13 Ways to Get Your Summer Thrills in Tasmania
Make the most of the longer days this summer with adrenaline-fueled adventures and nature-rich experiences, right on your doorstep.
Urban Adventure: Echo Sugarloaf Nature Trail
by Elizabeth Osborne
The gradual climb to the summit of Echo Sugarloaf Hill rewards with breathtaking views of valleys, river, sea, distant hills and ragged mountains.
Echo Sugarloaf Nature Trail, in Echo Sugarloaf State Reserve, is approximately an hour’s drive south east from Hobart, along the Channel Highway (B68).
Echo Sugarloaf Nature Trail is accessed from steps between 65 and 69 Williams Street. The five kilometre walk winds up the western slope of Echo Sugarloaf Hill to the summit (198m). The trail then loops downhill via the southern ridge.
Approximately ten minutes from the start of the trail is a large natural frog pond, its still waters reflecting the surrounding trees. Leaving the frog pond, the trail continues through damp gullies, climbing into grassy open forests at the summit.
At the summit there are panoramic views over Randalls Bay to the Huon River, D’Entrecastreaux Channel and the southwest mountains. Here, near a seat, a notice board commemorates the life of Maxwell James Thomas, who, with his wife Bev, donated Echo Sugarloaf Hill in 2002 as a state reserve.
Leaving the summit, stone steps lead through woodlands to the downhill loop, which offers glimpses of the long sandy beach and calm waters of Randalls Bay. Thanks to the generosity of the Thomas Family, Echo Sugarloaf Hill is a State Reserve, a popular short walk that preserves the backdrop to the beauty of Randalls Bay.
