Ocean Beach is a 30+ km beach highway (for the right vehicle at the right time of day). You’ll see towering sand dunes, rolling waves and white, white sand. It’s a wild place. Just to give you can idea of how untamed it is, Ocean Beach lies between Hell’s Gates in the south and Trial Harbour in the north. Both places were named to let other travellers know what to expect in these waters: great difficulty!
You can drive onto Ocean Beach with a 4WD vehicle at several points. We entered the beach at Macquarie Heads. Macquarie Heads is particularly picturesque with views of historic lighthouses, fisherman’s cottages and rock walls as well as the dangerous Hell’s Gates passage out of Macquarie Harbour. It was a delight to drive in the blue water of our GPS screen while safely on Ocean Beach!
While I was walking by the waves at Ocean Beach Lookout, Mr. Traversing Tasmania tried to get the 4WD down the track to the shore but decided that he wasn’t brave enough! Ask locals for advice about when and where to access the beach. Note that there are two river mouths to cross and that you can get bogged. That’s not on my list of things to do while on holiday!
What to Bring
If you’re planning on driving your 4WD along Ocean Beach, bring recovery equipment and let someone know where you’re going and when to expect you back. It also helps to ask locals about which access points are currently safe to use. Bring your fishing gear for use at Macquarie Heads. Note that Ocean Beach is unpatrolled by lifeguards and is too dangerous for swimming. Bring food and water so that you can stay as long as you please and, as always on the west coast, bring clothing appropriate for wet, windy and/or cold weather.
Getting There
If you don’t have a 4WD, you can still enjoy Ocean Beach. Just follow signs from Strahan along C250, Ocean Beach Road. A sign-posted right-hand turn and a short stretch of dirt road will see you arrive at the car park at Ocean Beach Lookout. Here, walk a wild stretch of sand with views of Macquarie Heads to the south or views of Henty Dunes and rugged ranges to the north. Just being beside the ocean is wonderfully restorative. I’m told by the locals that Ocean Beach is also one of the best spots to view the sunset.
Cost
Access to Tasmania’s beaches is free! This is something that I don’t take for granted. I do my part by taking all of my rubbish away with me. I also take three additional pieces of rubbish (bottle caps, gum wrappers, fishing line and the like) with me to do my bit for the ocean critters who don’t need waste in their environment. Enjoy the pristine wilderness that is Ocean Beach!
To read about more of my west coast adventures, click here.