Hike and sail Tasmania’s stunning east coast in style: no boots required

The 23-metre ketch Lady Eugenie is moored just off the east coast of Australia’s island state of Tasmania, where guides Adrien Butler, Maddy Davies and passengers hop aboard for a three-day Wineglass Bay sail-hike trip with Tasmanian Walking.

The first hike is to Haunted Bay – about a four-hour circuit. We drop anchor at Shoal Bay, and head ashore to follow a sandy track into a forest of blue gums, eating native cherries as we go. Ninety minutes later we scramble down a trail to the rocky surrounds of Haunted Bay, its granite slabs speckled with pale green, ochre and yellow lichens.

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Back on board, skipper Colin Brookes and mate Mitch Antilla have laid out platters of Tasmanian cheeses, cold beer and a selection of Tasmanian wines, considered among Australia’s best (notably pinot noir and pinot gris).

Tasmania has a touch of the wild about it, so comfort feels more appropriate here than opulence: Lady Eugenie has four narrow cabins, accommodating eight passengers, with bunk beds and shower/toilets and a spacious downstairs saloon. The upstairs cockpit is a cheery space shared by passengers and crew.

The next day we have three exhilarating hours under sail with common dolphins, north to Schouten Island via Ile des Phoques (Island of Seals). There are hundreds of them – adults, adolescents, pups – sunbathing or clambering about, occasionally splashing into the ocean to dive for squid. Antilla drops sail and we make a slow 40-minute circumnavigation, anchoring in Crockett’s Bay, off the north shore.

Tasmanian wilderness hideaway Pumphouse Point a former hydro station

Passengers Leigh and Lily Robinson, the guides and I putter ashore in the tender and set off up Bear Hill, a steep scramble atop granite boulders. We emerge from the bush after 90 minutes onto Crockett’s Beach for a late swim.