Australia / New Zealand Hikes / Climbs Outside Washington State

Mt Amos and Wineglass Bay, Freycinet Peninsula, Tasmania

In an attempt to avoid the fires, we headed off to the Freycinet Peninsula on the east coast of Tasmania. We arrived late afternoon, set up at a campground in Coles Bay, and headed off to climb Mt Amos.

Mt Amos has the best view of Wineglass Bay, the most photographed bay in Australia. We were excited to find the Freycinet Peninsula mostly granite. The climb of Mt Amos was 80% granite slabs.

Brooke heading down from Mt Amos

The hike up and down offers views of Coles Bay.

Cal heading down from Mt Amos with Coles Bay in the Background

The summit of Mt Amos shows Wineglass Bay and the Freycinet Peninsula. The day we climbed was so humid that we had to remove our shirts on the Summit even though the wind was blowing.

Our view was blocked partially blocked by clouds but it was still beautiful. 

Wineglass Bay from the Summit of Mt Amos

The next day Brooke and Cal repeated the climb in an attempt to get a clear view which they got. They also got an interesting view of 4 Asian men taking pictures full nude.

While Brooke and Cal repeated Mt Amos, Jim and I headed off to Wineglass Bay and a climb of Mt Freycinet, the highest peak around. The plan was to camp on the peninsula.

After seeing Wineglass Bay up close, Jim and I decided to stop here for lunch. The longer we lounged on the rocks, the further away Mt Freycinet got.

Our Lunch Spot at Wineglass Bay with Mt Freycinet in the background 

In the end, Jim and I gave up on Mt Freycinet and spent the next two hours on the rocks. Longer than we have ever spent on a summit. The bay was just too beautiful to leave.

Wineglass Bay

After touching base with Brooke and Cal, we headed over to Hazards Beach and set up camp. We did some beach walking / rock hopping while we waited for Brooke and Cal to arrive.

Jim at Hazards Beach Campground

We had a lovely dinner on the rocks enjoying the surf and discussing our next adventure. 

Dinner at Hazards Beach

During the night, we had our first encounter with the infamous Australian possum. Australia’s idea of a camp rodent.

Around midnight, we were awakened by quit a ruckus. Jim stuck his head out of the tent and found two possums tearing my odor-proof food sack apart. He got up to shoo them away and ended up playing tug-of-war with one of them.

We moved the food inside the tent. Soon the possums returned. They sniffed our back packs and boots. When they realized our food had been moved inside, they waddled off. They are a lot cuter than the North American possum but their jaws and claws did a number on everything in the sack.

The next morning, we packed up early and headed out to complete the Hazards Mountain Circuit. We had a reservation at a house on Ansons Bay on the Bay of Fires coast and could not wait to get there.

Breakfast at Hazards Bay Campsite

 

Bay on Hazards Bay Circuit

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