Overland track

The Overland track has a length of about 60-80 km (depends a bit on the route you take) and leads right through a huge mountain nature conservation area. It is the most popular trek in Tasmania. When reading about it in trekking forums the general outcome is "quite touristic but very beautiful, when being on Tasmania you should go there". Ok, so I went there :-).
When wanting to hike on the Overland trek, you have to reserve a departure date and pay 150 AUD park/accommodation/service fee. There is a limited amount of people who is allowed to start at each day (if I understand right, it is 60) to reduce human impact on the environment and prevent the huts and camping sides of being too crowded. You are not allowed to drive to the starting point of the park with your own car but need to take a shuttle bus. The trek is no circular trek but ends somewhere in the middle of nowhere (actually in the vicinity of the hungry wombat cafe). From there you have to arrange your own transport back or to some other place then. When wanting to get back to the starting point, you need to catch a public bus which stops at the hungry wombat on Thursdays to the mining town of Queenstown. The next connecting bus will go only on next Monday though and there is nothing really to see in the mining town.
Or you can take a shuttle which will cost you between 100-400 AUS depending on if you will be the only person in the shuttle or if there will be some more person sin the shuttle. You have to reserve it though without knowing ..
You are allowed to walk the hike only in a certain direction starting at Cradle Mountain.  You need to use certain camping sides or huts.

What should I say .. Yes. It WAS quite touristic. And the landscape was nice. Same the pademelons, plants and everything. However, I think this was the last time that I walk a "popular" hiking track. Nice to meet nice people and have nice conservations in the evenings. Hiking like that and having all possible rules and limitations does not feel like a wilderness trip though, more like a walk in the town park carrying a heavy pack. All those rules and limitations make sense, of course, nothing against that. Managing a huge amount of visitors in a nature park is not easy and you have to have lots of limitations for the trekkers to ensure that human impact is not too big. I think this works well in the area. Erosion is limited due to the use of wooden walks in many areas. Waste water and washing of dishes is limited to certain places, there are often wooden planks where you have to pitch your tent onto to prevent erosion etc. etc. Keep going (but without me :-)
Have to admit tough that I did little illegal hiking when walking 2/3 of the Overland track and then turning back. Did not like the transportation possibilities either ..