The Snowy Mountains. Nu? Where's the snow

The Snowy Mountains from Atop

Summit Mt. Caruthers

High winds well below summit

Hike 24: January 17th

‘Snowy Mountains here we come,’ we shouted as we sped off from Leura, traveling south through the capital, Canberra and then on to Jindabyne. We spent seven nights in the Blue Mountains, a similar amount of days, too. We had a wonderful experience in the region, although after a very slow start, we were beginning to wonder about our stay in Australia. Canberra, the parts that we saw, were very pretty. It looks like a well-cared for city. “Why are you holding your wallet like that?” our editor asked as we entered the capital. “We once wrote a dissertation on taxes, so we know how things work with politicians,” we answered. “There are only two things certain in life, death and taxes, and not necessarily in that order. When we enter a town filled with politicians, we hold onto our wallet.” With the usual rolling of the eyes, we were told to drive towards Jindabyne, a village with a cute name and a large lake.
One of the summits-wonderful

Highest body of water in Australia

..and opposite the country's highest mountain
“Where’s the snow?” we wanted to know as we viewed the grass covered mountains in Australia’s alpine region. The Kosciuszko National Park is some 15 miles from where we are, which houses the highest mountains in Australia. The title belongs to the mountain with the same name as the park. These Aussie names are really tricky—what happened to the old colonial names like “Smith, Jones and even Cohen”? Turns out it is named after a Polish freedom fighter. Go figure! Now don’t get too excited about mountains in Australia. Geologists tell us that mountains on this continent are collapsing whereas those in New Zealand are rising. We wish they had told us this before we arrived. Nevertheless, the Snowy Mountain area is, in our opinion, very beautiful. Admittedly, the mountains are not that high. However, for an alpine area, the soil is very good allowing the grass and vegetation to cover the mountains gracefully. The rolling blue ranges, look well manicured, and together with rocky outcrops, give one the feeling that one can see the whole world and in a most tranquil way. It is wonderful rather than a spectacular place.

A lot further to go, my Sweet
We commenced our hike at Charlotte Pass, headed down into the valley, crossed the Snowy River (stream) a few times and ascended for the rest of the time to the peak. We passed Blue Lake, the highest body of water in Australia. Thereafter, we made our way to Mount Caruthers in winds that were unpleasantly strong. At the summit, we met a local, young family who are ‘tramping’ about the area. The husband/father hales from Malawi, a neighbor to South Africa. It was interesting talking with them. The distance of the hike was nine miles in full sunshine but the wind made it a bit of a struggle, at times. We woke this morning with stiff necks and aching muscles—compliments of the biting wind, we think.
Not the Mississippi

So where’s the snow?