Frenchmans Cap is a striking peak in Tasmania’s Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park. This is a challenging and rewarding multi-day hike through Tassie’s alpine region. The entire track is outright breath-taking, with diverse landscapes and ripper views.
Hiking Frenchmans Cap was one of the great joys of my year. Tasmania’s National Parks are kind of everything. I can’t recommend this trail more strongly.
Frenchmans Cap Summary
Here’s, in brief, what you need to know about Frenchmans Cap:
Registration/booking:
You need to register for this hike. It’s free. You can do that here.
Permit
There is no permit system for Frenchmans Cap (unlike the Overland Track) but you do need a Tasmanian Parks Pass, which is between $22 and $90 depending on the length of your stay and any concessions.
Location
Frenchmans Cap is located in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park.
Parking
Car park off the Lyell Highway.
Distance
47-54km depending on who you consult.
Form
There and back.
Highest point
The summit of Frenchmans Cap is 1,446m.
Elevation gain
2,700m.
Grade
The National Park puts this at a Grade 4. There can be wild weather, there are steep and slippery sections of trail with near vertical stairs. I will keep saying it, but you don’t want to mess around with the Tassie alpine regions. The are beautiful and wild, but you must be prepared. This hike is for experienced hikers, experienced trail runners or beginners who can tag along with an experienced friend or hiking group.
Camping/huts
There are two huts on the trail at Lake Vera and Lake Tahune. They sleep 20 and 24 respectively. They both have rainwater tanks and toilets. No mattresses or cooking facilities.
Fires
Fires are prohibited in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park. Fuel stoves only.
Rangers
In summer there is one ranger stationed at one of the two huts.
Wildlife
So cute, so soft. But don’t feed them. They want your food. But you ant give it to them. Also there are snakes. Take a snake bandage.
Safety
This is a Tasmanian alpine area. The weather can change rapidly. Snow, wind, rain and sun are all possible at all times of year. Make good choices and don’t compromise on safety. Take a PLB, a warm sleeping bag, a fuel stove and note down your trip intentions and make sure you’re drinking water out there. Read the safety information on the national park website. Make sure you have a first aid kit, including a snake bandage. It’s Australia, folks, just do it. My gear list is here.
Leave no trace
There are two toilets on this trail, but pack a trowel and toilet paper in case. Let’s keep these places wild and free of human excrement.
Registration for Frenchmans Cap
The Frenchamns Cap track requires registration which can be done following this link or you can access it through the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service website.
How to get to the Frenchmans Cap Trailhead
If you want to hike the Frenchamns Cap track, you gotta get to the trailhead. And it’s pretty remote. It is located west of the Derwent Bridge on the Lyell Highway. This is about a three hour drive from Hobart and a similar distance from Launceston.
– Car: this is the easiest way. It gives you flexibility and more freedom to adjust your itinerary while you’re on the Frenchmans Cap trail. We used a carshare service and it was great. Not too expensive either, when we added up how expensive it would be to get one of the private shuttles out there. There are a stack of parks available and its free. The Lyell Highway is very easy to find and follow to the trailhead.
– Hitchhiking: Hitchhiking is definitely possible, and more so in summer. The way back is straightforward, especially with all the cars that will be leaving the Frenchmans Cap trailhead.
– Public Transport: There is a public bus service that operates from Hobart to Queenstown (west coast of Tassie). This service operates once a day on Tuesdays and Fridays and goes down the Lyell Highway and stops at the Frenchmans Cap track trailhead. The latest timetable is here. It takes about 4 hours to get to the trailhead and it’ll cost you around $33. My recommendation would be to bus out and hitch back if you wanted to keep costs down. But make sure you really plan around this as its only Tuesdays and Fridays.
– Facebook Groups: Join the Tassie Hiking Adventures and Hiking & Bushwalking in Tasmania facebook groups and drop in when you’ll be heading out there and if anyone can give you a lift. I’ve had friends have a lot of success. Offer to pay petrol.
What I did
The trailhead is next to a car park 29km west of the Derwent Bridge on the Lyell Highway.
We flew into Hobart and stayed one night. We used our spare time to head to the outdoor gear shops to get Strive meals (really excellent freeze dried meal options made in Tassie), gas canisters for our fuel stove (you cant take those on planes) and other basics. The next morning we picked up our carshare and drove straight to the Frenchmans Cap car park on the Lyell Highway, about a three hour drive north west of Hobart. We left the hire car at the trailhead, which was completely fine. Read below for the Frenchmans Cap trail itineraries. On the other side, we managed to reach the car by about 11am so were back in Hobart in time for a beer and feed.
