A winter festival offering rare access to private properties behind locked gates and hidden stories across Tasmania’s north-west has returned this month.
Permission to Trespass will run from July 1 to July 15 in the Wynyard and Table Cape regions, forming part of the broader Off season and WXNW Illuminate events programs.
The festival blurs the line between art, landscape and exploration, using site-specific installations and guided experiences to invite visitors into properties rarely accessed by the public.
The two-week lineup includes night markets, guided cultural walks, whisky tastings, sound and light installations and family-friendly activities.
Event coordinator Cyndia Hilliger said the festival was about getting people out and about during winter.
“Doing something, learning something, experiencing something you wouldn’t normally be able to, behind the closed doors, and the locked farm gates,” she said.
“The weather may be wild and rugged, but you will feel warm and very welcome.”
The festival opens with the Gather and Glow Night Market on July 3, when Wynyard’s Goldie Street will be lit up with live entertainment, fire pots and food from local vendors.
A sound and light projection artwork by Tasmanian artist Alex Moss will be displayed on the Table Cape Lighthouse lawns across two weekends under the title Moonlight Stories: Inner Light.
Palawa guide Jye Crosswell will lead a 90-minute on-country cultural walk at Boat Harbour, covering the natural and cultural heritage of the north-west and including a hands-on craft activity.
Other highlights include whisky tastings with the head distiller at Alchymia Distillery, yoga and breakfast at Table House Farm, a community choir at the historic Don shed, choral performances by candlelight inside the Wynyard Masonic Lodge and collaborative art exhibitions.
Light shows, pub choirs and other immersive experiences are designed to encourage a deeper connection to the north-west.
Families can visit Towarri Alpacas for an open gate day or join papermaking workshops to help build a community paper-mache wombat.
Self-guided options are also available at any time, including the Table Cape Sound Walk, which uses an app-triggered soundscape by Tasmanian sound artist Rachel Meyers, and the Wynyard Living History Walk, where old photographs are brought to life through QR codes.
