Corinna Wilderness Experience and Pieman River Cruise

“The woody interlacing branches, even when not an inch in diameter, will bear the weight of a man laden with his knapsack. But woe betide the luckless wight who, while travelling through this scrub, treads on the treacherous mossy disguised twig or branch which has decayed. Should this not infrequent case happen, down to unknown depths he may drop, while the green treacherous mossy carpet springs into its place like a trap, concealing the engulfed explorer. It is to be feared that one or two of our missing mining prospectors have met their fate this way…”

-R M Johnson, Systematic account of geology of Tasmania, Hobart 1888

This is part of a month-long cycle tour around Tasmania. If you missed the start of this journey, here’s how it all got started.

I took a day off cycling to relax in Corinna and to explore the Pieman River, which runs deep into the wilderness. When I first reached Tasmania’s West Coast at Strahan I loved being right on the water and I was tempted to take a boat up the Gordon River but it’s really quite expensive. A number of locals recommended the Pieman River Cruise here in Corinna and I’m really glad I decided to do it.

The Tarkine Hotel (also known as the Corinna Wilderness Experience) offers rustic but very nice cabins surrounded by forest. I really enjoy being in such a relaxing place wrapped up in nature. The only sounds are birds chirping in the trees and the patter of a wallaby or pademelon wandering by your veranda (one walked right by where I was sitting this morning and practically stopped to have a chat!).

Certainly, the highlight for me in visiting Corinna is exploring the Pieman River. All these days spent cycling on Tasmania’s twisting roads had me craving some time on the water.

Each morning a boat cruise takes passengers from Corinna down the Pieman River to the mouth of the ocean. The boat itself has quite a history. The Arcadia II, as she’s known, first served in WWII where she guarded Hobart’s shipping traffic then moved on to New Guinea to work as a supply boat. After the war she found herself back in Tasmania as a fishing vessel then in the 1970s she made her way to the Pieman.

To me, it’s hard to beat observing nature than from a gently flowing river. The Pieman is exceptionally calm. On one side there are towering eucalyptus and on the other deep dark rainforest. Ducks flutter across the water as the boat approaches and eagles glide by, unconcerned.

What a wonderful way to spend a day. Utter relaxation surrounded by the soft sounds of nature.

Next, I try to continue through the remote Tarkine Wilderness but get turned back by a burnt down bridge.