outtahere
The nearby settlements of Mount Beauty, Bogong Village and Falls Creek once housed workers on the Kiewa hydro-electric scheme, which was established in the late 1930s. The scheme is the largest in Victoria and was created specifically for power generation, diverting and harnessing water from the Rocky Valley and Pretty Valley branches of the East Kiewa River, which rises on the Bogong High Plains, and the West Kiewa River, which rises near Mount Hotham. The Rocky Valley Dam forms the main reservoir for the Kiewa hydro-electric scheme and can hold 28,000 megalitres (28 billion litres) of water – or, if you like, the equivalent of about 11,200 Olympic swimming pools. For lovers of snow, this means that even if Falls Creek does not experience big snow dumps, snow can be manufactured using the 230 snow guns throughout the resort. In 2010, Falls Creek expanded its snow-making system and now has an area of 110 hectares for snow-making, meaning the resort can open earlier and have the best possible snow cover throughout the entire season.
On yer bike Another way to get off your skis, but still get down the slopes, is on a snow bike. Increasingly popular on the mountains during winter, riding a snow bike is a strange feeling at first, balancing on a lowslung bike seat attached to two small inline skis. But after many awkward side-veering moments – as you try not to take out any innocent bystanders on your wheel-less pushie – you might get it. Who would have thought it, back when there was no-one up on the mountain except for the hydro-electric workers, bereft even of skis to enjoy the slopes? Now you can also snowboard, toboggan, ride a snowmobile or snow bike … or even be dragged along by a team of superenthusiastic huskies.
Get hairy on Hotham Legs burning after several days of traversing the flat bits, labouring back uphill to collect your yard-saled pole and goggles, or après-ski tabletop moshing? Then take a load off. With Australian Sled Dog Tours you can get behind a train of super-keen, steaming, slobbering, furry dogs and be hauled across the snow for a four-kilometre ride. The tours offer an insight into how life was on the mountains before all the lifts and pomas went in to make skiing more of a pleasure than a heart attack. The six rambunctious Siberian huskies reliably deliver a tour that you won’t easily forget. Think of it as the dilettante’s Iditarod.
Kat skiing At Mount Hotham, guests with a valid lift pass can also jump aboard a Kat (snowcat, that is) and get a lift up the hill in a comfy eight-seater cabin. It’s still possible to seek out a black diamond rush in pristine powder, carving through the back country and 15