The other Tasmanian mid-winter festival you need to know about

You’ve heard of Dark Mofo, but how about Tasmania’s other truly weird and wonderful mid-winter festival? Get acquainted with the Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival, and the ancient traditions that inspire it. Words by Imogen Eveson

Since its debut in 2013 as a winter counterpart to Mona’s summer festival, Mona Foma, Dark Mofo has grown to become one of the most important fixtures of Australia’s cultural calendar. But over in the Huon Valley, 40 minutes south-west of Hobart, there’s another mid-winter festival that can also lay claim to the ‘weird and wonderful’ trope typically ascribed to Dark Mofo. Held in July at Willie Smith’s Apple Shed – a cider house, cafe, museum and live music venue housed in a rustic barn on the outskirts of Huonville – the Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival is a pagan-inspired celebration of the region’s apple-growing history (the Huon Valley is at the heart of the state’s famous apple industry).

Feasting, cider, fire and folklore

In wintertime the Huon Valley is cold, dark and foggy, and its agricultural community is prone to a little sleepiness. In a bid to ‘wake up winter’, and let outsiders know that the region is open for business, Willie Smith’s co-owner and Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival director Sam Reid looked to another climatically similar, cider-making region for inspiration: the West Country of England. In 2014, a festival of feasting, cider, fire and folklore was born.

Indigenous and pagan traditions

The festival’s central focus is Saturday night’s wassail, an ancient tradition still celebrated in the West Country that involves waking up the dormant apple trees in hope of a good season ahead. “We bring together Morris dancers from all over Australia to lead us in the wassail, where we chant incantations, bang pots and pans, yell and scream and shoot shotguns through the trees to scare away the nasties and wake up the trees," says Reid.

The Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival, Tasmania

Opening the festival on the Friday night is an Indigenous Welcome Ceremony produced by the team behind Bruny Island’s Nayri Niara Good Spirit Festival and incorporating the burning of a 13-metre-tall effigy. “Other elements you can experience at the festival are quirky folk musicians, some of the region’s finest food and beverage presented by local producers, the ancient art of storytelling, a local artisan market, buskers and street performers," Reid continues.

Best dressed

So much pagan pageantry wouldn’t be complete without quirky costumes to match. Dressing up in traditional outfits – including ‘tatters’, which are topped off with painted faces and top hats and were worn by Welsh border Morris dancers as far back as the 1500s – festivalgoers really go to town. Cue feathers, fur, leather, greenery and even antlers, plus prizes for the best dressed. Transplant The Wicker Man to the wilds of Tasmania and you start to get the picture.

Children at the Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival, Tasmania

Winter warmer tips for your time in the Huon Valley

Sung to all the apple trees and drunk all the cider you can at the Mid-Winter Festival? Sam Reid gives us his recommendations for other things to do in the Huon Valley come wintertime.

– Snow on Sleeping Beauty (the backside of kunanyi/Mount Wellington) is an amazing sight

– Early morning fog on the Huon River in Franklin interrupted by the masts of wooden boats is eerily beautiful

– Visit the hot springs at Hastings Caves to warm you up

– The Hartz Mountains National Park with Hartz Peak covered in snow is spectacular

– Head to the Red Velvet Lounge in Cygnet for a hot soup

The Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival runs mid July.

Hobart has quietly become our coolest capital, but the real wonder lies just beyond the city limits.

In the cool shade of Kunyani/ Mt Wellington, Hobart has earned a reputation. Home to culture-defining Dark MOFO, the city blends rugged, raw wilderness and rule-breaking galleries. But, step beyond the thrumming capital’s border and you’ll find a new perspective: historic towns, Jurassic-era cliffs and a UNESCO City of Gastronomy. With ALL Accor as your home away from home, fill your days with epicurean odysseys and wild scenery on the best day trips from Hobart.

Where to stay

Behind every good road trip is the perfect home base. Somewhere central to review your camera roll, make the most of Hobart’s dining scene and relax before setting off again.

For modern, Tasmanian-inspired design, book a stay at the Movenpick Hotel Hobart . Standing at the Salamanca Markets, look to the Hobart skyline and the award-winning hotel will catch your eye. As the third-tallest building in the CBD, the views across the harbour toward Antarctica are totally unique to your room. Here, end each day at the daily free chocolate hour (plus a free Movenpick ice cream for the little ones).

For a more budget-conscious option, head to the picture book, sandstone buildings of Macquarie Street. Nestled along the buzzing, historic streetscape, you’ll find Tasmania’s biggest hotel: the Ibis Styles . Return home each day to defrost in one of the hotel’s two saunas. Make use of the proximity to MONA, or take an easy stroll to the candy-coloured cottages of Battery Point between your adventures.

