Fun in the Sun

[skyring]

Start of winter, might as well head down to the snow and play with a bit. It took me a bit of convincing, actually, because I knew there'd be crowds and I wasn't sure about admission fees or where we had to wear chains or where the snow could be found at this time of year.

But I was talked into it.

We pulled out a few warm garments and headed off down the Monaro Highway. Somewhere into New South Wales the fog lifted and we found ourselves in a land of dry brown rolling hills under a clear blue sky. The drought has been so prolonged that the golden grass is now well and truly parched and un-scenic. Mountains on the horizon - tall forested hills more than mountains.

We didn't stop at Cooma, a pleasant little town that bills itself as the Gateway to the Snowy Mountains, which I suppose it is, but went right on to Jindabyne. I don't think I've been there for twenty years, but we recognised a few of the places, including the restaurant where we had fresh trout on a summer day overlooking the lake. The lake is there, of course, but sadly shrunken. maybe if we were to travel along the northern shore we might find Old Adaminaby emerging from the waters that have covered the old town for half a century.

Stopped and poked around. There was snow higher up - I knew because I'd checked the webcams, and as we drove in, we could see it gleaming in the distance. Other lands have jagged peaks thrusting up, their bare faces covered in snow and ice, but here in Australia our highest mountains are merely bits of land that happen to be higher than the surrounding bits. The snow looked more like the sun gleaming on a field of sand dunes than anything else.

We headed out towards the Snowy Mountains National Park. I wasn't sure what we'd do when we got there - entry for a car is only $16, but we had to carry snow chains, and I don't have snow chains. Instead we sussed out the Ski-Tube up to Perisher - a train that runs from below the snow up to the higher slopes. Cripes. $83 for a family pass. All we wanted to do was muck about and chuck a few snowballs at each other. Gave that a miss, peeked at the park entrance, and then headed back to where we had seen some snow on sheltered south-facing slopes. Found the road and parked before the snow cover - I wasn't going to risk driving along an unknown gravel road covered in snow and possibly ice.

The wheel tracks were fairly solid ice, I discovered, but there was fresh crisp dry powder snow all around. Snowballs didn't work too well, but it was fun trying. I took a few photographs, and tried to find a good spot to give a book a taste of the snow.

Then we headed back down to Jindabyne and had a delicious lunch before driving home. There hadn't been too many crowds, the roads were wide and straight and empty, the scenery delightful, and the day warm and sunny.

Most enjoyable.

I've given up taking the dog for my morning walks. She doesn't like the cold or the traffic noise or being dragged away from her routine of breakfast and a pillow by the heating vent. Fair enough, I guess! Still, I'm getting myself into the habit, and I can see the results on the bathroom scales every day. A bit more exercise and a bit less eating - doesn't take much.

This means that I often have two walks, with another before dinner, and the dog likes those a lot more.

I was a bit worried about my laptop arriving after I'd left for hols, but it seems Dell can get it delivered before I go, according to their order tracking web interface. That's a load off my mind.

Comments

[vysion-of-books.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the telling of the trip. Sounds like you managed to avoid crowds and have fun. Maybe I should look into living in Australia this time of year.

-vysion, hater of hot humid days of summer, which just started.