Shady River Country on Burnie’s Edge

Overview

Fern Glade Reserve sits along the Emu River just outside Burnie, around 4 km from the city centre. It feels surprisingly tucked away for a place so close to town, with a flat riverside setting, dense greenery and a cool, sheltered character that makes it one of Burnie’s best-known natural areas.

The reserve is managed by Burnie City Council and is also recognised as one of Tasmania’s 60 Great Short Walks. What gives the place its identity is not rugged terrain or big alpine scenery, but the quiet combination of river, tree ferns and enclosed valley bushland.

Highlights

The main scenic feature here is the Emu River itself, winding through a steep, heavily vegetated gorge. Reflections on the still water, river-edge cliffs and the thick cover of native plants give the reserve a calm, enclosed feel that is quite distinctive in this part of the north-west coast.

Fern Glade is especially memorable for its shady stands of soft tree ferns and the sense of green relief they create beside the river. There is also a lookout above the reserve, and native orchids have been recorded along the bush tracks.

Best Time to Visit

Fern Glade Reserve works well at almost any time of year because the river corridor and tree ferns help keep the area cool, sheltered and green. It is particularly appealing in the warmer months when the shade is most noticeable, while the wetter seasons tend to deepen the lush look of the vegetation and riverbanks.

Plants and Animals

This is one of the easier places around Burnie to spot wildlife in a natural setting. Platypus are regularly associated with this stretch of the Emu River, and the reserve is known for abundant native flora and fauna.

The vegetation includes manferns, eucalypts and wattles, with more than a dozen native orchid species noted along the tracks. The mix of river habitat, damp gullies and native bushland also supports birdlife and other small native animals.