Boating highlights of Tasmania

The biggest mental hurdle for many people is the patch of water in the middle, Bass Strait, but the Spirit of Tasmania ferry is as civilised a start to a fishing trip as you’ll find. Roll on in Victoria, grab a feed, sleep in a proper cabin, and roll off in Devonport the next morning.

Two brand-new ships, Spirit of Tasmania IV and Spirit of Tasmania V, are due to start carrying passengers from October 31 this year. Each can carry up to 1800 passengers, with 301 cabins and more than 4000 lane metres of vehicle space.

My tip? Book early, especially over summer and school holidays, and measure your full rig before you book.

From Bicheno, the journey headed south to the Tasman Peninsula. I based myself at the NRMA Port Arthur Holiday Park, perfectly placed for Eaglehawk Neck … a skinny strip of sand joining the Tasman Peninsula to the rest of Tasmania. 

Launch from Pirates Bay and you’re only 7nm (13km) from some of the best southern bluefin tuna grounds anywhere – Hippolyte Rocks and Tasman Island. The scenery is unreal, with towering dolerite cliffs dropping straight into deep blue water. 

The season traditionally kicks off around late summer and can run well into winter. I headed out with Mures Fishing, and when the reel finally screamed, I took my time and brought my very first southern bluefin tuna to the boat.

We tasted it fresh, straight off the frame, and then Executive Chef Stefan Schroder at Mures Fish Centre in Hobart turned it into sashimi, tuna belly with fermented green chilli oil, and tuna steaks with char-grilled figs.

Here’s the honest bit though. This is serious open-ocean boating, the weather can change in a heartbeat and the swell off Tasman Island is no joke. 

Next stop was Hobart, where I set up at the BIG4 Hobart Airport Tourist Park. Not many capital cities in the world have a river like the Derwent running through them, with Mount Wellington (Kunanyi) towering over it.

The estuary is described by Tasmania’s Inland Fisheries Service as the best black bream fishery in Australia, and the stretch from Bridgewater down to the Tasman Bridge is prime bream territory. That said, health authorities advise against eating bream and shellfish from here because of heavy metal contamination, so treat your bream as catch-and-release. 

I fished out of a small boat, and that’s honestly all you need. There are ramps at places like Bridgewater, Old Beach, Austins Ferry, Montrose Bay and Prince of Wales Bay, and plenty of bays are sheltered enough for a tinnie or even a kayak.

For the final leg, I left the coast behind and headed uphill to Miena, on the shores of Great Lake (Yingina). It’s a totally different Tasmania up here: cold, quiet, wild and dotted with lakes, lagoons and streams full of trout. 

My base was the Great Lake Hotel, a proper highland pub with powered sites, a roaring fire and a general store for supplies. 

Jason from Miena Guiding Tasmania took me out on Penstock Lagoon on one of those foggy highland mornings that feel almost sacred. And then it happened – a big, beautiful brown trout, my first ever brown and my first ever fish on fly. 

For boaties, the Highlands are brilliant small-boat water, but you’ll need an Inland Fisheries Service licence to fish for trout, rules vary between waters, and it’s vital to check, clean and dry your boat and gear between waterways.

If Tassie is sitting in your ‘one day’ basket like it was in mine, do yourself a favour. Book the Spirit, hitch up and go.