We spent another day in Hobart and then dropped the hire car off and flew home. This worked out to be a great extended weekend option for us. We could have taken weeks to explore all the hikes Tassie has to offer, but this option is great as a shorter trip, in and out of Hobart, if you don’t have weeks to explore.
Frenchmans Cap Itinerary Options
Distances are approximate. All trails, the blogs and Tassie parks all have different distances listed which is confusing.
Option One – in and out
Day 1: 47.4km – Trailhead to trailhead.
This option is only for the masochistic trail runners who go in and out in one go with nothing but their vest and Clif shots. You also have to blaze right passed Lake Vera Hut and Lake Tahune Hut, ain’t no rest for trail runners.
Option Two – overnight on Frenchmans Cap
Day 1: 23.7km – Trailhead to Frenchmans Cap
Day 2: 23.7km – Frenchmans Cap to Trailhead
This option is not for the feint hearted either. 23km isn’t a terribly long distance to knock out in a day, but there is a serious gradient on parts of the Frenchmans Cap track. There are numerous sections where three points of contact is required. And if you select this option, there isn’t a lot of time to relax or enjoy nature. Also the two lakes are both great places to stay or set up camp around. There are also some insane views of, and from the top of, Frenchmans Cap, that you might want to spend a bit more time enjoying. The Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park is ridiculously beautiful and I would strongly, strongly recommend taking more time in there if you’re not just in it for the physical challenge.
This option also means camping at the top of Frenchmans Cap, which to be fair would be spectacular, but only if the weather is with you. I was on the summit of Frenchmans Cap on a glorious blue bird day so could see the appeal. But you won’t always have good weather and wind, rain or snow (which are not uncommon on Tasmania’s National Parks) would very much change my assessment of whether it was safe to stay up there. Also, there’s very little flat ground up there, so with more than one person you’d really need to cowboy camp to reduce your footprint.
Option Three – splitting the difference
Day 1: 20.5km – Trailhead to Lake Tahune Hut
Day 2: 11.9km – Lake Tahune Hut to Frenchmans Cap Summit to Lake Vera Hut
Day 3: 15km – Lake Vera Hut to Trailhead
This is a good compromise for those who have a small window of time to do this hike, but who don’t want to endure the physical torture of doing it as an overnight. My advice here is to start early. You even want to sleep at the trailhead the night before. Do not to underestimate the section between Lake Vera Hut and Lake Tahune Hut. It’s a steep climb and slow going. Make sure you check the weather conditions and know when you plan on getting across Barron Pass and when you’re planning to summit Frenchmans Cap.
Option Four – the most chill approach
Day 1: 15km – Trailhead to Lake Vera Hut
Day 2: 5.5km – Lake Vera Hut to Lake Tahune Hut
Day 3: 6.4km – Lake Tahune Hut to Frechman’s Cap summit to Lake Tahune Hut
Day 4: 5.5km – Lake Tahune Hut to Lake Vera
Day 5: 15km – Lake Vera to Trailhead
This is the most relaxed option. I would strongly recommend it for less experienced hikers and also for anyone who just wanted to take their time and enjoy being in nature. If I did the Frenchmans Cap track again, I’d do this. It gives you time to swim and make camp early and sit for longer at thebest view spots including Barron Pass.
It also gives you a better shot of timing your summit attempt in a good weather window. If the weather is clear when you get to Lake Tahune Hut on Day 2, you could drop your gear and head straight up. Otherwise, you can wait it out, swim in Lake Tahune (absolutely do this) and summit the following morning. If sunrise summits are your thing then this itinerary gives you an excellent shot at this over multiple days (morning of Day 3 or 4).
What I did
Day 1: 15km – Trailhead to Lake Vera Hut
From the car park, the first few kilometres Rare very easy to follow and take you down to the hiker registration box near at the Franklin River where you can fill in your trip intentions. You’ll then come to the first swing bridge and cross the beautiful Franklin River.
At the other side of the swing bridge you’ll get to the ‘Footwear Cleaning Station’ and it’s really important that you clean your shoes and gaiters here. Frenchmans Cap is a priority site in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area and your well-loved but filthy hiking shoes might be carrying soil or plant material that is contaminated with fungus and other diseases which kills native plants and disrupts the local ecosystems. So, get in there and give them a good clean.
After some climbing and crossing a button grass filled plain, you’ll reach the Lodden River and another suspension bridge. There are campsite here on both sides of the river. The ones to the south are much better than the northern bank campsites. We camped here on the way out at the end of day three. It may not be the most recommended camping locations but it was a good distance for us.
The track is then fairly flat to Lake Vera, including boardwalks and raised track. No need to skirt bogs anymore, there has been some major track work to make the trail less sodden. Lake Vera Hut sleeps 20 and there are tent platforms nearby, which I would strongly recommend. There are stellar views of the surrounding rages from the platforms and button-grass plains all around. There is a rainwater tank and drop toilet.
