Hummock

The basics

Scaling the lookout’s staircase provides excellent views of Bruny Island’s short-tailed shearwaters and fairy penguins, which are the smallest breed of penguin. On clear days you also can see across the D’Entrecasteaux Channel to the Tasmanian mainland. The lookout is home to a memorial to Truganini—one of the last people of solely Aboriginal Tasmanian descent and one of last speakers of the Tasmanian languages—and to the Nuenonne people who inhabited Bruny Island before European settlement.

Things to know before you go

• There are nearly 300 steps to the top of the lookout.

• There are restroom facilities at The Neck parking lot.

• Much of Bruny Island is connected by unpaved roads suitable for 2WD vehicles and bicycles.

How to get there

Bruny Island is 20 minutes by ferry from Kettering, an easy 19-mile (30-kilometer) drive south of Hobart. From the ferry port, head south on Lennon Road, onto Bruny Island Main Road, for 15 miles (24 kilometers) until you reach The Neck parking lot on your left. From there follow the wooden boardwalk and steps to the lookout.

When to get there

The best time to see penguins is during the summer months of September to February and around dusk, when the penguins return to their burrows in the sand dunes. Even if you don’t see penguins, the lookout offers excellent views at any time, although it can get busy on weekends and holidays.

Visit the Cape Bruny Lighthouse

For another view over the Bruny Island coastline, visit the historic Cape Bruny Lighthouse at the island’s southern end. It’s the only lighthouse currently open for guided tours in the region and part of South Bruny National Park. Climb the cast-iron spiral staircase with a local guide who shares stories and history from Tasmania’s lighthouse-keeping past.