Continuing on from Canberra, I started driving southwest towards Australia’s highest mountain range and the famous Snowy River region. After a sweet little dirt road shortcut that led me through another fun river crossing, I found myself on a busy road connecting Canberra with Australia’s most famous alpine region. It was quite busy, but most of the traffic seemed to be going the other way. I was dying for a cup of coffee (still being subject to fire bans overnight) and noticed a popular looking family run pancake restaurant along the way. I decided to add a few hotcakes with maple syrup, ice cream, and cream – to my coffee order. Hotcakes were described as being bigger and heavier that pancakes (which they also sold). I should probably note that everyone who worked in this restaurant looked rather large – so this was not a meal to recommend having often.
I had my fill of cakes and coffee and proceeded down the highway until I reached Jindabyne, which is the gateway to the Snowy Mountains. They had a big information center there where you could talk with rangers and get answers to questions – which I always prefer to looking things up. My questions were “where can I camp?”, “where can I mountain bike?”, and “where can I hike?” The answer to all three questions was “lots of places!” And much information was given to me to show me where to go. It was mentioned that numerous hiking trails could also be mountain biked – but when the summit trail to Australia’s highest peak was mentioned as a cycling opportunity, I knew I had to try it.
Truth be told, Australia is a relatively flat place. Even the highest peak, Mt Kosciuszko, is only a little higher than Mexico City at 7310ft (2228m) – but STILL! It had to be done! The actual trail is about 9kms each way and follows an old gravel road up to the summit, but I was told you are not permitted to ride your bike for the last mile (1.6 kms) of it. Having now cycled the trail I can tell you that it is definitely thigh-master stuff for the 9kms up, with only one dip for recuperation on the way there. You climb out of low forested areas and up into alpine views with no trees and very low scrub with snow still clinging to the south side of some peaks in the area. The trail also crosses the Snowy River in its infancy.
I was able to peddle the entire bike-able portion without the need for a break, which felt great. I do think the pancakes must have helped! I locked up my bike where they wanted me to and walked the last mile in my cycling shoes. It was really beautiful at the top (especially looking south, where the trail spirals up from) and I really wanted to hang out there for a while. I took lots of iPhone pictures, including several panoramas, before I decided it was finally time for the descent. After I walked the mile back to my bike, I hopped back on it for a ride I will always remember! Mostly all downhill with plenty of berms to jump over – put there by the park service to channel snowmelt off the trail in spring. Lots of fun and a great feeling of accomplishment.
Fired up from that experience, I headed into the ski resort town of Thredbo to see about other mountain bike trails you can get to by ski-lift. I figured I earned my climbing credentials and deserved it. Only problem was that Thredbo was packed for a weekend blues festival and nothing was open, so I decided to skip it and find a campsite for the night that I could use as a springboard for some other mountain bike trails in the morning. I found a great little campsite along a river tucked away in a busy camping area for the night.
