At just over 10,000 hectares, Freycinet National Park, on the Freycinet Peninsula midway along the State's east coast, is not especially large. And at that, the vast majority of her visitors never trek much beyond a pocket in the north which is, not coincidentally, where the road stops. It's a shame, really, because the beaches and forests beyond are remarkably pristine and are a delight to all the senses.

Basically you can divide the park into three zones. The first, and most visited, is the Hazards, a chain of very picturesque mountains through which passes the easiest of the three Freycinet tracks.

If you have only 4 hours or so to spare, the Hazards walk is for you. From the main car park (where you'll be besieged by wallabies demanding a handout), the track climbs fairly gently up to a saddle between Mt Amos and Mt Mayson. In half an hour you are at the top, savouring that million dollar view of the perfect glistening beach at Wineglass Bay from a new lookout platform.

The stuff of picture postcards and tourism brochures, Wineglass Bay is an apt name for a seductively shaped bit of coastline so attractive that Her Majesty once requested that her royal yacht be anchored there so she could enjoy the marvellous view with her lunch.

If you feel like pressing on, the track leads you down to the beach itself, some welcome flat terrain passing the Hazards Lagoon and ending up on the peninsula's westerly side. You've just arrived at Hazards Beach, a three kilometre stretch of clean sand fronting onto Great Oyster Bay. From here it's an easy walk to Lemana Lookout with its sweeping vistas of the Tasmanian coast, and on through a dry forest interrupted periodically by tiny creeks. Not long after you pass the old quarry, you're back at the car park again.

A more demanding walk takes you through Freycinet's second sector, which is the heart of the peninsula itself. At Wineglass Bay, instead of crossing to Hazards Lagoon, you walk along the beach heading south east.

In twenty minutes you're climbing, and six kilometres later you're virtually at the top of the 579 metre high Mt Graham. From here the going's much easier. Set out west towards Cooks Beach with its large and forested campground. The return walk to the car park skirts the shore of Great Oyster Bay.

This trek requires at least seven hours return, so most people take it easy and camp at Cooks Beach, thus allowing themselves time for a nice trip due south to the languid and sunny Bryans Beach with its nearby lagoon full of sea birds.

Freycinet has a worthwhile third section, but getting there won't be easy. The uninhabited Schouten Island off the peninsula's southern tip is almost ten kilometres across and is not blessed with particularly well maintained trails, but for the ultimate in get away from it all, this place has your name on it.

Tasmanian author Amanda Lohrey, in a perspective essay on the park, said it was the gentle colours of its features which made Freycinet a place of sublime pleasure. She noted the pinks of the granite, the gold of the banksia cones and the dusky blue-green of the ocean. All this, she wrote is bathed with a warm and mellow light, creating a distinctively sensual mood.

"It seems appropriate that the area has a French name since there is something of the glow of the French Mediterranean here, a hedonistic quality unlike the rugged mountain scenery of the island."

Staying in or near the park is a special pleasure in itself. The new Freycinet Lodge is winning praise from visitors not only for its high standards but for the full and half day tours offered to guests. Flora and Fauna interpretive walks, rock pool exploration, bird watching and star gazing are some of the features.

The area's camping, villa and caravan facilities remain very popular and not too far from the park are the delightful colonial cottages and other fine accommodation choices in Swansea, Coles Bay and Bicheno. Camping facilities within the park itself are located by the beach at Coles Bay. There are powered and unpowered sites, toilets and freshwater available. You should ensure that you bring your own portable stove so as to ensure that you are not caught out by a shortage of firewood or a fire ban.

Many visitors are also discovering the pleasures of camping and exploring around the Friendly Beaches, now officially part of the National Park extending north to Binghams Bay.

For more information phone (002) 57 0107.

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