with Dobbs
Here are pictures of the recent snow that has hit Thredbo Ski Resort in New South Wales:
It doesn’t look like the Snowy Mountains got as much snow as Victoria’s high country, but they have been setting record cold temperatures in the Thredbo area.
You can read more about Thredbo here.
These pictures may not be as nice as the ones I took before of winter on Mt. Hotham 
, but they still should give readers a good indication of how much snow has fallen on the mountain in recent days:
You can see more pictures here.
The winter blast that has hit southeast Australia that brought record cold temperatures has led Mt. Buller ski resort to open this year’s ski season at the earliest time in its history:
In a special this weekend only celebration Mt Buller is throwing open the resort to the public this Saturday and Sunday to share the amazing 35cm of early snow blanketing the resort
“This is the earliest we’ve opened a lift and ski run in the history of Mt Buller resort. The closest was 45 years ago when we opened on the 16 May in 1964, “said Laurie Blampied General Manager of Buller Ski Lift.
“It’s so exciting to have such early and extensive falls so we decided to seize the opportunity, open up early for a special weekend and share it with everyone.”
“Mt Buller will be the only resort open in Australia this weekend and we look forward to welcoming everyone who has been eagerly waiting to dust off their skis and experience the magical feeling of being up in the snow.”
Just three hours drive from Melbourne, roads are clear and open to Mt Buller and there is currently no resort entry fee.
Buller Ski Lifts will have the new 6-seater Holden Express Chairlift in operation for skiers, boarders and also sightseeing on Saturday and Sunday with equipment and clothing hire available in the Ski School building and the Arlberg Hot
Details:
• Saturday 2 May & Sunday 3 May only
• Special price ticket: Just $20 for adults, children and sightseers. 2009 season lift pass holders will receive a complimentary lift ticket.
* Visitors are reminded to check back at mtbuller.com.au closer to the weekend to confirm weather and conditions as they can change suddenly. [Mt. Buller Ski Resort]
Another year and another early snow season has hit Australia’s high country:
AN ANTARCTIC blast with winds of up to 120 km/h has brought widespread rain across much of the state and a carpet of snow to the mountains.
The mercury in Melbourne recorded a top of 13.5 degrees yesterday, and today’s top is tipped to be 15.
After Victoria’s devastatingly hot summer, the icy weather has encouraged hopes of a third consecutive snowy ski season, which officially opens in six weeks.
Mount Hotham and Falls Creek had recorded 20 centimetres of snow by yesterday afternoon, with more expected to fall last night. Other ski resorts had up to 10 centimetres.
The Bureau of Meteorology said the cold snap was caused by a low pressure system that came from the south, intensified over Tasmania and crossed Bass Strait to hit Victoria early yesterday. [The Age]
Once again Australia is seeing an early beginning to its snow season, but there is one down side to this wet weather:
While 140 millimetres of rain fell at Mount Buffalo, the catchments and metropolitan Melbourne largely missed out with less than 10 millimetres.
But more rain is expected. [The Age]
This goes back to the argument that Herald-Sun columnist Andrew Bolt has been making about spreading out dams in each catchment area to avoid missing collecting all the water that is currently pouring out into the ocean.
Here are some more pictures of this early winter storm:
Snowfall at Hotham/Dinner Plain
Snow on Mt Buller. Photo: Hans Vanhoegaerden
Alex Mathewson and Hawthorn footballer Brendan Whitecross brave the cold at St Kilda. Photo: Melanie Faith Dove
It is the height of what is turning out to be a great ski season in Australia:
For those wondering where this picture was taken, it is from the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales.
Heavy snows have been falling in the Victorian high country leading to some of the best ski conditions in years. For example in Falls Creek they have over a meter of snow on the ground now which is the most in the entire state right now:
Falls Creek Ski Resort
Mt. Hotham Ski Resort located not to far from Falls Creek is likewise blanketed in heavy snow:
Mt. Hotham Ski Resort
Mt. Hotham is reporting 24cm of new snow and an average depth of over 100 centimeters.
Victoria’s other major ski resort Mt. Buller also has plenty of fresh snow:
Mt. Buller Ski Resort
The snow season this year is quickly turning into a quality one with this recent dumping of snow in the high country. For anyone thinking about going skiing in Australia now is definitely the time to do so.
The Mt. Hotham Ski Resort is located about 350 kilometers northeast of Melbourne and provides the best ski conditions in all of Victoria. Mt. Hotham is 1,861 meters high and the ski resort is known as “Australia’s Powder Capitol” due to its high levels of annual snow fall. When you drive up to Mt. Hotham the level of snow fall is quite evident but the ski resort isn’t. The first thing you see is this small ski run:
When I saw this I was left thinking, “This is it?” However, once I drove to the other side of the mountain the full ski resort opened up:
Mt. Hotham for Australia is actually quite a big resort though not quite as big as Mt. Buller which is located further south and closer to Melbourne thus making it more popular. Mt. Hotham does get its fair share of skiers though and was quite busy:
You had to wait a little while to get on the ski lifts but all in all it really wasn’t that bad:
Mt. Hotham has 14 ski lifts spread out across the mountain which were all operating when I was there. These pictures kind of give you an idea of what the ski runs are like:
Obviously Mt. Hotham is not the Rockies or the Alps, but is good enough to have some fun on for people here in Australia. If you are into cross country skiing than Mt. Hotham is the place to go because cross country ski trails here are quite outstanding. Here is a view of the ridge line known as the razorback leading to Mt. Feathertop that is really popular with cross country skiers:
The scenery is just spectacular. If you look closely you can see the skiers on the ridge line:
Mt. Hotham has 35 kilometers of cross country ski trails to check out. I have never tried cross country skiing but it does look like fun and maybe sometime I will try it out:
If skiing isn’t your thing there is also areas where you can go sledding as well:
All in all Mt. Hotham is a pretty good ski resort and I encourage everyone to at least try going to one of the Australian ski resorts at least once during their time Down Under.
Previous Posting: Exploring the Snowfields of Northern Victoria
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