Feb 4

Feb 4 Walking to Montezuma Falls - Tassies tallest waterfall

Western Tasmania isn’t short of hikes but it is also home to Tassie’s tallest waterfall. Even better, the hike to get there is a relatively easy one!

Montezuma Falls is actually one of Tasmania’s ‘60 Great Short Walks’ and can be completed in about three hours return. However, the falls are so spectacular, you might lose some time just staring in amazement and soaking it all in.

We stopped here on a drive from Strahan to Cradle Mountain, using the 11.5km return walk to stretch our legs (or warm up for Cradle Mountain!)

You lose light pretty quickly in this old mining entrance

The walk follows a former tramway through wet, steep, thickly forested country and you can see signs of the mining history of the area as you wander through. Keep an eye out for a small entrance to an old mining tunnel. We walked in about five metres and lost light straight away so this is not for those with a bout of claustrophobia…

The track is really well-maintained and – this will appeal to many non-hikers – mostly flat! If I lived on the Apple Isle, I can promise I would be here a lot as you can even take your dog on lead which seems a rare experience for good waterfalls hikes as they are mostly in National Parks. We passed a few very happy, and slightly muddy, pooches on our visit.

Despite seeing a couple of dogs and their owners, we pretty much had the trail to ourselves which is a rare treat!

The track follows the Ring River and offered up some great views down into the river valley as we walked along – my mate Catherine and her long legs setting the pace.

As with many tall waterfalls, you hear the roar before you see them. This is especially true of Montezuma as the 104m drop is tucked away around a corner.

We headed straight for the base of the falls and admired the power of Mother Nature for a while. The view from the bottom is incredible and there is plenty of space to put down your stuff and take some photos. Looking up, Montezuma Falls spills down the steep cliff in several stepped tiers.

After soaking in the view and getting a little spray we made our way to a suspension bridge over the gorge that is just before the falls.

Walking across the narrow bridge (just wide enough for one person) offers up both a different perspective of the falls, and incredible views through the valley. It really shows you how immense Montezuma Falls is.

Once over the bridge, we thought to explore a little further and found a picnic table and what looked like a fire trail. However, with no reception and no idea where it led, we had a snack and headed back to the car.

If you want to visit and stay nearby, your best options are Strahan (65km away) or tie it in with a stay near Cradle Mountain (97km away).

There is so much to do in this part of Tasmania, we barely scratched the surface of the Wild West!