PRINCE ALBERT'S THRONE Sat. 13th February 2021 (new date)

This walk was postponed from 6th Feb. due to forecast and actual heavy rain in the walk area (and even then, rivers proved too high to safely cross, so Split Rock at Liawenee was climbed instead). All details are otherwise the same.
This rarely visited and relatively unknown peak is located on the central plateau near Julian Lakes, the source of the River Ouse. If the weather is clear, from the summit we can expect nice views of the central plateau and the many lakes to be found there, as well as many distant peaks. We plan to walk in from Lake Augusta and out to the Meander Falls car park, traversing the central plateau in the process, so this is a through walk, not an out and back or circuit. The walk is quite long at over 22 km, and is graded medium/hard because of this. Walkers must be fit enough to cope with a walk of this length. Please also note that the walk will be off track apart from the first 3 km and the last 4 km. It will take us at least 8-9 hours, depending on the group and the weather on the day. Having said that, the walking is not especially difficult for most of the way and is mostly over open terrain, however there are multiple creek crossings that require stepping across and around rocks. It does not involve much climbing up, however there is a 600 m descent at the end. Energetic and fit teenagers may be able to cope with this walk, as long as they can manage the long day of walking.

Walk route:
The walk starts at the Lake Augusta car park, near Liawenee, at an elevation of 1150 m. From there we will walk in a northwesterly direction for about 10 km over about 3-4 hours to get to the summit. We will follow an old 4WD track for the first 3 km and then leave this and walk off track following the northeast bank of the River Ouse. There will be a couple of creek crossings to negotiate in this section. There is a gradual climb of about 50 metres over the first few hours with some gentle undulations and then a steeper 50 m climb to the summit. After lunch there we will continue northeast across the plateau, mostly flat and open easy walking around lakes and tarns and crossing several creeks for about 8 km over 2˝-3 hours until we pick up Dixons Track. From here it takes about 2 hours to cover the 4 km down to the car park. Initially we descend 450m steeply to join the Meander Falls track, then follow this less steeply down another 150m mostly along an old vehicular track to the car park. The cars will be waiting for us there, courtesy of some volunteers who will meet us at Lake Augusta and take our cars to the other end before they head home.

Meeting Times and Places:
Because of the need to plan vehicles and drivers for the car shuttle, if you are interested in joining this walk, please phone, text or email the leader, Phil Andrew, on 6300 1067, 0408 014 757, or pandrew.tas@gmail.com by Wednesday 10th February at the latest to book. Because of the driving time and the long walk an early start is needed. The departure time is 7:00 am from Door of Hope carpark in South Launceston. The alternative meeting place/time is at the "train park" in Deloraine at 7:35 am. (If coming from east, cross the bridge and turn right at the roundabout). If you would like to arrange to meet there or elsewhere, please arrange with the leader, and please be at any meeting place 5 minutes ahead of the listed time. The leader must be notified of any other people you intend to bring along.

To access this area from northern Tasmania:
From Launceston, head towards Deloraine on the Bass Highway (50 km) and take the first (eastern) turn from the highway into Deloraine. Continue into the town and turn left immediately before the bridge (unless going to the meeting place across the main bridge and turn right to find toilets and old locomotive - see above). From there head south along the "Lake Highway" - now officially Highland Lakes Rd. (but the first bit may be called Meander Rd!). Make sure to turn left after 7 km at signposted junction for Highland Lakes Rd.  Continue south through Golden Valley, up past Quamby Bluff and Projection Bluff and past Pine Lake. Continue south through Breona, Brandum and other groups of shacks along shores of Great Lake until just before you reach Liawenee, approx. 57 km from Deloraine. The road is sealed all the way to this point. Turn right here onto the Lake Augusta road. Follow this dirt road for 13 km until you reach the car park at the northern end of the dam. This is where we will start the walk.

Warnings:
D...   Drive distance requires early departure
E...   Exposed alpine conditions – can be dangerous in poor weather if not fully equipped
L...    A long day’s walk – in excess of 3 hours each way.
M...  Marshy or muddy sections – be prepared to walk with wet feet.
S...  Steep incline (actually decline) for at least part of the way

Because of the creek crossings, and also other areas that could be quite wet especially after heavy rain, it would be good for walkers to wear good sturdy boots (waterproof would be a nice bonus). Gaiters recommended due to off-track walking. It might also be good for walkers to bring some water shoes in case we have to wade across some of the creeks. You should always carry wet weather gear as well as warm clothing in case of sudden weather changes. This walk will be mostly above 1150m altitude so please be prepared for cold and wet weather regardless of the forecast.

Click this link for a more detailed discussion of Preparation, Food and Safety guidelines for Boots N' All walks, and especially preparation for exposed alpine conditions.

Map details:
Prince Albert's Throne: 1:100000 map is Meander (8214) and 1:25000 map is Pillans (4437).
Map reference: n/a
Zone      Easting        Northing     Latitude       Longitude
55G 4 58 300 53 72 470 -41.79854 146.49806

No peakbagger points will be reached on this trip. For listing of peakbagger points, see the Hobart Walking Club Peakbagger’s Guide (2000 revision) which can be found and downloaded (as an Excel spreadsheet) from http://tastracks.webs.com/peakbaggers.htm  The same web page contains several other listings of Tasmanian peaks.
For GPX (.gpx) and Google Earth (.kml) versions of the track: Click here to browse our collection.
Direct links: GPX for this walk  KML for this walk