Snow tracks

Submitted: Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 13:48

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napalm_999

Hi there,

I'm a pretty keen skier and obviously a pretty keen 4wder. I was wondering if anyone knows if it's possible to combine the two and get in some snowy 4wding up in the High Country. I've never done much exploring around the Snowy Mountains during winter to see what tracks are open.

So does anyone know a place only a fourbie can get to which you can set up a camp on nature's white mattress?

Cheers... Napalm

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Reply By: Robin Miller - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 14:17

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 14:17

Their are a number of places Napalm depending on where you are coming from.

Mt Skene south of Mansfiled is most popular and requires a form to be filled in.

Costs nothing - mostly a formality.

If this is in your range we could provide more details.

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Follow Up By: napalm_999 - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 18:18

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 18:18

Cheers Robin,

Nice pic, and is exactly what I'm after!

Although that might have to be it's own trip as it's a bit away from where I was planning to head. The orginal plan was to tie it in to a trip to Kosciuszko National Park where I frequently ski.

If you can, I would still be very interested in hearing about Mt Skene as it's not too far away.

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Follow Up By: Robin Miller - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 19:09

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 19:09

There are some places closer but some others like Crackles may know the best for you during this period of seasonal closures.

Mt Skene though is a dream location which has forever been a Commodore track between the towns of Jameison and Licola which rises to over 5000 ft.

A couple of years ago though the local councilMansfield, worried about insurance claims supported by the fact that the odd idiot tried to take a van over there felt that warning signs were not enough and after some negiotiations now require a form to be filled out in conjunction with 4wd Victoria (link below).

I still have not forgiven them and have had a don't spend money in Mansfield boycott ever since.

http://www.fwdvictoria.org.au/upload/downloads/Jamieson%20Licola%20Road%20Seasonal%20Road%20Access%20Application%20(Website%20Appln%20Form).pdf

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Follow Up By: Crackles - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 21:37

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 21:37

Nothing quite like a drive in the snow ehh Robin :-)
Actually just found out the real reason why restrictions were put on Mt Skene. Yes we all know a couple of Darwin Awardee's followed their road navigators blindly over the Mount & got stuck but it was the Police that took the cake. For the last rescue they sent a young constable wearing standard poliice issue clothing with no provisions in a Ford Territory! He came up from the Mansfield side (even though the car was stuck on the Licola side) and of course got stuck himself spending a very cold night. It was the inability of the Police to perform the rescue & the danger they put their member under that was the real reason it was closed.
Haven't driven snow in NSW for years now so wouldn't have a clue what's still open up that way anymore. Still a few options in Vic like the Jeep Track.
Cheers Craig...............

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Follow Up By: Robin Miller - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 21:58

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 21:58

Sad story Craig - Lovely photo , could that photo be on the shortcut down from where fire tower used to be on south side of mount skene.

I trying to think of a snow access road south of Corryong which is easier for entry from NSW, can't remember wasn't to far from Pinnabar (non-seasonally closed).

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Follow Up By: Crackles - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 22:23

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 22:23

Top part of the Barkley River Jeep Track Robin.

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Follow Up By: Member - Warrie (NSW) - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 22:32

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 22:32

Robin, you may be thinking of the Mount Hope road and track from Benambra to Tom Groggin. This requires fording the Murray which may be too high. You can check the water level at Biggara ( not far downstream ) on the Murray Darling Basin Authority website. Anything over 0.5 m is getting interesting and in winter the water temp is a bracing 6 or 7 degrees.....W

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Reply By: Madfisher - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 21:52

Reply By: Member - Warrie (NSW) - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 22:18

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 22:18

Hi Napalm_999, you are out of luck when it comes to snow covered Snowy Mtns roads in NSW. Being in the KNP they are mostly all locked up till the October long weekend . If you fluked the right dates in May or early June when tracks are still open then a few tens of cm on tracks say around Tantangara and Cooleman would be fun.

Anything over 20cm is about the limit if you don't have chains. Your tyre weight just compresses the soft snow into slippery ice and thats the end of foward progress. A big dump in July or August will cover the local 2WD dirt roads which then become more interesting. Even the tar gets interesting if you get my drift - bad pun intended!!
The Vics have to get a permit to do Mount Skene but at least they can do it. Although as Robin points out this has only just come into operation.
However, after a heavy fall the Alpine Way toDead Horse Gap up from Thredbo is scenic and you can't go past the track to Gungarlin River. Click on blue words.........W

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Follow Up By: Crackles - Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 23:00

Monday, Jun 27, 2011 at 23:00

"Anything over 20cm is about the limit if you don't have chains"
As the photo of the Jeep above shows there is almost no limit being 1m deep. Have seen regular 4x4's drive on 1.5m of snow without chains in fact for fresh snow, chains can be a disadvantage at times. While I normally carry them we rarely have need to fit them.
Cheers Craig....................

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Follow Up By: Member - Warrie (NSW) - Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011 at 13:49

Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011 at 13:49

Crackles, what tyres and or diff lock were you using in the video. That snow looks fresh and powdery yet you have traction and are making progress without any apparent difficulty. Although it looks pretty flat, so what happens if you get to a bit of a grade. My experience on a hill is that uphill thrust is exceeded by the tendency to slide down and that's the end of the journey for me!! What happened to the laws of Physics for you?.............W

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Follow Up By: Crackles - Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011 at 18:58

Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011 at 18:58

Warrie we use 285/75/16 Procomp xtreme mud terrains on our Jeep & the same size MTR's on my 100 series Cruiser. They are not what I'd call agressive tyres. We usually run about 8 PSI without beadlocks. In the video the track is flat then drops down a slight hill & that's why it looks easy. Climbing up was far more difficult & requires careful throttle use in low range but obviously possible. The Jeep doesn't have diff locks & in my Cruiser we choose not to engage them as if turning they just dig the car in. (May lock the diffs just to get the car going initially)
It's surprising how much traction you can get on snow if one just backs off a bit.
Cheers Craig..............

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Follow Up By: Member - Warrie (NSW) - Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011 at 21:31

Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011 at 21:31

Thanks for that Crackles. I checked the Procomp site and your tyres have 14mm tread depth and 287mm width. This leaves my worn Bridgestone's- 693 AT and 693 HT - a very poor second. You have the surface area and hence larger footprint as well as a chunky tread. Still we need to compare apples with apples and do the same gradient uphill. Alas for me, Mt Skene and the Jeep track are quite a distance from Sydney and you said yourself above that you are not recently familiar with NSW tracks in the snow.
Lets hope we can have some good snowfalls and challenging but successful snowdriving this winter.... W

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