The Sloth Bagger’s Guide to Tasmania

Trip planning is a very important part of your adventure and can take up a lot of your time. Sometimes it can take up all of your time

For the actual Rules for Peak Bagging in Tasmania, check out Wildtiger  It has great photos too, to spare you the effort of actually having to climb mountains.

For those like myself, who are less fit or less energetically inclined, I can thoroughly recommend Peter Zund and Heather Ashton’s definitive Slothbagger’s Guide to  Tasmania which they  have kindly allowed me to  share with you here.

As Peter and Heather write, “This guide has been developed to encourage members to enjoy some of the less active destinations in the state. Points can be claimed for the same destinations as many times as you wish. Destinations have been awarded points according to the following principles:

A: level of inactivity

B: ease of access

C: level of enjoyment

Get to it and have fun!?”

Federation Peak as seen from the car park on Mt. Wellington.	10
Cape Pillar as seen from Palmers Lookout	5
Regularly frequenting Paddy Palin to “sus” out the latest gear. “Were not insinuating you’re a gear freak though!”	1
Barn Bluff as seen from Black Bluff Range lookout on the link road.	4
Buying all the latest gear but not actually using it more than once. (Now you’re a gear freak!)	2
Yearly subscription to WILD magazine.	1
Going to within 1m of the summit of any mountain.	1
Membership of a bushwalking club.	5
Visiting the same mountain more than once in preference to going somewhere worth more points	1
Viewing a nature program on television.	7
Reading bushwalking guide books in preference to going on bushwalks.	10
Electing to stay in the tent rather than “bag a peak” in foul weather.	2
Getting comfortable in front of a fire with a coffee table book about Tasmania’s brilliant wild areas.	8
Spending three nights at Lake Tahune and never climbing Frenchmens Cap	2
Visiting Launceston Cataract Gorge café via the MTA Bus and cable car.	8
Staying in the lodge at Cradle and driving to Lake Dove to take a photo	6
Planning walking routes but never actually going on them.	5
Driving to the top of Mt. Barrow	4
Driving to the top of Mt. Wellington.	4
Going on a guide walk with “Cradle Huts” guided walks.	1
Staying home to watch the cricket or footy	7
Having the right equipment is also very important but be warned, you do lose points if it looks as if you have actually used it SOME ACTIVITIES WHICH LOSE YOU POINTS
Attending more than 2 walks per year	-2
Climbing peaks which have points accredited to them by the “Peak Baggers Guide” minus the points allocated to them by the other guide.	-point
Owning gear which looks used.	-10
Keeping up with the movements of the TIGER walker.	-1

What kind of Slothbagger are you? Add up your points to find your category :-

Downright Active                                < 50

Member of Sloth Brigade                     50-99

Dishonourable Sloth Bagger              100-199

Honourable Sloth Bagger                   200-299

Sloth Bagger Extraordinaire               300-499

Sloth Bagger Supreme                        500+

Brought to you by Peter Zund and Heather Ashcroft.

Happy Sloth Bagging Everyone!