Remarkable landscape includes one of the best beaches no-one knows about

As is the way with a group of strangers,there’s a meet and greet and sharing of that brief – and excruciating for some – autobiography. Our guides,Celeste Harris and Jonty Richards throw in a little diversion when they suggest we also name the kitchen utensil we’d be. I think I might make friends with Rod,from Queensland,when he unmasks himself as a coffee machine.

Turns out it’s a relaxed and friendly group of a dozen walkers – half from Queensland,a scattering of other mainlanders,a couple of Tasmanians and some from as far afield as Mexico and England’s Lake District,all keen to stretch their legs on the Tasmanian Walking Company’s Tasman Long Weekend;a soft adventure in a remarkable landscape.

Our destination,the Tasman Peninsula,hangs off the lower part of Tasmania’s East Coast and hosts the Three Capes Track. Despite the name,in its current form,that track only accesses two of the three capes – Huay and Pillar. Our first day’s walking on this trip,the Tasman Long Weekend,will take us to the third,Cape Raoul. But first,there’s a boat ride.

Day 1,Cape Raoul

Our gear,less anything we need for the walk,goes into the mini-bus and we wander through the city and down to the wharf where skipper Leif Theil welcomes us aboard Wild Thing – an open boat with some big outboard motors at the back. There’s a fair swell running as we make our way out of the River Derwent and across Storm Bay,and while it’s no problem for Theil and the way he handles the boat,in calm conditions it would take no time at all to cruise out past Cape Raoul and even on to Tasman Island.

As it is,we make for the shelter of the wharf at Nubeena,hop back aboard the mini-bus and head for the Cape Raoul walking track,a cruisy there-and-back 16-kilometre walk,first through forest and over creeks,admiring the trees and little animal-shaped native orchids hiding beneath them,then on to the clifftops above the coast. The wind is making a maelstrom of the sea and as we close in on Cape Raoul,it’s also punishing a would-be waterfall. There’s a tarn near the Cape that is overflowing after recent rain. The overflow is trying to be a waterfall down a narrow gully to the sea,but the wind is blowing so hard,the waterfall is retreating to the tarn as spray. This could go on like Sisyphus.

From here,we look up the coast towards Tasman Island and down past the formidable Shipstern Bluff,one of the world’s wildest surf breaks,and out to Bruny Island and the Hartz Mountains in the distance. Our guides are worried about the wind,so we avoid the final ascent,head back to the bus and on to our base for the trip – the stunning Crescent Bay Camp.

The camp sits on a secluded parcel of land just down the coast from the Port Arthur Historic Site. The big windows of its central lodge frame views of a distant Tasman Island. Behind the lodge is an amenities block and its outdoor basins – never have my teeth been brushed in such a setting. Accommodation is in glamping-style tents,each on its own solid platform (more about that tomorrow night) that also forms a deck. Inside are big,comfortable,beds – unzip the canvas and the views to the north unfold over grass and gum trees to the rocky shores and waters of Port Arthur,to the cliffs and peaks of the Peninsula beyond.

Back in the lodge,there’s a platter with cheese and olives to go along with beer and bonhomie before a dinner of fresh fish and Tasmanian wines.

Day 2,Cape Huay

Breakfast comes with a serve of sunshine - yesterday’s grey seas are now blue and shimmering with diamonds of sunlight and barely a breeze and before long,we’re back in the mini-bus for the short drive to Fortescue Bay and the track to Cape Huay.

Should you happen to live or work in a city high-rise,then you are all set to train for the Cape Huay walk – just avoid the lift and use the stairs. The spectacle that is the Cape makes the effort worthwhile,but the track involves many steps and some of them are steep.

Up we go,over little bridges for the creek crossings and on through the bush,Oyster Bay pines here and there and plenty of silver banksia,which Harris explains was vital for Indigienous Tasmanians as a way of transporting fire. Lunch is off the track not far from our destination – salads and cookies from Pigeon Whole bakers in Hobart and hot coffee courtesy of our guides.

Up on the Cape,the final part of the track hugs the clifftops,winds past some brave trees turned bonsai by the weather,and leads to a lookout as dramatic as you’ll find anywhere. The views stretch to Maria Island and Freycinet in the distance,and they’re enriching enough,but if you’re OK with heights,then look down over the railing to the sea boiling below,seabirds circling and seals diving for fish.

There are even a couple of rocky pillars – the Candlestick and Totem Pole – that rock climbers sail out to scale. No lack of challenge at this Cape.

Back down the track,into the bus and we’re at the camp by mid-afternoon,all the better to have some time to relax and enjoy the camp and surrounds in daylight before a barbecue dinner.

Day 3,Crescent Bay

Did I mention the tents were on a solid platform? About 4am the wind starts to blow and this is no gentle breeze,this is a full-on assault,but both tent and platform hold their ground. It’s a well-built camp.

The weather slows the walking though,and our itinerary is trimmed to follow a track through the forests to Crescent Bay,with a beach that would have to rate in Australia’s top 10,if anybody knew about it – few people make the journey here.

There’s an unlikely friendship of birds on the beach with a pair of pied oyster catchers and a pair of hooded plovers. We keep our distance,but the oyster catchers still strut about nervously,uncertain of our intrusion and the little plovers follow in their wake,legs moving with cartoon-like speed.

Back to camp for the last time with the wind still whipping up those white caps on the waters off the Peninsula. We’ve seen it in every mood,with colours to match:a grey and stormy Saturday with battalions of showers marching across the water;a bright blue Sunday with the water shining like diamonds;and wild white horses on Monday.

Our final stop is Bangor Winery on the Forestier Peninsula,separated from the Tasman by the narrow Eaglehawk Neck. We’re here for a wine tasting and long-table lunch and to hear the history of this part of Tasmania,before and after white settlement.

Fine way to farewell a group of new friends.

Jim Darby was a guest of the Tasmanian Walking Company.