Cape Wickham is the most northerly point of King Island, Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

. From here, it is 90 kilometres (55.9 mi) to Cape Otway

Cape Otway

Cape Otway is a cape in south Victoria, Australia on the Great Ocean Road; much of the area is enclosed in the Otway National Park.-History:...

 on the Australian mainland. In the 19th century, ships coming from Europe would sometimes attempt to sail between Cape Wickham and Cape Otway to cut down on the required travelling time to Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, however the trip was dangerous and the price of failure high; usually shipwreck on the unforgiving King Island coast.