Finding the game changer for Tasmania's far north west.
The Wild Edge Lookout emerged from a broader tourism destination development project for Tasmania's far north west. Working alongside Evolve Tourism, Simon Currant, BDA Research, SGS Economics and ERA Planning, we set out to identify and test a catalyst investment capable of driving new visitation, extended stays and greater spend across a region with extraordinary natural assets but limited tourism infrastructure.
The project involved extensive research and community stakeholder consultation, from which a range of tourism concepts were developed and assessed. In consultation with the steering group, Wild Edge was progressed as one of two priority projects for formal demand testing - a concept strong enough to anchor a new visitor economy for the region.
On the edge of everything.
The Wild Edge Lookout was envisaged as the crescendo of a coastal lookout trail - a sequence of stops, each built around the theme of being on the edge. The edge of the forest. The edge of a buttongrass plain. The edge of the bay. Each lookout frames a different encounter with the landscape, building anticipation as visitors move along the coast toward the final experience.
The lookout itself consists of two distinct immersive moments. The first is a cantilevered viewing platform that extends out from the cliff face over the water - placing the viewer on the edge of the land with nothing but ocean ahead for the next 10,000 kilometres. The second is the Wavebreaker, a chamber at the base of the cliffs where visitors stand behind glazing as waves driven by the Roaring Forties crash against the structure. One experience is about stillness and distance. The other is about raw, immediate power. Together, they offer something that does not exist anywhere else in Australia.
