Spring time in the Snowy Mountains

After spending 5 days in Canberra recently my next destination was the Australian Snowy Mountains. To say I was excited was an understatement. I have only ever seen snow once before and that was when I lived in London. I woke up to snow one Sunday morning and literally had about 5 minutes to enjoy it before it melted and turned to slush. My first glimpse of a snow covered mountain around the Jindabyne area put a smile on my face that lasted the next 30km. It was such a beautiful sight to see especially at this time of year being the end of September.

This year was a bumper snow season for the Australian Alps and with a recent down pouring of snow just the week before I arrived and there was still a tonne of snow around to have loads of fun with. Once I arrived at the gorgeous little town of Thredbo, I found my accommodation and settled in. I was a guest of www.visitsnowymountains.com.au and they put me up in one of the best snow chalets in  Thredo – Onyx 2 which is situated in the brand new Woodridge Estate.

This place was off the charts with modern luxury with heated flooring under the beautiful slate tiles, a fire place, a fully equipped gourmet kitchen, and view of the snowy mountains from the deck.

After settling in and enjoying the comforts of my amazing ski chalet and a good nights rest in the most comfortable and warm bed it was time for sunrise, breakfast and a day of fun on the slopes.

Back to my Onyx ski Chalet for breakfast on the deck with views of the Snowy Mountains after a stunning sunrise from Dead Horse Gap.

It was a beautiful day and I wanted to make the most of it so I wandered up the road to the Kosciusko Express Chair Lift and got a ride up to the top of the mountain. Having never even been on a chairlift before I was in luck as two guys that work at the top and do rescues were just about to get on the chairlift at the same time so they helped me out. I was carrying a back pack full of equipment and my tripod so it was nice to have some help! PJ and Darren were so lovely and offered for me to go on a ski doo ride around the top of the mountains to get some shots that I wouldn’t have been able to get otherwise. Once we got to the top they introduced me to Sebastian who was the one that took me for a ride around the Main Range which was the most fun ever.

After the ride I went for a bit of a walk around but the wind was really picking up so I headed back down the mountain for some lunch and bit of a walk around the village before one of the most epic sunsets in a long time.

The clouds move around the mountains so quickly you can’t predict what sunrise or sunset is going to be like. I started off photographing sunset at a little lookout in Thredbo and then saw what was unfolding just down the road at Dead Horse Gaps so I jumped in the car and headed down here. There were wild brumbies feeding just near where I was photographing sunset which was so cool to see. Unfortunately they ran off before I could get any decent photos of them.

The next morning after another amazing breakfast on the deck on my Onyx Ski Chalet I had to decide whether I wanted to do some skiing (I have never skied in my life) or head back up the mountain to do the Mount Kosciusko walk. I was dying to try skiing but this was my last full day in the snowy mountains before moving on to the South Coast of NSW and I figured I probably needed a bit more time to learn to ski than one day so I made a promise to myself that I was going to go back for a ski holiday and learn to ski.

So I headed back to the Kosciusko Express Chair lift and got myself up the top with ease this time. I then headed off along the metal walkways on the Mount Kosciusko walk. It was another stunning day and the wind wasn’t too bad right up the top of the mountain. It was a fair bit easier to walk around on the snow today too with my snow boots. A fair bit of the metal walking tracks were visible which made it a whole lot easier too.

So after walking for  a while and not seeing anymore foot prints and no one else in sight I kind of got a bit freaked out and thought I better head back! I really wish now that I had kept going because from this point in the photo above was where it started to get really beautiful. After 3 hours of walking in snow I had worked up an appetite so I headed back down the mountain to cook up a gourmet lunch in my Oxyx Ski Chalet and have a bit of a rest before venturing out for sunset.

I went for a drive and found these scraggly old trees that fill the landscape around the Snowy Mountains. They look so tired and beaten down from facing the constant wind and weather but still looked beautiful to me.

The next morning it was time to leave the Snowy Montains and move on to the South Coast of NSW. I was really sad to leave but ventured to the snow fields to capture everyone having the last bit of fun skiing before the snow melted away for another year.

I couldn’t help but stop and take a pic of the road with the Snowy Mountains on the way out.

Have you been to the snowy mountains in the spring time or at anytime for that matter? What was your experience like? I would love to know so leave a comment below! 🙂

I stayed at Onyx Ski Chalet as a guest of www.visitsnowymountains.com.au but of course all opinions are my own.

Onyx 2 Ski Chalet

Woodridge Estate

Thredbo NSW 2625

02 6457 7132

www.visitsnowymountains.com.au