Rocky Outcrop Time: 50min walk or 20min ride/walk/ride (return) Distance: 3km Grade: Easy Equipment: Sturdy footwear Note: Track is rough & rocky From a walk or ride along the road, to a brief wander through the heathland, followed by a short traverse across a low rocky ridge-line, this soft adventure will give you a cameo view of the Central Plateau. Track Notes Leave the Lodge and head up to Lake Augusta Road, turning right towards Liawenee. If you are on foot this is a 15 minute walk along the road, by bike, a 5 minute ride. On the left hand side of the road look out for some small eucalypts: Alpine Snow Gums (Eucalyptus coccifera) (see map) which have beautiful, mottled, smooth bark and are endemic to Tasmania. You will pass a tall rocky outcrop (see map) on the lefthand side of the road and then cross a small stream, the Ibbotts Rivulet (see map). Once you have passed these landmarks look out for a small pull-over area (road widens, see map) on the left of the road. The start of the track is directly opposite on your right (orange track-marking tape shows the track entrance). If you are on bikes, park them off the road and lock them up. Head into the heathland towards the foot of the rocky outcrop. Not far in, you will come across small, bright green mounds. Stop and have a closer look. These are Cushion Plants: a fragile community of tiny plants, and a sight unique to the high plateaus of the world. Take care not to step on these (see back page for more details). Page 1 of 2 Continue following the track up to the outcrop. When you reach the rock, stop and feel it. This cold, hard rock is dolerite from the Jurassic period, 180 million years ago, when it pushed up, as molten rock, through the older, softer rock, and cooled into its unique columnar formation (mostly broken up and worn down in this location). From here, follow the rock cairns (small rock stacks) as they traverse the low ridge out to the end of the rock outcrop. Find a place to sit or stand and look out across to the Liawenee Canal/ Ouse River (see map). On a clear day, across the river and in the far distance you can see the rugged mountains of the Ducane Range (see map) on the famous Overland Track (far left mountains). To the right of the Ducane Range is the more rounded Mt. Ossa (see map), Tassie’s highest peak of 1617m, also within the Cradle Mountain - Lake St Clair National Park. Keep following the horizon to the right and the closest mountain you can see: this is Mt. Jerusalem (see map) in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park. Both of these National Parks, and where you are standing now, falls within the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA), which covers 20% of Tasmania. The TWWHA holds a greater range of natural and cultural values than any other World Heritage Area on earth, making it a very unique and special place. While you are looking out, look up and see if you can spot a Wedge-Tailed Eagle circling above you (see back page for more details). When you are ready, retrace your steps back to the road and home to the Lodge. Page 2 of 2 .