Lake St Clair: Glacial Lakes, Walking Trails and Culture

Deep glacial lakes, dense forests of ancient Tasmanian cedars and high mountains define Lake St Clair. Lake St Clair is located in Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park and the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. Visitors planning a stay here can choose between nature experiences, walking trails and insights into Aboriginal culture—and select a holiday rental based on the excursions they want to focus on during their trip.

Hiking through changing landscapes

At Lake St Clair, numerous short and longer walking trails lead through ancient rainforests to alpine lakes and mountain peaks. This offers different ways to explore the landscape on foot, and not all trails are the same length. One specific example is the Shadow Lake Circuit: it leads from wet forest at Lake St Clair through eucalyptus forest to subalpine moorland and sedgeland near the lake. Along this route, you’ll encounter several different types of landscape.

The Lake St Clair Discovery Walk is a half-day wilderness hike. Its named features include the Aboriginal cultural trail Larmairrenemer tabelti, Platypus Bay and the Watersmeet Track. Adding this hike to your trip plans means visiting several named places and a cultural trail. When choosing a holiday rental, it may therefore help to first consider whether hiking or other experiences will shape your stay.

Aboriginal culture and the history of the land

The Aboriginal name for Lake St Clair is leeawuleena, meaning “sleeping water”. Tasmanian Aborigines have a long-standing connection with the area around the lake, and that connection continues today. This enduring relationship with the land is also a subject of interest for visitors who want to learn not only about the landscape, but also about its cultural significance.

The Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Walk begins at Lake St Clair. It provides information about Aboriginal historic sites and artefacts, including preserved stone tools, caves and rock shelters. At the visitor centre in Cynthia Bay, you can learn about the effects of glaciation and the interaction between Aboriginal communities and the land. The centre also offers advice on activities in the park. Natural history information and cultural perspectives are presented side by side here.

The lake, ferries and getting there

A passenger ferry runs from Cynthia Bay to Narcissus Bay at the northern end of the lake. This is Australia’s highest-altitude ferry service. The Ida Clair ferry also offers a 28 km cruise on Lake St Clair. It picks up Overland Track hikers from Narcissus and takes day walkers to Echo Point. The Overland Track itself is a 65 km, six-day alpine hike through Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park.

Lake St Clair is 2.5 hours west of Hobart via the Lyell Highway (A10). From Derwent Bridge, the Lake St Clair Road (C193) runs 5.5 km to the visitor centre at Cynthia Bay. When planning your accommodation and excursions, also take the size of the park into account: there is no direct road connection between the two ends of Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park. Lake St Clair is therefore best approached as a destination in its own right, with its trails, lake and attractions around Cynthia Bay.

If you’re looking for a holiday rental for your stay, choose its location based on the experiences that interest you most: hikes through different forest and mountain landscapes, Aboriginal cultural trails or a trip on the lake. This turns the choice of destination into a practical decision about which aspects of Lake St Clair you’d like to explore.

Discover more places

Wilmot, Dennes Point, Oatlands, Relbia, Lewisham, Bream Creek, Coningham and Latrobe.

For the main travel overview: Tasmania.