19/07/1985 – 21/07/1985 Thredbo – Lake Cootapatamba – Mount Kosciusko return
Kosciuszko National Park, NSW
Ngarigo country
Distance: 22km Total Ascent: 1560m Total Descent: 2110m
Participant: Stephen Davies (Report)
Friday 19/07/1985
Made a detour via Bombala to visit my grandmother, arriving at 8:00pm. I found her well despite her having been on forced rest after overdoing her gardening. We had a great conversation, she is still quick witted.
I left not long after as I didn’t want to contend with the morning ski traffic. The valley mists were just starting to form.
Another exciting drive to Dalgety on the gravel and was back on the bitumen about 11:15pm when I hit a bloody big kangaroo. It felt like it almost stopped the car from 110 km/h. Despite this rather solid collision it only bent the bonnet and RHS mudguard slightly with no other damage. There was no blood but some fur. The roo hopped off with a very dazed look. Whilst charging down on him he looked as tall as the car or was that some kind of illusion? Arrived at Thredbo Diggings about 12:30am aft0er paying the $4 Park entrance fee for the day. Despite an empty Rutledge’s hut I put the tent up trying to secure a decent nights sleep.
Day 1: Saturday 20/07/1985 Thredbo – Lake Cootapatamba – Mount Kosciusko
This route was reconstructed from memory using Google Earth Pro and GPS Visualizer.
Max elevation: 2217 m
Total climbing: 1344 m
Total descent: -1335 m
Average speed: nan km/h
There was lots of traffic passing in the early morning. Away about 8:30am to find the car park almost full at 9:00am. Waited an hour to get onto the lift and was not onto the snow until 10:30am! I headed towards Cootapatamba where I pitched the tent about mid-day. After a quick lunch I grabbed an excellent telemark run then skied up to the summit of Mount Kosciusko. The snow was windblown and crusty in places and somewhat unpredictable as a result. Haven’t had so many falls all year! Very annoying just when you think you know how to ski! Returned to the original slope with much more success, completing it seven times until I was totally spent about 4:30pm. Then back to the tent to cook a dinner of quick rice and vegetables. Real yoghurt and Bavarian cream for dessert. Caught up with three weeks of diary writing.
The wind started to pick up during the day as the clouds built up from the west. With the prospect of deteriorating weather I thought I’d check my map to look at options for tomorrow, only to find I’d packed the wrong map (I was mapless!). To bed 8:20pm.
Day 2: Sunday 21/07/1985 Lake Cootapatamba – Thredbo
This route was reconstructed from memory using Google Earth Pro and GPS Visualizer.
Max elevation: 2130 m
Total climbing: 225 m
Total descent: -783 m
Average speed: nan km/h
The clouds that had been building yesterday had really closed in overnight. It was one of those day where was pointless trying to ski anywhere, even up and down on small local hills, the visibility was just far too poor.
I was very apprehensive about the return trip to Thredbo. Guessing it couldn’t be too far off due east from my campsite I set the bearing on my compass and headed off into the whiteness of a really good white-out.
The visibility was very poor but I did manage to pick up the pole line before loosing it again after half a dozen poles, whether they were there or not I didn’t know. Regardless I continued on along my easterly bearing.
Uncannily I then ran across to two blokes from Canberra who were just packing away their tent. Fortunately they knew where we were, as they actually did have a map with them. Shortly after the visibility improved ever so slightly and in about 400m I was on the second pole line, following it back to top station across plenty of wind blown icy patches and scoured hard packed snow.
After placing my pack on the lift and I skied straight down. Here the snow was excellent and sufficiently sheltered from the wind to be not too badly effected by it. Was home to Dapto by 9:00pm.
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Thank you for the post, I am planning to do something similar in July 2020. walking/snowshoeing from dead horse gap up to Koscouszko then camping at or near North Rams Head then returning in the Morning. I like your blog too.