A stylish, Tasmanian-inspired bedroom at Mövenpick Hotel Hobart, your perfect base for relaxing after the best day trips from Hobart. — Elevate your Hobart stay with sleek style at Mövenpick.

1. Bruny Island

Craggy cliffs and tropical-hued, white sand beaches signal your arrival to Bruny Island/ Lunawanna-Alonnah.

Start your day trip at the island’s most iconic spot, the Neck Game Reserve. Scale the Trunganini steps to gaze out over the teensy stretch of land that juts through the sea connecting the two ends of the island.

Catch a rare glimpse of the white furred wallabies that call Bruny Island home at Adventure Bay. Then, for ocean-fresh oysters, pull into the drive-thru window at Get Shucked . Sample Bruny Island cheese at the cellar door before catching the ferry home with an esky full of local produce.

Bruny Island Neck is an isthmus of land connecting north and south Bruny Island. — Begin your adventure with a climb and a view. (Image: Elise Weaver)

2. Mount Wellington

At 1271 metres, Mount Wellington watches protectively over Hobart. Follow the winding road to climb through alpine forest and tufts of snow to reach the summit. Gaze down over Hobart and out to sea, or over your shoulder to the southwestern wilderness.

Reset your adrenaline with a mountain bike ride back down. Or, make like the locals and head into the mountain on foot. Try the hike to the Jurassic-period Organ Pipes which slips under the mountain’s magnificent dolerite cliffs (perfect for families thanks to the trail’s minimal incline).

For a view of Mount Wellington itself, hike nearby Cathedral Rock.

No matter where you are in Hobart you are never far away from the City's beloved mountain, Kunanyi / Mount Wellington — Climb through alpine forest to the summit. (Image: Paul Flemming)

2. Port Arthur

Constructed entirely by convicts, the manicured gardens and penal buildings of Port Arthur offer a day trip that practically hums with history.

The rugged, seagirt location was chosen for its difficult escape conditions. Now, you can cruise the coast below the towering, jagged cliffs of the Tasman National Park or wander the sloping fields of fragrant lavender.

Tickets to Port Arthur include a walking tour and harbour cruise. See the Isle of the Dead where 1000 men are buried in marked and unmarked graves. And Point Puer, Britain’s first prison for children.

The Port Arthur Historic Site is one of Australia's most important heritage sites and tourist destinations. Located on the scenic Turrakana / Tasman Peninsula in the south east of Tasmania, it offers a unique and essential experience for all visitors to the area. — Wander convict-built grounds and gardens. (Image: Dearna Bond)

3. Launceston

You’ll find Launceston at the confluence of three rivers after an easy 2.5-hour drive from Hobart. Launceston is a patchwork of old and new. Here, heritage streetscapes meet modern architecture.

Visit Cataract Gorge, the green, sun-dappled heart of the town and sacred meeting point for Tasmania’s indigenous communities. Pull up at roadside produce stalls that dot the Tamar Valley, or dine out. Launceston is, after all, a UNESCO City of Gastronomy.

Should the local wine scene persuade you, simply extend your time in Launceston at Peppers Silo (but definitely at least stop by the onsite restaurant, Grain of the Silo , for a farm fresh menu) or Mercure Launceston before heading back to Hobart.

Walk the sunlit paths of Cataract Gorge. (Image: Nick H Visuals)

4. Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary

Take a 35-minute drive from your hotel and you’ll find Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary . This social enterprise is run by a team of extremely passionate Tasmanians with a mission to look after critically endangered species who have found sanctuary here after facing extinction on the mainland.

Choose to wander the sanctuary at your own pace or join a guided tour (free with your ticket) to come face to face with Tassie’s most iconic species. Tasmanian Devils, wombats and echidnas are part of the free tour. You can book up close encounters with your favourite animals, too.

Bonorong is a Sanctuary for wildlife run by a passionate team of like-minded people. We're a social enterprise: a little business with a big heart. — Snap a cuddle-worthy encounter. (Image: Tourism Australia)

5. Richmond Village & Coal River Valley

Richmond is a town that belongs in a snow globe. Fifty colonial-era, Georgian buildings have been painstakingly restored and turned into cafes, cosy restaurants and galleries. Visit Richmond Gaol , said to be the home of a prisoner so vile he inspired Charles Dickens to pen Oliver Twist’s Fagin.

Then, follow the Coal River as it flows past grassy, duckling-dotted knolls and under the iconic Richmond Bridge, the oldest bridge in Australia. From the crest of the bridge, see the oldest Catholic Church in Australia. The river crawls past many cellar doors, perfect for a day of wine tasting.

Richmond is a picture-perfect town in the Coal River Valley wine region, offering a glimpse into early colonial life, one of the best day trips from Hobart. — Trace the river through history and wine country. (Image: Fin Matson)

Plan your trip to Hobart and beyond with ALL Accor at All.com .