KEY POINTS:
Most Kiwis probably think Australia is too hot in summer for serious tramping - especially considering what's been happening lately - but summer in the Snowy Mountains can still deliver harsh and unexpected weather.
As we crossed Charlotte Pass Ski Resort, the highest in the range, the clouds swooped in dramatically.
Summer may have thawed the last of the high peaks, but I was left in no doubt these mountains could be cold and wild as a chilly gale ripped across my face.
Without the snow, many of the high walking trails in the Snowies become accessible and the finest of these is the 10km return hike to Australia's highest glacier lake - Blue Lake.
Happily, my walking partner and I have the track to ourselves for the first hours. Ourselves and an abundance of wildlife.
Smaller birds flutter about our feet while the occasional hawk glides above. Wombats can sometimes be spied ambling through the luscious native grass or a mob of high-country kangaroos bounding over a mountain.
Wild flowers are everywhere and add vibrant hues to a landscape filled with jagged cliffs, finely balanced boulders and flowing rivers.
The walk is relatively easy going. The first descent is paved until the Thredbo River. If you want to go further, it's a matter of hopping from rock to rock across very cold water. There are three river crossings of varying difficulty, all of them requiring care.
As we climb the pass, Mount Kosciuszko, Australia's highest peak, is obscured by thick mist lifting out of the valley. It can easily be reached in a day's hiking, even if it can't be seen.
But today Blue Lake beckons. At 16ha and 28m deep, the lake is the best-developed glacial feature in these ranges.
Geologically it's known as a cirque - a bowl-shaped hollow formed by glaciers.
In the Snowies, cirques only occur on sheltered mountain faces where the snow first fell and slowly compacted into glacial ice.
Cold fog hangs above the lake while two waterfalls cascade off the surrounding cliffs. The only animals are a murder of crows breaking the alpine silence.
From here you can walk beyond the lake to Hedley Tarn, another water feature most would describe as an alpine swamp. But with the weather closing in, we turn and head for home.
GETTING THERE:
Charlotte Pass is about 200km from Canberra or 480km from Sydney. From Canberra take the Monaro Highway to Cooma and on to Jindabyne then follow the signs to the ski resorts of Thredbo, Perisher and Charlotte Pass. Day entry to the Kosciuszko National Park is about $20.
FURTHER INFORMATION:
Visit nationalparks.nsw.gov.au or ring (61) 2 6450 5600.
- AAP
