 | Snowy Mountains Things To Do | Tips 1 - 10 of 35 |  |
Popular Things To Do | Miscellaneous Things To Do Tips | All Tips (35) One of the things I often do when I'm in Kosciusko National Park (mainly skiing) is stop and admire the trees. Snow gums are unique in the world.
They may appear in burnt orange, khaki, bone, grey, black and other assorted hues. They are mostly twisted and knarled due to the ferocity of winds that can occur up here and to the occasional bushfire that transgresses in summer. They are survivors, of that we can be sure by their presence alone and many of them are akin to works of art. Character is something they definitely possess. Leave a Comment
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This is a town that time almost forgot. Gold was its reason for being and, like so many of its ilk, when the mineral was in short supply, the town died, slowly crumbling into a forgotten ruin astride the Snowy Mountains Highway.
It is one of the historical tragedies of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service that many of the old buildings were burnt or bulldozed by the service in an act of unbelieveable historical vandalism.
One can but assume preoccupation with nature was foremost in their minds.
Under the control of the National Parks and Wildlife though, some attempts at stopping the rot have taken place. There are plaques indicating key sites and illustrating the remnants, but it's no substitute for the real thing.
The forlorn graveyard still has some poignant reminders of that bygone era and you can wander around it at your leisure.
Today Kiandra is literally one old house, a Court House, which is used to store equipment and some ruins scattered here and there. It was a true gold rush town in 1859-60, which at its height it attracted over 10,000 people and saw the construction of banks, hotels and the usual services.
Yet, in less than a year, most of the gold was gone and the population slumped to under 300. A hundred years later it was a ghost town standing forlornly on plains which, even in summertime, look decidedly forgotten, glaciated and figuratively cold.
Kiandra (it was originally called Giandara or Giandarra Plain - the term may have meant 'sharp stone' in the language of the local Aborigines) is sited at 1400 metres and was, pre-Cabramurra, the highest township in Australia.
The rush broke out after payable gold was discovered by David and James Pollock (two men who had been bringing their cattle to graze on the summer pastures in the area for some years) in what became known as Pollock's Gully in November 1859. Leave a Comment Address: Snowy Mountains Highway
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There's a musical note or two for you. I've included this photo to reinforce that in Australia the snow is rarely that lovely dry type you get in other countries.
Though it snows over an area greater than Switzerland we don't get as much and it doesn't stay as long.
On many days it's just snowing, i.e. any warmer and it would be sleet. That doesn't mean we don't get great days it's just that we don't get as many of them.
This shot of Rosemarie is taken on the Crackenback Chairlift, the main one at Thredbo, in October when the season has virtually ended and people use this lift to go to the top and walk to Mount Kosciusko, Australia's highest point. You have to remember, it's not one of those big pointy things like you see in other mountain ranges, just a spot that's higher than the surrounding slopes.
I once read a book about a man whose ambition was to climb the highest peaks on all the continents. He chose Kosciusko first because, rather obviously, it was going to be a doddle and he could tick one off his list. Unlucky, the weather here can be pretty horrible and, though he'd allocated four days, he never made it. He had to leave it till last! Leave a Comment
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Thredbo is the second most popular resort in N.S.W. and has a fair amount of accommodation on site, albeit at a fair (read not-cheap) price.
Thredbo has four main chair lifts to get you up to the main ski areas and a number of T-bars and pomas up top.
Its main feature is that when the snow is good, you get top-to-bottom skiing which is about as good as it gets in Australia. Most slopes would be described as intermediate standard but there are certainly some steep and tricky areas and an adequate amount of gentle slopes for beginners.
My favourite T-bar is Antons but if you want long runs you will probably stick to the chairs.
Threbo is also popular in summer with walkers and hikers and they run a chair lift during that time which takes you to near the top and from there it is a relatively easy walk to get to Mt. Kosciusko, Australia's highest peak, although it's not a peak in the traditional mountain sense, more of some rocks that are higher than those around it! Leave a Comment Address: South of Jindabyne
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A massive construction program, above and below the ground, occupied workers for 25 years.
