Hiking the three day Walls of Jerusalem trail near Cradle Mountain, in Tasmania, has been one of my highlights of the year. The wilderness was wild, the mountains were rugged and the weather was varied, to say the least, but most of all the trip was beautifully quiet from start to finish.
Campsites of the Walls of Jerusalem Trail
While planning for our hike, I tried unsuccessfully to find photos of each of the campsites along the Walls of Jerusalem trail so that we could make an informed choice during our three day hike. However, it turned out that a combination of time and weather meant that we made the choice for us as we only just reached Wild Dog Creek campground before dark. I’ve got no regrets as this is a beautiful and quiet campground, although had I known that Dixons Kingdom Campground had even better views, I might have been tempted to push on with the head torches to make camp there instead.
Both Wild Dog and Dixons Kingdom utilise camping platforms with the major difference being that Wild Dog is nestled below a rocky cliff-face while Dixons Kingdom is further back offering better views towards the mountains.
Our campsite for the second night was an easy choice as there is only one option, Lake Adelaide camp. This spot has a variety of grassy pitches, mostly nestled behind shrubby bushes offering some protection from the wind that can scoot along the lake.
Trails of the Walls of Jerusalem
The trails along the Walls of Jerusalem route vary from rugged rocky steps, wet creeks, forested trail, open grassland and large sections of boardwalk. Each terrain has its challenges and adds to the charm of the trail. From the trailhead, you immediately climb several hundred metres of forested trail which puts you up above the tree line and into the open and high plains of the route. Here there are many tarns, a variety of horse and bracken and a mixed and novel variety of trees. Here’s a photographic taste of the variety of trails and trail side views.
Huts of the Walls of Jerusalem trail
I wasn’t expecting to see any historic hits along the Walls of Jerusalem trail so it was a pleasant surprise to discover that there were three along the route. The first was near the top of the first climb, the second just beyond Dixons Kingdom and the third hidden in the forest alongside Lake Ball.
