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VALLEYS OF TALL TREES
DERWENT VALLEY is famous for its forests, lakes and tall trees. From NEW NORFOLK you are within an hour or less of HOBART, BOTHWELL, OATLANDS, RICHMOND, MAYDENA and the Mt FIELD National Park.
View Region Derwent Valley in a larger map
SIGHTS: The Derwent Valley is a beautiful region of forests, mountains, waterfalls and lakes. However, these attractions are far apart and you need to carefully consider what you are realistically going to see from where you choose to stay. My green road map above should show you the road access problems.
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PEDDER and GORDON are famous lakes in the extreme west of the Derwent Region. They are accessed by the B61 Gordon River Road. The only accommodation is at STRATHGORDON.
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LAKE St CLAIR is a beautiful lake in the north of the Derwent Region. It is accessed from the A10 Lyell Highway. DERWENT BRIDGE, at the southern end of Lake St Clair, is the exit point for the OVERLAND Trail that begins at CRADLE MOUNTAIN.
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TARRALEAH, in the north of the Derwent Region, is the site of the large hydro electric complex and has an interesting 1950s time warp town with much accommodation.
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NEW NORFOLK is the commercial hub of this area as well as a historic town with many interesting heritage buildings. It is also a great place to stay for touring this region.
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Mt FIELD National Park is west of New Norfolk. It contains the famous RUSSELL FALLS and many great walking trails.
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MAYDENA, which is west of Mt Field, has the famous JUNEE CAVE, plus great walks in the STYX and FLORENTINE forests with their famous tall trees. There are also first class mountain bike trails.
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SOUTH WEST NATIONAL PARK, with its vast pristine forests and mountains, can be accessed from a trail south of Lake Pedder.
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Mt ANNE, with its spectacular views, is also accessed from a trail east of Lake Pedder.
ACCOMMODATION: NEW NORFOLK is the best location for visiting a number of attractions. There is some accommodation in the hamlets in this region, but note where these places are, as they are quite isolated from each other. There is some accommodation at Mt FIELD, MAYDENA, STRATHGORDON and TARRALEAH.
ROUTES: The DERWENT VALLEY is the southern part of the Central Mountains area. The area is divided by two separate highways, which both begin at NEW NORFOLK.
The west of the Derwent Valley is dominated by the B61 Gordon River Road, which goes west to Mt FIELD, MAYDENA then on to STRATHGORDON.
The north of the Derwent Valley is dominated by the A10 Lyell Highway. It travels north west to TARRALEAH, then to DERWENT BRIDGE and then on to QUEENSTOWN on the WEST COAST.
Both highways are quite separate in their destinations. Further, the B61 Gordon River Highway is a dead end that has no connections to any other routes.
