose lands stretched from the Great Western Tiers to kunanyi / Mount Wellington. Archaeological evidence in the nearby Florentine Valley shows Aboriginal occupation of the region for more than 35,000 years.