As we drive north from Melbourne, it hits me that this is the 2nd last day of the roadtrip. The plan for the next 24 hours is to camp at Thredbo Diggings then catch the chairlift at Thredbo and walk to Mount Kosciuszko, the top of Australia.
We had always planned to stop in to the Snowy Mountains on the last day, as this is my favourite national park, however as we were leaving on the trip fires came through and the park was closed indefinitely. It was almost unbelievable when I checked the website, the day we came into Melbourne, in the vain hope that it would somehow be open… And it was!
On our way to Thredbo Diggings campground, we drove across the now open Snowy Mountains Highway, and it’s immediately obvious why the park was closed and evacuated 3 weeks ago.
After setting up camp we go for a swim and take a walk around the Bullocks Flat area adjacent to the campground.
This is one of my favourite campgrounds and it’s great to see Doug agrees! We go to bed looking forward to the summit the next morning… however mother nature had different ideas.
During the night we both awake to an incredible storm rolling in. Unlike the Gorge of the Flies incident, we are both already in waterproof shelters and tonight it isn’t raining. The problem tonight is the wind. Cyclonic wind. So fierce that I am leaning to one side in my swag desperately trying to hold down that side from blowing away.
We packed up quickly in the morning, happy to be alive, as we looked across the campsite to see another camper’s destroyed dome tent and many fallen trees.
Needless to say the Thredbo chairlift wasn’t open and we wouldn’t be climbing Mount Kosciuszko, but despite the disappointment it certainly was a whirlwind adventure! (I’m sorry.)
And what an adventure! Over the past 18 days, with:
Having arrived safely back in Sydney and unpacked a very dirty car, Doug and I sit down to enjoy some beers and say cheers to what was most certainly Doug & Dave’s most Aussie Adventure! *cue guitar riff*
We had always planned to stop in to the Snowy Mountains on the last day, as this is my favourite national park, however as we were leaving on the trip fires came through and the park was closed indefinitely. It was almost unbelievable when I checked the website, the day we came into Melbourne, in the vain hope that it would somehow be open… And it was!
On our way to Thredbo Diggings campground, we drove across the now open Snowy Mountains Highway, and it’s immediately obvious why the park was closed and evacuated 3 weeks ago.
After setting up camp we go for a swim and take a walk around the Bullocks Flat area adjacent to the campground.
This is one of my favourite campgrounds and it’s great to see Doug agrees! We go to bed looking forward to the summit the next morning… however mother nature had different ideas.
During the night we both awake to an incredible storm rolling in. Unlike the Gorge of the Flies incident, we are both already in waterproof shelters and tonight it isn’t raining. The problem tonight is the wind. Cyclonic wind. So fierce that I am leaning to one side in my swag desperately trying to hold down that side from blowing away.
We packed up quickly in the morning, happy to be alive, as we looked across the campsite to see another camper’s destroyed dome tent and many fallen trees.
Needless to say the Thredbo chairlift wasn’t open and we wouldn’t be climbing Mount Kosciuszko, but despite the disappointment it certainly was a whirlwind adventure! (I’m sorry.)
And what an adventure! Over the past 18 days, with:
- 12,494km driven
- 103.83km walked
- 2,126 photos taken
- 2 blown tyres
- $2,147.67 of petrol
- all 7 mainland states crossed
- an elevation range between 1484m and -19m
- 1 Kiwi mistaken for an Aussie by a Canadian
Having arrived safely back in Sydney and unpacked a very dirty car, Doug and I sit down to enjoy some beers and say cheers to what was most certainly Doug & Dave’s most Aussie Adventure! *cue guitar riff*
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