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Fortunately, the conditions are far from Arctic during our stay, and
we’ve timed our arrival perfectly to coincide with the transformation
of the scrub into a sea of wildflowers, their scent filling the air. The
lodge’s strange angles mean the majority of the structure is given over
to a cavernous lounge and dining area, with leather sofas positioned in
front of an immense fireplace; another lounge with board games and
something of a library, and a more intimate dining room is found off
a corridor. Everywhere you go, big windows frame what this place is
all about: Tasmania’s famous wilderness. Here, you’re always in the
wild surrounds, whether you’re inside the lodge gazing out or miles
away gazing back across the bogs, lakes and heathland.
When you are back, it’s eminently comfortable; a rain shower is the
ideal antidote for tired legs following a lengthy bushwalk, as is a Nant
Estate whisky, from down the road, in front of the fire in the lounge.
Corridors are adorned with photos of anglers waist-deep in one of the
many lakes, and you can sink into a sofa to admire the photos in books
such as Tasmanian High Country Huts (some of which you can hike to
from the lodge). The rooms are functional and modern, if a little
box-like – perhaps betraying the building’s former life as a training
base – but the draw of the communal spaces means your room simply
fulfils its role as a place to change, shower and sleep.
Such is the beauty of the Central Plateau, with different heathers,
mosses and wildflowers delivering a surprising amount of colour in
the summer months, that you’ll spend most of your time outdoors,
coming close to wallabies in the heath and black swans on the lakes.
A member of staff will prepare a picnic lunch for you, and you can
borrow gear from the lodge – gaiters (shin guards) are a must if you’re
going bushwhacking. When you return, the chef (now Phil Kelly from
gourmet deli Wursthaus Kitchen) will be ready to take your order- roast Tasmanian lamb or fresh-caught trout perhaps – before host
Jason gives you an impromptu after-dinner performance on his circular
didgeridoo (a spiral-shaped instrument carved from a single piece of
wood). Before bed you can take a torch out to nearby Lake Augusta
and look for platypus, as wombats graze on the banks around you.
There aren’t many places in the modern world where you can
experience something akin to Aldrin’s ‘magnificent desolation’, where
you’ll feel how small you really are in nature’s grand scheme, but down
here in Tasmania, in the otherworldly landscape of the Central
Plateau, you can come pretty close.
CLOCKWISE FROM
LEFT: 4 WDs tackle
the tough terrain of the
Central Highlands; The
shore of one of the region’s
many lakes; The landscape
here possesses an ethereal
beauty; Rooms are
contemporary; It’s hard
to tear yourself away
from the fire in the
main lounge; The lodge
rises out of the heath. DETAILS
THOUSAND LAKES
WILDERNESS LODGE
1247 Lake Augusta Road, Liawenee,
Central Highlands, Tasmania;
thousandlakeslodge.com.au
Verdict: A comfortable, cosy base
from which to head out and explore
the stark beauty of the Central
Plateau; a great place to return for
dinner, having worked up an appetite
on a full-day bushwalk.
Score:
We rated: The location of this lodge
is unique – an island of civilisation
in the middle of nowhere. If you’re
looking for a cosy refuge from
Tasmania’s often harsh elements
in front of a roaring fire, this is it.
We’d change: The rooms are just
a little bit functional – lacking the
warm feeling of the lounges.
Notes: We paid $345 dollars a
night for a Lodge Queen Premium
Room, which includes a continental
breakfast. There is also the option
to hire e-bikes: electric-boosted
mountain bikes to explore the area.