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Australian fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus) hauled out, Kent Group National Park.

Kent Group National Park

Island sanctuaries in remote Bass Strait.

Find out more

FeaturesExpand/Collapse

  • Barbecues
  • Camping
  • Fishing
  • Kayaking
  • Picnic facilities
  • Scuba diving
  • Short walk
  • Snorkelling
  • Swimming

ContactExpand/Collapse

  • Furneaux Field Centre
    Lagoon Rd, Whitemark, Flinders Island TAS 7255
    Postal: PO Box 41
    Whitemark TAS 7255
    Phone: 03 6359 2217

About

​As beautiful as it is remote, Kent Group National Park is made up of a group of islands and islets, situated halfway between Wilsons Promontory in Victoria and Flinders Island off Tasmania’s north-eastern tip.

Comprising three main islands – Erith, Dover and Deal – this isolated national park in the middle of Bass Strait is subject to a constant barrage of wild seas. Three major ocean currents meet at the Kent Group National Park, which over the years have sent numerous ships onto the islands’ unforgiving coastlines. Over 20 recorded shipwrecks now lay in the shallow waters surrounding the islands.

The convergence of currents also bring a richness in nutrients that supports a unique diversity of marine life, creating a wonderful breeding sanctuary for the Australian fur seals who make their home on the rocky outcrops. The islands are also an important refuge for sea birds.

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​If windswept, picturesque and private are words that appeal, you've found your destination in the Kent Group National Park: a cluster of islands set in the middle of eastern Bass Strait, halfway between the northern end of Flinders Island on mainland Tasmania and Wilsons Promontory in Victoria.

With around 55 kilometres to nearest landfall in any direction, and no public airstrip, getting there is not easy. You'll need a boat. And once there, don't expect facilities. You'll need to be completely self-sufficient. (This park wasn't reserved with you in mind.)

For those who do venture here though, when the islands loom out of a vast Bass Strait, they are a salve for salt-ridden eyes:  sheltered sandy coves, turquoise waters, sheoak grey and eucalypt green forests, fields of waving tussock grasses, and abundant and tame wildlife.

The Kent Group comprises Deal, Erith and Dover islands; North East and South West isles; Judgement Rocks, and Big Rock. Deal Island is the largest in the group, with a jetty (no public access), lighthouse (built in 1848 and the southern hemisphere's highest), several residences and outbuildings, a small museum in the original lightkeepers' house, and a few informal walking tracks. Wildcare volunteer caretakers live in one of the houses, providing a year-round presence. (Walk notesheets are available from caretakers.)

The Kent Group Marine Reserve surrounds the national park, and its waters are further surrounded and protected by the Beagle Marine Park – a testament to the specialness of the marine life found in Bass Strait, largely thanks to the convergence of three ocean currents. ​See our Marine Reserve page for information.

Enjoy swimming and​ snorkelling in the relatively warm waters, but keep away from any seal colonies. Oh, and you'll be able to frolic with wild abandon amongst the tussock grasses as the only venomous snake species here is too small to bite!

And with visitor numbers at less than one thousand per year, you may well have the place to yourselves.

The Kent Group National Park’s cluster of islands is composed of granite – a coarse-grained volcanic rock that runs from Wilsons Promontory in Victoria down Tasmania’s East Coast. It’s best known for the vibrant orange lichen it attracts. In some places, especially on the islands’ windward sides, the granite is capped by limestone – a younger rock, which formed during the last ice age when sea levels were lower, and windblown sands hardened to form a limestone veneer. 

​​The plant communities here are commonly seen on all Bass Strait islands, and include forests of sheoak and smithton peppermint, coastal scrubs of boobialla and teatree, and tussock grasslands. But within this is a deeper story of biogeographic significance – simply put; the islands’ flora is transitional – with one ‘foot’ here and one in either mainland Tasmania or Victoria. Threatened species abound.

Given the lack of human contact over the years, the larger islands are home to relatively tame birds and mammals. You’ll be able to get close to Cape Barren Geese, wallabies, potoroos, bandicoots and possums. Skinks too are numerous, but you’ll only find the one snake species, the white-lipped whip snake. 

Expect to see Australian Fur Seals around all islands, with Judgement Rocks home to the largest Australian Fur Seal colony in Tasmania. 

Seabirds find sanctuary on North East and South West isles, including common diving petrels, fairy prions, short-tailed shearwaters, little penguins, sooty oystercatchers, cormorants and terns. 

Below the waterline, the Kent Group Marine Reserve surrounds the national park, protecting a diverse array of kelp, and an extraordinarily high number of fish species – both the result of the convergence of three ocean currents.  ​

​Find out more about Tasmania's protected waters on our Marine Reserves page​.

For more information on our wildlife please see Tasmania's wildlife.

Visit our caring for wildlife page for more information on interacting with and protecting our native animals.

