The South Coast Track: an Overview, Guide, and Story
- Madeline
- Oct 2, 2025
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 11, 2025
In January 2025, my Mum and I ventured to Tasmania to attempt the South Coast Track with only our backpacks and a good attitude.
Are you considering trying this hike? You'd have a lot of fun, but it is imperative that you're adequately prepared. I want to help with that. I hope the tips I share with you will help you when you're doing the hike.
The South Coast track is a very tricky, extremely demanding, but definitely rewarding hike in south west Tasmania. The whole hike comes to a total of 83km. Yikes, that's a lot. Don't worry though, in this blog post I'll tell you everything you need to know so you're all prepared.
Flora, fauna, and wildlife
You might be lucky enough to see some incredible creatures and flowers while you're out there on the trail. A few of the animals we saw included some Wallabies (Macropodidae) and even a couple of Spotted Quolls (Dasyurus Maculatus), which are an endangered species. We also saw a lot of Wombat's (Vombatus Ursinus) poop, which is apparently a very common sighting.
Silver banksia and swamp honeymyrtle have also been spotted on the trail.
Day 1: the entrance and beginning
We took a small, mini plane from the 2nd airport that we had been to that day, to the beginning of the track. When we arrived, we briefly stopped at a shed to receive our jet boil portable gas stoves that we would take with us. This was when we first encountered a problem...sandflies! So we lathered on some insect repellant and started the 13.4 km (8.33 miles) trek from Melaleuca to Point Eric, where our first campsite would be. I remember that on Day 1 there was a lot of boardwalk.
Day 3: ironbound day and the trickiest of them all
Day 3 is is known for being the hardest day on the trail. This is because it has a 905m climb uphill and a 935m descent downhill. If I'm gonna be honest here, the climb up was hard, but not as terrible as going down. You may think that going down would be easier than going up, but no. I remember that when we were hiking down the mountain, it was through a rainforest kind of area, and you had to go under a bunch of fallen trees. It was also very slippery because of the moss, whereas going up, you were essentially just hiking in open, grassy plains, and it was a bit enjoyable. When going down, it felt like it was never going to end, and every time I saw something that looked like the end, I'd feel hope, but then it would just keep going! My tip for this day is to make sure you have a lot of snacks and water, and get a good sleep the night before. Don't worry, it's doable, you just have to stay really positive the entire time, and be walking fast enough so that you make it to camp before it gets dark. It was a 12.3km hike in total that day, and the last 200m were definitely the hardest because I was so exhausted!
Day 4: Prion boat crossing
On day 4 at the end of the hike you had to do a boat crossing. You were supposed to cross a river 3 times so that the next group of hikers have a boat left on each side of the river for them. We were extremely lucky because the hikers before us rowed across the river extra times so that we only had to cross once.
Notes and extra tips
I definitely want to do the South Coast Track again, it was such a rewarding experience and spending the day in Hobart at the end of the walk was really fun.
There were some times when we were really discouraged and I was feeling hopeless because it seemed like there were so many kilometers left. When you're feeling extremely sad, just keep hiking, one step at a time. You can do it. Also, bring chocolate, it was what saved us!!
It was really cold and rainy, so make sure you bring enough lightweight rain gear! There was a point when my Mum got so cold she thought she was on the verge of hypothermia. Trust me, you don't want that to happen to you, so make sure you bring enough warm, waterproof jackets, and you make an effort to keep them dry!
Bringing insect repellant is very important, we brought an insect repellant cream from Good Riddance that is 100% natural and DEET-free. It worked pretty well. We also wore wearable mosquito wristbands which deterred insects even more.
Open fires are banned on the South Coast Track so you need to bring fuel.
At points it gets really muddy, so I would recommend bringing an extra pair of shoes to act as your mud shoes. It's not worth trying to avoid the mud, I promise you that eventually you'll be up to your calf in it!
Having dehydrated soups was really helpful because we could just add hot water and then we'd have a hot, delicious meal. Some of my favourites included French onion and lentil.
This isn't exactly a kid-friendly hike. I did it when I had just turned 12, but I think if you're any younger or less experienced I wouldn't recommend attempting this hike (if you're looking for a good, multi-day hike for kids, you should look into 3 Capes!).
For further reading and information
South Coast Track by Monica Chapman and John Chapman has a lot of helpful information about the hike. My Mum and I used this book a lot while we were walking because it has helpful maps and wildlife information, and I have used some of it in this post.
I hope you're feeling a little more prepared now. It's a worthwhile hike and something that you probably won't regret doing if you're well organised!
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