Two of Tasmania's 60 Great Short Walks lead to Wineglass Bay Lookout (3 kilometres return) and the Wineglass Bay Hazards Beach circuit (combined distance of 11 kilometres). My husband is opting for the combined 11 km track, I'm not so sure. He is a keen bushwalker, me not so much. But we are both conscious that at some stage today on this track there will be a group of runners participating in the Freycinet Multisport Challenge coming up behind us and we don't want to be in their way.

Early on a cool, sunny morning we started up the well constructed gravel and rock track to Wineglass Bay lookout with the intention of deciding how much further we would go once we reached the track summit.

The track meanders up through impressive pink granite rock faces and bush scrub. Apart from the sound of gravel crunching underfoot and my own laboured breathing, there is very little other noise.

The travel guide we picked up from the Freycinet National Park office notes this a steep uphill walk and before we are even half way up the summit, my butt muscles are starting to burn, my tracksuit pants are falling down every 6-8 steps and my new walking shoes are hurting my feet. There are opportunities to stop and take in the vista over Greater Oyster Bay.

The higher part of the track contains some steeper sections and at one of these points, we pass a group of older people heading back down. They joke that it is not much further and there is a glass of wine waiting for us at the end. One lady in the group looks at my flushed face and heavy breathing as says "I didn't think I could make it, but it was well worth the effort, Keep going, you don't have much further to go".

Sure enough not much further up the track we reach the saddle and there is a chair just waiting for you to sit and catch your breath in. The chair is very comfortable. To the left of the chair, the track continues to Wineglass Bay Lookout. What a view ... simply stunning. a crescent of white sands and turquoise water framed by granite cliffs and a hinterland of heath and forest.

The descent to the beach is steeper and rougher than the track to the lookout. Bush steps are cut into rocks and tree roots however they are not even and by the time we reach the bottom my right knee is not happy. The further down we go, the more the surrounding landscape changes, bush scrub gives way to eucalypt forest, wrens and finches are chirping and we can hear the sound of waves breaking on the beach.

The sand is blindingly white and much coarser than either of us expected. After strolling along the beach we stopped for morning tea and watched the first three runners come through on the multisport challenge. With runners now on the track and me flatly refusing to walk back up that damn hill, we continue our trek the long way around.

The track takes us across the isthmus from Wineglass Bay to Hazards Beach and sees a continuation of eucalypt forest, bracken fern undergrowth and swamp around Hazards Lagoon. We pass a group of Scouts along the way and stop and listen to a chorus of frogs in the lagoon before a short, steep climb over the sand dunes down onto Hazards Beach. We share lunch on the beach with gulls and pied oyster catches, there are no other people in sight. The beach is strewn with the remnants of Aboriginal middens containing fist sized oyster and scallop shells.

Further down the beach, the track crosses back over the dunes and winds through Casuarina forest. It is so quiet and the needles from the Casuarina's provide a nice, soft carpet to walk on. We stop briefly at Lemana Lookout before continuing on. Again the landscape changes and we find ourselves rock hopping below Mount Mayson. It isn't a hot day, but by early afternoon these rocks reflect a lot of heat, should have carried more water. We have a small descent back into the bush which is dotted with Black Boy palms, some affected by root rot. Along this final section of track we watch an echidna head off into the bush foraging for food and startle a tiger snake sunning itself near the track. I'm not sure who moved faster, me or the snake. Me I think!

Notes: Make sure you wear comfortable, well worn-in shoes, take plenty of water, warm clothing and wet weather gear. Remember to complete the bushwalker's register at the start and end of your journey.

Where: Freycinet National Park, Coles Bay Tasmania