The Kent Group is part of the original land bridge that connected what we now know as Tasmania and Victoria, allowing the movement of people and animals. Approximately 10​ 000 years ago, the seas had risen to a point where the land had become islands creating increasing challenging conditions for the Aboriginal people living there. Today, the Kent Group is a rich cultural landscape as a result of the occupation of these resilient people, and today's Aboriginal community have an ongoing connection to this special place.​

The first European to see the Kent Group was Matthew Flinders in 1798 – and that was accidental. Flinders was on a rescue mission to Preservation Island, south of Flinders Island, where the ship the Sydney Cove had wrecked some months earlier. On his return to New South Wales, Flinders reported seeing vast Australian Fur Seal colonies, his discovery determining the Kent Group’s next residents. 

By 1820 sealers arrived, many living on the islands permanently, hunting for half a century until they depleted the seal population beyond economic viability. 

Cattle graziers lived here briefly too, on Deal and Erith islands, during the early 1930s. Large areas of land were cleared, permanently altering the native vegetation. Stockyards and a small hut were built at West Cove on Deal Island.

The National Park’s  most prominent legacy was built in 1848 – a 22m tall lighthouse. Constructed on Deal Island’s highest point, using local granite, it was Australia’s first offshore island lighthouse and is the Southern Hemisphere’s highest (305m above sea level). Its height, however, proved to be a problem as it was often shrouded in cloud. The lighthouse was deactivated in 1992 and replaced by lower lights on North East and South West isles. The Deal Island lighthouse is one of the most important light stations in Australia and is on the Register of the National Estate, as well as the Tasmanian Heritage Register.

Over the years, many vessels have floundered on the islands’ coastlines, with the strong tidal currents in Murray Pass (between Deal and Erith islands) claiming more than a dozen. The steamships Bulli and Karitane rest in shallow water in West Cove and Squally Cove respectively. 

On Deal Island, a museum inside the historic lightkeeper’s cottage tells stories of this remote cluster of islands, named for William Kent, captain of the Supply, one of the first fleet vessels. 

Declared in 2005, the Kent Group National Park is Tasmania’s newest park. 

Buy a map from TasMap

Kent Group National Park (three islands, two isles and several offshore rocks) is located in the middle of eastern Bass Strait, approximately halfway between the northern tip of Flinders Island (Tasmania) and Wilsons Promontory (Victoria).  

Access to this remote park is only possible via private boat or private charter boat as no regular commercial tours are available. (The Deal Island airstrip is for use by management aircraft only.) 

Access is also possible for extremely experienced, highly skilled and well-equipped sea-kayakers. 

There is no public mooring available on the jetty at East Cove, Deal Island. 

It is easy to go ashore on Deal and Erith islands however the other islands are infrequently visited. Safe anchorages can be found in several coves around Deal and Erith. Avoid anchoring on sensitive habitats, such as seagrass beds and sponge gardens. Sandy seafloors are preferred; alternatively kelp-covered reefs. Check your chart to avoid anchoring on the historic shipwreck of the steamship Bulli in West Cove. 

Beware of strong tidal currents, particularly in Murray Pass – the channel that separates Deal and Erith Islands. Many a vessel has dragged its anchor here.

Before going ashore, check your footwear, clothes, equipment and food are free from soil, seeds, insects and vermin. Pets are not allowed ashore. 

Where possible, please avoid driving in our reserves at night. You are sharing the roads with our native wildlife, so take it slow and watch out for animals on the road.

​There are no facilities or services (including public toilets and rubbish collection) within the Kent Group National Park. You must be entirely self-sufficient, with adequate fuel, water, food and first aid supplies.

Informal camping is permitted, with preferred sites being West Cove on Erith Island, and Garden Cove or Winter Cove on Deal Island.

At West Cove on Erith Island there is​ a small historic hut that is cared for by the ‘Erith mob’ (the Murray-Smith family from Victoria). The Murray-Smiths first began visiting in the 1960s and have paid annual visits ever since. Over the December-February period each year the Erith Mob have an exclusive lease over the house, the adjacent areas, and the campsites, which they have established behind the dunes. At other times of the year, the hut can only be used in an emergency.

The National Park is surrounded by a marine reserve, which includes a no-take sanctuary zone and a restricted-take zone. For more information on reserve boundaries and no take zones please see our Marine Reserves page.

To avoid spreading marine pests and diseases, before you visit, ensure your boat hull is clean, as well as all fishing, diving and boating gear. 

​Find out other essential information for visiting Tasmania's parks and reserves on our know before you go section.

​There are no facilities or services within the Kent Group National Park. You must be entirely self-sufficient, with adequate fuel, water, food and first aid supplies.

Safe anchorages can be found among the numerous coves around the islands.

Swimming and diving in the vicinity of the seal colonies is not advised: where there are seals, there are sharks.  

Experiences in Kent Group National Park

Fishing on the rocks at Friendly Beaches, Freycinet National Park

Tasmania has a wealth of excellent inland and ocean fishing locations where you can cast your line.

Statewide

Fishing

Tasmania has a wealth of excellent inland and ocean fishing locations where you can cast your line.

Read more
Beachside snorkelling

Bring your wetsuit, mask and fins to discover the underwater life.

Statewide

Snorkelling and scuba diving

Bring your wetsuit, mask and fins to discover the underwater life.

Read more