Monday 22 June 2009
Estimates Committee B (O'Byrne)

NEW TRACK – THE THREE CAPES

Mr FINCH - Minister, in your introduction you mentioned a new track.

Ms O'BYRNE - The Three Capes.

Mr FINCH - Can you tell me something about that?

Ms O'BYRNE - Yes, it's fabulous!

Mr FINCH - Where is it, what does it cover and what sort of allocation has been made to it?

Ms O'BYRNE - At this stage we have spent $200 000 doing a commercial interest process whereby we could see whether or not there is any interest in providing a service.  We have data from the research we have done, which has included some community consultation and also some ‑ polling is the wrong word ‑ continued research about what people want.  We have found that Cradle Mountain is getting to a point where there is a peak season when everyone wants to come, we require them to book in, they book in very early, and a lot of people miss out or potentially miss out.  There is clearly a demand for another significant walk within Tasmania that is supported and run in a similar sort of way, with a similar sort of outcome, as Cradle Mountain.

This goes from White Beach and finishes at Fortescue Bay, with a boat trip to Pirates Bay.  So it is Cape Raoul, Cape Pillar, Cape Hauy, that whole area in the Tasman peninsula.  We have $200 000 for that, bearing in mind that we are yet to receive any formal planning approval and such opportunities.  We have really just gone out to see if people are interested, and we have had significant interesting from people in being partners with us or potentially completely running a facility themselves.  I have a view that we would want to still be a bit of a player, because we need to make sure that we will always have community access to these walks as well.

The total estimated investment, we would assume, would be around $29 million in order to develop the track to the level it would need to be.  We have a map of the alignment and the sort of impact that it would have.  I could go through that now, but I am happy to get Stuart Lennox at some stage to brief members, if anyone is interested in going down and having a look at the capacity for a 4‑day or 5‑day walk down there.

That would also mean there are bits of the walk that you could do as shorter walks as well.  But it means a range of experiences from your hard‑core experience where you are carrying everything yourself and you will be in a tent, through to the more managed one where you carry your water and they prepare your food at each point, in the same way that we have at Cradle Mountain, that whole range of ‑

CHAIR - Is there a DVD available?  Five days does not suit me.  
Laughter. 
Mr FINCH - We will bring one back for you, Chair.

Ms O'BYRNE - I am sure we could find something for you.