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Camping at Bradys Lake Tasmania: Epic Free Camping Spot

Camping at Bradys Lake Tasmania: Epic Free Camping Spot

By: Author Olly Gaspar

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Olly Gaspar

By Olly Gaspar, full-time traveler for 7 years. I visit every place I write about & share real tips, photos, & advice from my trips.

Everything you need to know about camping at one of Tasmania’s best free campsites– Bradys Lake in the Central Highlands of Tasmania.

After spending over a month driving around the popular East Coast, we were very eager to get off the beaten path and explore some more remote places of Tasmania. In this short blog post, I’ll outline our experience camping at Bradys Lake and include photos that I hope will inspire you to visit too!

How to Get to Bradys Lake Campsite

Bradys Lake is located near the Lake Binney Forest Reserve in the Central Highlands region of Tasmania. The campsite is just off the Lyell Highway, approximately 2 hours from Hobart and 2 hours from Launceston.

Google Maps Pin: "Bradys Lake Rd"

Since it's on the Lyell Highway, directions to the campsite are pretty straightforward. However, keep in mind that there isn't any reception in the area so my advice is to load the Google Maps directions before you depart.

Bradys lake rd central highlands tas

Once you reach the pin mentioned below, you'll turn onto an unsealed road. This road is well-graded and we managed completely fine in our self-converted campervan. All of the campsites are right on the edge of the water on the western side of Bradys Lake and you can park your van or caravan on the grass.

Sunset on a winding road in tasmania

Car Rentals in Tasmania

Unfortunately, the cost of bringing your own car on the Spirit of Tasmania has skyrocketed in recent years. Now, it is usually cheaper to rent a car on arrival. I recommend using DiscoverCars in Tasmania to compare rates for different vehicles across dealerships.

(Rentals are limited in Tasmania so it's a good idea to book in advance).

Compare On DiscoverCars

Our Experience Camping at Bradys Lake

As soon as we arrived at Bradys Lake, we knew this campsite was what we were looking for. Apart from a single fisherman, we were the only ones at the lake. We chose a spot a couple of sites down from the jetty and immediately got to work lighting our campfire.

Camping at bradys lake tasmania

Things to do at Brady's Lake

Unplugging and Unwinding

There's no reception at Bradys Lake which means it's the perfect spot to detach, unplug and simply relax. The remote location also means that the only neighbours you'll have are likely to be either a cow or a wallaby.

Van camping at bradys lake

Cook Dinner By the Campfire

Similarly to many free campsites in Tasmania, there are rock campfire setups all along Bradys Lake at every camp spot. Unfortunately, there are no public BBQ facilities at the campsites. So, you'll want to add a portable butane stove to your camping packing list if you want to cook a meal at Bradys Lake.

Cooking a meal by the open fire in the great outdoors is definitely the stand-out highlight of our visit to this epic location.

Camping with mum

Fishing

This lake region is well-renowned in Tasmania for world-class brown trout fishing. Unfortunately, we didn't do much fishing so I can't comment much about it. However, if that's your thing, I'd say definitely pack your rod and hook on your boat (there's a boat ramp too).

Weseektravel van journal

Facilities & Things to Know

Below are a few things you should know before heading out to Bradys Lake Tasmania.

  • There is no reception (plan ahead with directions or download offline maps)
  • There is a drop-toilet near the jetty
  • The jetty and boat ramp are at the northern end of Bradys Lake Rd (turn left at the first fork)
  • There is very little firewood available so you will need to bring your own
  • You can purchase firewood just before reaching Bradys Lake on Lyell Highway from a local (check for signs)
  • The altitude is above 800 metres and as a result, it can get very windy and cold
  • The drive out to the lake involves many steep climbs and ascents. We didn't have any issues in our van but it certainly wasn't the best highway we've ever been on.
  • There are cows and wallabies grazing all over the fields next to the lake
Camping at bradys lake tasmania

I hope that you have enjoyed this quick guide to visiting Bradys Lake Tasmania. For more inspiring travel and adventure articles and photography, make sure to check out some of my other articles.

Also, if there's anything you'd like others to know about this spot, help them out by leaving a comment below.

Categories Tasmania Australia

Olly Gaspar About Olly
Thanks for Reading

I’m Olly Gaspar, Australian adventure traveler and founder of We Seek Travel. Six years ago, I left home to travel full-time and started this website to share my journey. Today, it’s grown into one of the world’s largest free adventure travel resources, now supported by a team of passionate travelers writing travel guides to the places we visit.

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