A guide to the Mount Anne Circuit

If you are looking for a multiday hiking challenge in Tasmania, this one has to top the list. I say hiking, but there is more scrambling than actual walking on this 34 kilometre loop. This is Tasmanian wilderness at its best and is not for the faint hearted.

Overview:

·      Location — Southwest National Park, Tasmania

·      Best season — November - March. I went in May when I saw a stellar weather window but the trail, especially up high on the rocks, was icy and very slippery. The daylight hours were short as well so I had to move fast.

·      Length — 34 kilometres. The actual trail is 26km while 8 kms is road linking you back to the start. If you are lucky (I wasn't) you can hitch this part.

·      Average time — 2-5 days

·      Cost — National Parks Pass required ($95.50AUD for two months for one vehicle of up to 8 people)

·      Registration - You must register HERE. You can take up to 5 nights to complete the hike. There are only 12 spots available each day due to limited tent platforms (summer season books out quickly!)

·      Start location — Condominium Creek Carpark

·      End location — Condominium Creek Carpark

·      Facilities — Tent platforms, open air drop toilets, gas stoves only (no fires)

·      Difficulty — Grade 5, extremely challenging. Highly experienced hikers only

Mount Anne Summit Magical Shelf Camp Route to shelf camp

Helpful insights:

Be flexible – if you are flying in from interstate, allow for bad weather days. You might get stuck for a few extra nights and don’t want to push in bad weather because of a flight.

Getting there – I drove my car to the trail head. You could hitch a ride from Hobart or book through companies like The Tasmanian Adventure Company although it's probably cheaper to just rent a car if you will only take 3 days and are more than one person.

Fitness – this trail is an all fours hike. This means once you pass the first emergency shelter there is LOTS of scrambling. You need to be very comfortable with using your upper body to navigate the terrain, walking along ridges that drop off into nothingness and low grade rock climbing. Your knees will suffer coming down from the ridge so I suggest many months of solid lower body strength training leading up to your trip. It will really help your confidence if you have some rock climbing experience, either indoor or outdoor. There are some sketchy moves in places, but they are very acheivable if you know how to "stem" and look for hand and foot placements properly.

Water – there are lots of small lakes and streams along the trail, even up high. I boiled my water and/or used a Sawyer filter.

Campsites – stick to the set wooden platforms or the flat rock areas at shelf camp. Always use the toilets provided, being open air they are surprisingly pleasant. There is a toilet at the trail head, memorial hut, shelf camp and lonely tarns camp.

Image from All Trails - Overview of Mount Anne Circuit

Weather – you can get all seasons (snow, rain, wind, sun) year round, so be prepared for everything. Keep an eye on the forecast and wait it out if big storms are predicted. In the winter months the trail is dangerously icy, especially once you get close to Mount Anne and up on the ridge line. Hold on tight.

Mud – there will be lots, mostly after the lonely tarns. Just dive in, because it is unavoidable. some of the last few kilometres Tis walking through a creek bed, so you will be wet, but then the duck board finish helps you dry out a bit. There is a river to wash in at the trailhead for a clean drive back to Hobart.

Navigation – Download the All Trails map of the circuit. This kept me on target when the trail gets a little tough to see through the boulder fields. Grab yourself a paper map

My starting pack weight – About 15 kilograms. I took lots of snacks and fresh food because I knew I wouldn't have to carry much water at any one time.

Rope – I didn't take rope. I hiked this one solo.

The carpark with toilet facilities Stairs heading up to Mount Eliza Above the fog line

My itinerary:

You can break up the trail however you like while sticking to the set campgrounds. I took only 2 days, with one night at shelf camp. You have 5 days to complete the trail as part of your booking, with a maximum 3 days at the most wonderful camp on Earth – Shelf Camp.

The terrain is tough. Take your time each day, do some side trips if you are making good time and stop for breaks to take in the scenery.

I couldn't get a hitch for the road section so ended up walking it, 4 of those kilometres being in the dark. It was a long day. I camped at the trail head before driving home the next morning.

Start date: May 13th 2026 at 10:30am Travel direction: Clockwise

Day 1: Condominium Creek Carpark – Shelf Camp (via Mount Anne summit) 9.5km

Day 2: Shelf Camp – Condominium Creek Carpark 25km

Other itinerary suggestions

Option 1:

Day 1: Condominium Creek Carpark – Shelf Camp

Day 2: Shelf Camp – Mount Anne (base or summit) – Lonely Tarns Camp

Day 3: Lonely Tarns Camp – Condominium Creek Carpark

Option 2:

Day 1: Condominium Creek Carpark – High Camp Emergency Hut

Day 2: High Camp Emergency Hut – Shelf Camp (via Mount Anne base or summit)

Day 3: Shelf camp – Lonely Tarns Camp

Day 4: Lonely Tarns Camp – Condominium Creek Carpark

Side Trips:

Mount Anne - you technically don't have to go all the way to Mount Anne to complete the circuit, but you might as well. There is a clear fork in the trail that takes you either down towards shelf camp or further along toward Mount Anne. Dump your bag and take the essentials.

This is also a good trial run to see if you should continue to close the circuit. If you feel uneasy getting to the base of Mount Anne, it could be a good idea to sleep at shelf camp and go back down the same way you came up; the trail only gets more exposed from camp onward.

I went all the way up the summit. If you need technical advice on which way to go for the final section, then you shouldn't attempt it. If you have climbing skills, the route will be fairly obvious to you.

Lake Judd - an optional extra night stay if you get your timings wrong for daylight hours

Mount Sarah Jane - a short extra summit bag if you feel that way inclined

Tent platform at high camp Memorial emergency hut From the hut the scramble begins!

Gear:

I have put together a comprehensive ‘Tasmanian Hiking & Camping Checklist’ that you can download. This covers everything I took. The list below covers a few specifics that might help and the few pieces that were different.

Food

I went all in because I knew I had room - pots of Pho, oat bars, baby bell cheese, carrot and cucumber sticks, hommus, ham, sourdough and of course dark chocolate. It was a spread, and I regretted nothing.

Sleeping bag

I took my -10 Kathmandu mummy and actually had it unzipped which is rare for May.

Shoes

I wore Merrell Rogue boots. Make sure your shoes are grippy to stick to the rock as much as possible.

Tent

For this trip I used the Nature Hike Cloud up 1 as I was solo. Because Shelf Camp is exposed and without tent platforms it helped to have a free standing tent.

Lonely tarns tent platform Just before descending to lonely tarns Mud holes on the way out

The Mount Anne Circuit does not disappoint. You can build towards completing the whole circuit by first heading to high camp, then returning to the car; then move to shelf camp for the night on your next trip; then eventually closing the whole circuit. If you are thinking of hiking the trail and have any questions, leave a comment below and I will do my best to help you out.

See you on the trails!