27 July 2010 Beginners Cross Country Skiing
Map: Mount Kosciusko 8525-II and III or Perisher Valley 8525-2S 1:25,000
Getting There
This walk was organised and led by Karen Cody as a Tuesday walk:
Tuesday 27 July - In the steps of Scott and Amundsen! Something new for Tuesday’s intrepid explorers - cross country skiing! This trip is for absolute beginners...no speeding nor steep terrain allowed. We’ll meander along the flats around Perisher / Blue Cow with informal guidance and assistance with gear provided. The exact location will depend on snow coverage/weather conditions on the day. If it all proves too much there's respite in the nearby pub! No need to hire gear beforehand, we will stop along the way to pick up appropriate gear. If foul weather presents itself we’ll go for a snowshoe near Teddy’s Hut / Paddy Rush’s Bogong. Map: Mount Kosciusko 8525-II and III or Perisher Valley 8525-2S 1:25,000. For info and bookings contact the Leader: Karen Cody, kco78410@bigpond.net.au. Transport: $150 per car, Park entry $27 per car, Ski gear $35 per person Limit: 8. Note: If there is an intermediate/advanced cross country skier who wishes to assist on the day, please let me know.
3 of us met at 6am and had to leave the fourth starter at 6.20am, who was still lost somewhere in Weston Creek.
Further Information
A gear list, recommended by the Canberra Cross Country Ski Club is here. Current weather for Perisher is here.
Photographs
Access all primary pics here. All thumbnails in the walk report are active - click for a larger picture.
Walk
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| Track Beginners Cross Country Skiing |
Quite an experience for me, just the second time in 40 years that I'd tried skiing. I may never again!
We hired gear in Jindabyne and arrived around 9.30am, having left a bit later than the advertised meeting time of 6am.
Plenty of people around, although there's not much natural snow. We wandered to the Nordic Shelter to meet Kathy S. So two beginners (Max soon left that grading) and two instructors. We walked up the road and onto the groomed cross country trails. A magic day, weather-wise. So began the practise, me receiving excellent instruction from Cathy. She had a poorly responding student. I had plenty of tail-jarring crashes as I learned to stop and turn. Morning tea revived my spirits - the only compliment I received all day was for persistence. Back to it a little further along the 5km trail. A chance to appreciate the views during lunch.
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| 1 Groomed trail where there was much agony and little ecstasy for me | The way it should be (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | The way it usually was (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | Practise does not make perfect (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | 2 View from lunch towards Smiggin Holes |
Two huge (well, they were to me) downhills presented the challenge to get home in the afternoon, after yet more practise. At one stage a group of obvious experts swept passed me at high speed - coming up the hills! Man, were they good. I persisted to very near the end, removing my skis at the approach back to the Shelter. My companions brazenly skied on down to the pub, whilst I was happy to walk. That beer was most welcome.
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| Back-country bogan bushwalker skier (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | Beginners at work (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | Max heads for home (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | Satisfied skiers (photo courtesy of Karen Cody) | 3 View from the pub |
Never again ... until the next time. (At least Kaz's next foray into the snow country is snow shoeing on 24 Aug 10.) The track recording was a bit rough, as my GPS was in the back pocket of my pack and I kept falling on it. Not a good idea to keep one's specs in the same pocket, although the lens did go back in.
Thanks for organising this, Karen. Thanks for your coaching, Cathy S. You well and truly showed me up, Max. A day to be remembered but never repeated.
Distance: 4.3km Climb: 50m. Time: 10am - 2.45pm (4hrs 45mins), with 45mins of scheduled stops and much behind time for me.
Grading: B... hard
KMZ file for Google Earth/Maps: Beginners Cross Country Skiing
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This page last updated 20Aug22