Overland Trek, Cradle Mountain - Lake St. Clair
January 1994. Tasmania, Australia. Duration: 9 days
The overland trek is good and easy. I did it in January 1994, north to south. Despite being summer the weather was shit, rain, the track soaked in places, and snow (blizzards) on the pass. the next week it was hot, ca la vie. The problem of the track being boggy was partly alleviated by the long sections of duck board which make walking easy. being january there were quite a few people on the walk. I walked alone, carried lots of food, camped most of the time but did squeeze into some huts a couple of times. one hut I even had to myself so I stayed 2 nights there to relax in October it should be relatively quiet, but the weather can still be wild. in general it compares a bit with wild parts of scotland, but it is more wild really, and many many more animals and birds around. camping spots were mostly good and not overly crowded, though some huts were; but again, that was january.
I think it's a great walk, not hard at all, some nice views (partic cradle mtn, and mt ossa would be worth it if its not in cloud), and the great natural wonderland that Tassie is.
But if you want more remoteness I'd consider doing as well/as alternative the neighboring walk, think it's called the Walls of Jerusalem; walkers told me there was almost nobody on it. or more remotely the SW path in Tassie, now that really is remote and requires planning; I would love to do it someday.
In summary I'd say its a good and straight forward walk to introduce one to tassies wilderness. the track is well marked (too well, some would say) but that makes it easy. There's good transport in at both ends, including the boat off Lake St Clair in the south, although I'd check with the rangers station if the transport has started in october - probably but I am unsure. I also hitched around off the end of lake St Clair, and around tassie. no obvious advantage going South-North against North-South or vice versa, as far as I am aware. I think most do it North-South.
Happy walking!