News & Events

April 2010 Upper Snowy Reconnoiter

My dream of a catch up weekend with sleep ins and paper reading was dashed by Paul convincing me to assist with a reconnoiter trip to the upper Snowy area.   Paul had long talked about a trip on the upper Snowy and he’d been researching it but the time had come to get some local information.   Where could you get on the river and more importantly where could you get out before the 50 ks of flat water started?   He had maps.   He had ideas but now he needed people to go with him!   He’d convinced me and Brandon to go with him.   He’d even convinced Brandon to drive his car and to get it serviced before we left.

At 7 a.m. on the Saturday of the Anzac Day weekend we met at my place.   The plan was to drive to Bombala, some six hours drive away, in NSW.   It seemed strange to be on a road trip without kayaks on the roof.   As we drove through Victoria the rain fell.   Perhaps it was a good omen for a future Snowy Trip?   At Lakes Entrance we stopped for a toilet break and to buy some prawns from the local Fishermen’s Coop.   On to Cann River where we gorged ourselves on the 2 kilos of prawns.   About 20 ks out of Cann River Brandon had noticed a warning light come on.   He dropped in at the mechanics who thought it was a loose connection.

On to Bombala, arriving about 2 ish.   First to the information centre.   Bombala is the home of the platypus with apparently 90% of all the creeks and rivers in the area having platypus.   Despite there apparent proliferation in the area we never managed to see one.   The lady at the information centre tried to be helpful but she wasn’t very knowledgeable about access via 4 WD tracks to the Snowy.   She did give us the phone number for the Russian monastery on the Delegate River, apparently across the river from a convent!



With a couple of hours of daylight left we headed down the first of the 4 wd access tracks Paul wanted to check.   This one may give us access to the Delegate River, which then flows into the Snowy River.   We were a little bit nervous as we passed the private road signs but with no locked gates we continued on.   Finally we were sprung by two ladies in 4 wads.   They lived further down the road.   Caroline showed us to the locked gate of a neighbour’s property which would give access to the river.   She then took us back to her place for the owner’s phone number.   The house was a lovely stone and wood construction which had been built by her husband.   She looked retired and ran a few horses.   Apparently there hadn’t been much water in the Delegate River except after some great falls in February.    After thanking her for her help and in the diminishing light we headed back to Bombala.

Brandon had booked us in to the Imperial Hotel.   The hotel, like the town itself, had seen better days and those days were quite awhile a go.   The rooms were very basic and consequently fairly reasonable.   After an aperitif at the hotel we headed to the RSL, there weren’t many options, and the ubiquitous Chinese restaurant.

Brandon’s friend, Cathy, was coming down from the Central Coast to catch up with Brandon.   She had a 50th birthday party to go to so didn’t leave until late and arrived about 3 a.m.

Sunday was Anzac Day and with the Imperial Hotel being immediately opposite the Bombala War Memorial it seemed the right thing to do to go to the dawn service.   The alarm went off at 6 a.m. and we quickly dressed and joined the crowd at the memorial.   There was a contingent from the Australian Defense Academy in Canberra and I was surprised by how many people were there.   After the service we were all invited to the RSL for a free breakfast of bacon, sausages, eggs and baked beans!

With our stomachs satisfied and Cathy now awake we headed off to check out a potential exit point from the Snowy.   Unfortunately a short distance down a track from Beloka (near Dalgety) Brandon’s car came to a grinding halt.   Looks like that warning light was a warning light!



Fortunately Brandon had roadside assist with the RACV.  Unfortunately the NRMA tow truck was going to take 4 hours!   We left the keys with the vehicle and headed off to hitch a ride to Jindabyne, the nearest major town.   Fortunately the tow truck driver decided to pick us up first and soon appeared.   With Brandon’s car on the back of the truck we were set but there were only two passenger seats!   We managed to all fit in together with a dog named after the tow truck driver’s hated sisters!

With Brandon’s car now at the mechanics our next problem was how to get back to Bombala and then how to get back to Melbourne.   After many phone calls, internet searches and cappuccinos we managed to sought it out.   The RACV would cover a car hire from 24 hours from a local place in Jindabyne, Cathy would drive us from Jindabyne to Canberra and finally RACV would pay for the flights back to Melbourne.   We were set.

We hired a big 4 WD in Jindabyne and only a few hours late set out again to check out the egress track.   With maps and GPS at hand and fortunately with lots of clearance we managed to reach the Snowy River.   It was quite a trip.   The track was incredibly band and with a few creek crossings thrown in it was quite an experience.   There was no way we would have made it in Brandon’s car.   There was also no way were going to get out here.   Paul would have to rethink his plan.

It was getting late in the afternoon but we decided to try to visit Stone Bridge.   Stone Bridge is a section of the Snowy River where the river disappears under huge rocks.   We drove along the nearest track until we reached a locked gate.   Then with only an hour of light left we headed off on foot, avoiding the ‘Private Property’ signs and eventually reached the river and the Stone Bridge.   It was worth the effort.   Massive boulders and stone platforms block the river’s path which continues to flow under the rocks.   We made it back to the car in the diminishing light.  



Monday and finally a sleep in!   We packed up our gear and Paul insisted that we follow the instructions for ‘checking out when the hotel is shut’ displayed on the room wall.   As instructed Paul and I left the key in the door and headed down the back stairs.   We then found ourselves in the back yard of the hotel.   The gate to the yard was padlocked and we couldn’t get back into the hotel.   We ended up scaling the gate to get out.

A quick breakfast at the Lingalonga Café was the plan.   However we should have known that a café with the name of the ‘Lingalonga’ wasn’t going to be quick.   Finally we got away and headed south to near Delegate to visit a farmer, Rowan, Paul had located on the internet.   Rowan’s neighbour, Mark, looked like being our best location to access the river.

Now to get home.   We drove to Jindabyne and dropped off the hire car.   We then loaded into Cathy’s small car and drove the two hours to Canberra airport.   At the airport we said Goodbye to Cathy and thanked her for her help.   We checked in, thanks RACV, and decided to have a celebratory drink at the bar before the flight.   About 10 minutes before the flight was due to leave we realized that we were in the wrong terminal!   A quick dash to the right terminal, through the security check and we made it on to the flight.   The flight to Melbourne was fine.   As we arrived in Melbourne the flight attendant made the usually welcoming announcement.   ‘Welcome to Sydney’   ‘No!’   She then quickly corrected herself, ‘Welcome to Melbourne’.   Saint Doreen then picked us up from the airport and drove us home.   Now for the actual Upper Snowy Trip!

Alison