Day 2: 11.9km – Lake Vera Hut to Lake Tahune Hut via Frenchmans Cap Summit
Don’t underestimate the track from Lake Vera Hut to Lake Tahune Hut. We were all, “it’s not going to take us 4 hours to hike 5.5km because we’re experienced hikers and that’s a short distance”. Well, it did. And we were well and truly humbled. The Frenchmans Cap track climbs steeply upwards.
To be fair, we had full packs and probably too much food. So, it was slow going through the rainforest up to Barron Pass and White Needle. The ascent to Barron Pass is covered by exposed tree roots and boulders, so be prepared for three points of contact at times.
Once you reach Barron Pass and the White Needle, the climb will feel worth it. The views are specular. Barron Pass is striking. If you have poor weather, take care here. You need to cross an exposed rocky alpine plateau which even on a clear day had strong gusting winds at times. You will then cross alpine heathland and climb down to Tahune Hut, which is nestled in bush.
And don’t worry, if you’re struggling to take in the beauty of it, or you’re rushing because you’re on a compressed schedule, you’ll get another chance to admire Barron Pass on the way back. THat’s the gift of the Frenchmans Cap trail being a there and back. You get to see it all twice.
The new Lake Tahune Hut sleeps 24 and is pretty lush. I’ll leave the details a surprise. There’s a drop toilet of the helicopter pad, a rainwater tank and raised tent platforms outside the hut. The views here are… beyond.
Make sure you swim at the lake. Weather permitting.
The Summit of Frenchmans Cap
Ah, the third day. The summit of Frenchmans cap is about 450m above Lake Tahune, and 1,446m above sea level. The track ascends steeply and traverses above Tahune hHut. The summit climb does include some exposed rock scrambling. There is one short section that I would take extra care on, but you certainly don’t need ropes and if you slack pack then there’s no pack hauling. The route is marked cleared by cairns. We chatted to the ranger and he said the rangers regularly go up and knock down any cairns that are misleading and reconstruct the correct ones, so you can be pretty confident that you’re on the right track. The final ascent is pretty straight forward but should not be attempted in poor weather.
From the summit of Frenchmans Cap, you can actually see the many peaks that flank the Overland Track, the Franklin River and of course just all the glory of the south west wilderness and the Franklin Gordon Wild Rivers National Park.
I know I keep saying it, but the views…
Day 3: 14.7km – Lake Tahune Hut to Lodden River crossing
You know what you’re in for now. We prioritised getting closer the car park so we had less kilometres to make up on the last day. We wanted food.
Day 4: 5.8km – Lodden River to trailhead
Town day! Congrats, my friend you have hiked Frenchmans Cap.
Frenchmans Cap as a side trip
Frenchmans Cap is also a side trip for those of you who are interesting in pack rafting the Franklin River through the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park. I was meant to do this trip in 2020 but our old friend COVID brought the borders down and I couldn’t get to Tassie from the mainland. There’s a tour group who runs this fairly incredible experience, and there’s the option of summiting Frenchmans Cap from Irenabyss, along the Franklin River. It’s only a 7km hike from there.
A note on Frenchmans Cap terminology
After extensive research, I can confirm its not ‘Frenchman’s Cap’. I know that ‘Frenchmans Cap’ does not appear to be grammatically correct (WHERE IS THE APOSTROPHE), but I assure you, Frenchman’s Cap is not the official name. Take it up with the national park. Frenchmans Cap > Frenchman’s Cap?
A note from my Frenchmans Cap walk notes
“This was Frenchmans Cap. It was glorious. It was humbling. It fully kicked our arses. But it was stupidly beautiful.
We were out there, in Tassie’s South West, for four days. We should have added more. Once you’re deep enough into the hike, after two days of climbing through exposed tree roots, you really don’t want to leave. Not in the least because you don’t want to go down what you had to come up. But also there’s a deep, cold pool that you can float in and stare up at the Cap. There’s a lush AF hut that runs off grid. And there’s a summit to climb with panoramic views of the wild Tassie ranges. Do it.” — January 2023.
Tasmanian hikes
There is so much to do in Tassie. It’s a hiking playground. If you’re there for a while, consider which other National Park you might want to visit. Of course, the Overland Track and Lake St Clair are phenomenal and very well set up. The Walls of Jerusalem and the Three Capes walk are also popular. But there are so many other things to do and see.
Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park is stunning, as are the other regions in this nature dense and tiny island. Honestly, every time I have been to Tassie it has put on quite the weather show, blue bird days and mild weather. This, I have been told is not the reality, but hey, ignoring the eight-month winter, I’d move.