Australian and overseas contractors built:
16 dams
7 power stations
145 kilometres of tunnels
80 kilometres of aqueducts
and access roads were cut through the mountainous country.
World tunnelling records were established on the Scheme. In 1961, the Australian firm Thiess Bros (started by an expat Italian), were contracted for the Geehi section of the Snowy-Geehi tunnel. In 1963, the firm established the world record for hard rock tunnelling when 165 metres of tunnel was formed in a week.
The longest tunnel is the Eucumbene-Snowy at 23.5 kilometres. This tunnel diverts the water of the Snowy River from Island Bend Pondage to storage in Lake Eucumbene, and when required returns the water to the Snowy-Geehi Tunnel at Island Bend.
Murray 1 Power Station near Khancoban - guided tours 10.00am, 11.00am, 12.00pm, 1.00pm and 2.00pm. Tumut 3 Power Station near Talbingo - guided tours 10.00am, 11.00am, 12.00pm, 1.30pm and 2.30pm. Tumut 2 Power Station near Cabramurra - guided tour times are: 10.00am, 11.00am, 12.00pm, 1.00pm during Weekdays during school terms and 10.00am, 11.00am, 12.00pm, 1.00pm, 2.00pm on weekends and holidays. Bookings are essential. Murray 1 Inflowmation Station located at Murray 1 Power Station on the Alpine Way near Khancoban. Developed around the theme water and the environment, the inflowmation station combines videos, computers, photos, movement, lights and water to explore the scheme's role in river management, irrigation and electricity generation. There is free access to the visitor's gallery at Murray Group Control Centre near Khancoban, Guthega Power Station and Jindabyne Pumping Station daily between 8.30am and 4.00pm. Inspections of the Guthega Power Station and Jindabyne Pumping Station may be arranged by contacting the authority's information centre in Cooma. Access at all times to viewing points and toilet facilities situated at various power stations, dams and other points of interest. Leave a Comment Directions: Shot taken at Murray 1 Power Station near Khancoban
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This is a shot of the Blue Cow T-Bar, the uppermost one at Guthega but it gets its name because you can access Blue Cow from the top of here.
From the top as shown here you can go left to Parachute when it's open and that will take you to the only chair on Guthega, the Car Park Double, which you then return on to the base of Blue Cow T-bar before catching it up to do the run again.
My favourite run, Schnaxl, rated black but really only good intermediate or blue, goes off to the right, as does access to Blue Cow and the other two black runs, The Screw and Mother-In-Law.
This view also highlights the fact that you may get glorious weather from time to time down here but, be warned - you will get sunburnt if you don't take precautions!
I know this from bitter personal experience.
Guthega rarely, if ever, gets crowded, as the main access points to the Perisher group are at Perisher carpark itself or the skitube (an underground train) which lets you off at Perisher or Blue Cow.
Most of the people at Guthega are those staying at the accommodation there. Leave a Comment
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| | | | Murray 1 continued | Tip Rating: | | | | |
The impact on Australia and Europe was significant. Initially shielded from the general population due to the location of the project, the huge volume of skilled and unskilled migrants eventually filtered through into the general population.
This post-WWII influx was the biggest change in Australia's culture since the arrival of those who made the first settlement in what is now known as Sydney.
It wasn't the only place that migrants came to, it was just the most significant.
Thus the nation was slowly introduced to espresso coffee, pizza, souvlaki and a host of other food items. How do Australians feel about this? We're loving it!
Over 100,000 people worked on the scheme. Strangely, the end result is that it is hardly ever utilized to its fullest advantage. It's mainly used as a standby when other systems fail or are overloaded during peak times.
Then, within a matter of seconds, the butterfly valves are turned and the power bursts forth, turning the huge turbines.
Amazingly, when the demand lessens, all the water is then pumped back uphill into the dam it came from!
The harsh conditions during the construction times gave us a tough breed of workers who, when the project was over, branched into the community and many became successful in other fields due to their hard work ethic. Leave a Comment Directions: This is the wall at Murray 1. You can enjoy a meal, buy a souvenir, learn about the scheme.
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Snowy Mountains
on January 18, 2004
