Cradle Mountain

Finding accommodation near Cradle Mountain was either outrageously expensive or not available/booked out. Managed to secure a room in Tullah, about an hour drove from Cradle Mountain.

We called into the small town of Waratah on the way to Tullah. Once a tin mining town, now it is home to only about 200 people - no shops except for the roadhouse and the local hotel. There is a waterfall in the town and museum to the tin stamper - press a button and you can see the machine in action (see video). Imagine that noise going day and night.

Tullah Lakeside Lodge was a pretty location albeit pretty dated - reminded me of a former school or church camp from the 1970s converted to a hotel lodging. We spent the afternoon exploring the local sights - just some lakes and dams.

Next morning we drove to Cradle Mountain. You have to park at the visitors centre and buy bus shuttle tickets to get to Dove Lake. We had the intention of doing the Dove Lake Circuit, but when they said it consists of 1600 steps and 6km, I opted for the shorter walks to glacier rock and the boatshed, while sending Brad on the loop. He said it wasn't too bad...just long. There are many other walks in Cradle Mountain, but many of them are strenuous, such as Marion's lookout. We called it a day and headed back to Tullah.Read more