![A 360° panorama from Marion’s Lookout, with views [from left] of Lake Lilla, Dove Lake, and Cradle Mountain on the horizon at right.](images/1102-5D-3841-3860.jpg "A 360° panorama from Marion’s Lookout, with views [from left] of Lake Lilla, Dove Lake, and Cradle Mountain on the horizon at right.")
![Cradle Mountain [height 1545m] stands on the horizon over a small alpine pool. Benson Peak [1368m high] in the distance at right.](images/1102-5D-3868.jpg "Cradle Mountain [height 1545m] stands on the horizon over a small alpine pool. Benson Peak [1368m high] in the distance at right.")
![The trail to Kitchen Hut, an emergency shelter, and onward to the summit of Cradle Mountain [elevation 1545m]. Little Horn [elevation 1355m] stands at left, a little separated from the rest of the ridge.](images/1102-5D-3885-3887.jpg "The trail to Kitchen Hut, an emergency shelter, and onward to the summit of Cradle Mountain [elevation 1545m]. Little Horn [elevation 1355m] stands at left, a little separated from the rest of the ridge.")
![Looking up at Little Horn [elevation 1355m] from the descent off the Face Track down to Lake Wilks. A currawong shares the view. Currawongs resemble crows, but are only distantly related.](images/1102-5D-3916.jpg "Looking up at Little Horn [elevation 1355m] from the descent off the Face Track down to Lake Wilks. A currawong shares the view. Currawongs resemble crows, but are only distantly related.")
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6 Jan 2011: Tasmania - Cradle Mountain [photos from 3-4 Jan 2011]
Tasmania is Australia's smallest and most mountainous state, and lies south of the state of Victoria on the mainland of the Australian continent, across the Bass Strait. I spent four days getting a taste of Tassie, and it was not enough. However, it was delicious. I hope I get the chance to go back and spend more time there some day.
Tasmania is a special place in that it contains large, contiguous wilderness areas that are now on the World Heritage registry. As the world's population continues to grow, and people continue to believe that success is measured by consumption, the human race has become a very efficient mechanism for converting the finite natural resources on this planet to a seemingly infinite pile of garbage. We are all bombarded each and every day by advertising that tells us we must consume to be happy. And that our consumption must increase.
So, things that need to be preserved as they are and that generate no significant tax revenue are increasingly hard for communities and their politicians to support. All the more remarkable that nearly a quarter of Tasmania has been protected - 19 national parks and the World Heritage areas.
Even some of these locations in Tassie are in danger of being "loved to death"; fortunately steps are being taken to enforce limits on use to reduce damage and allow for recovery.
Cradle Mountain area, Tasmania
The map is centered approximately on Marion’s Lookout. Dove Lake lies on the right/east side of the map.
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