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Mountain Journal

Environment, news, culture from the Australian Alps

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Cam Walker

I work with Friends of the Earth, and live in Castlemaine in Central Victoria, Australia. Activist, mountain enthusiast, telemark skier, volunteer firefighter.

Climate change impacts on ski resorts in the USA

Climate science makes it abundantly clear that winter as we know it is coming to an end. Despite the evidence, the global community – as a whole – continues as if everything is fine. The climate change negotiations that have been underway in Poland had progress blocked by key oil producing nations and those led by climate deniers, like Saudi Arabia, the USA and Russia. Yet there was barely any reaction from the community as vested interests put their profits ahead of the planet.

Denial does not make the problem go away. The evidence keeps building up, like this recent work looking at climate change impacts on ski resorts in the USA.

Continue reading “Climate change impacts on ski resorts in the USA” →

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Alpine Quest Adventure Race

The Alpine Quest Adventure Race is a navigation-based team event to be held on Australia Day weekend (Jan 25 – 28) for teams of four, who need to stay together the whole time.

It consists of kayaking, mountain biking and trekking legs with some ‘additional challenges’. It will happen out of Falls Creek resort in north east Victoria.

Continue reading “Alpine Quest Adventure Race” →

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Do you want to write for Mountain Journal?

Another year has flashed by.  Hard to believe its almost the end of 2018! Between life, work, family and mountain obsessions, I’ve been finding it hard to keep on top of all the mountain-related things that are happening around the country.

I’m VIC based, and so Mountain Journal tends to be VIC-centric. There is so much going on in Tasmania, especially with the threats to world heritage areas as a result of the development of commercial tourism. And there are so many events across the Alps that I just can’t cover them all. Coverage of the NSW Alps tends to be patchy (and big thanks to people from north of the border who are sending news items through).

So, this is an invitation for you to send content. If you’re organising something or aware of good events that are happening, please send them through.

The interviews and profiles are always popular and I would welcome additional offerings (check here for some recent profiles).

Stories covering environmental politics (for instance the recent Save Kosci walk) are wildly popular, so please send in items, as are stories on positive sustainability initiatives being taken by businesses in the alpine areas.

Check the About section for further details on contributing.

Thanks. Hoping you have a great summer.

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Meet Susie Hale, the new VMTC president

The Victorian Mountain Tramping Club is a legendary presence in the Australian outdoor community. It recently celebrated it’s 70th anniversary. Many clubs are aging, and in a refreshing move, the VMTC appointed 29-year old Susie Hale as its new president.

Earlier this year, Susie completed a 153-day solo trip on the 4,280km Pacific Crest Trail which she completed in 153 days. Other major accomplishments on her impressive walking CV include leading a VMTC group who completed the Australian Alpine Walking Track in 42 days.

There is a profile on Suzie and what inspires her, which is available here.

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‘Save Kosci’ walk finishes at Mt Kosciuszko

More than 600 people joined sections of the 36 day walk from Sydney to the summit of Mt Kosciuszko which aimed to raise awareness about the negative impacts of feral horses in the Kosciuszko national park. The walk finished on December 9. The five people who did the whole walk from Sydney were joined on the final day by 178 people, walking from Jindabyne, Thredbo or with the main group from Charlotte Pass.

Continue reading “‘Save Kosci’ walk finishes at Mt Kosciuszko” →

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‘Evidence of the impact of climate change on our country’s distinct flora and fauna is beginning to emerge’

Evidence about the impact of climate change on our country’s distinct flora and fauna is beginning to emerge. This is not ‘new’ news, this information is already widely available if you care to look for it. What is astonishing is that this growing body of information about the impacts of climate change on the land where we live doesn’t seem to compel more people to act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Here are some recent examples of how climate change enhanced fire seasons are impacting on mountain environments:

In Tasmania, research has confirmed the trend towards more extreme fire seasons. It suggests that we reached a ‘tipping point’ sometime around the year 2000 and that, since then, there has been an increase in the number of lightning-caused fires and an increase in the average size of the fires, “resulting in a marked increase in the area burnt”.

As temperatures rise and the world’s climate rapidly changes, many plants and animals may not be able to relocate fast enough on their own, and habitats and species could be lost. In Australia warmer temperatures are expected to increase the length and severity of bushfire seasons, which will also cause changes in the distribution of many mountain species.

For instance, increased fire frequency may lead to the loss of alpine ash forests, unless there is human intervention aimed at keeping the species viable in the wild.

Now, a new article from Professor Ary Hoffmann, Nicholas Bell and Dr James Camac, at the University of Melbourne, looking at how we monitor the impacts of climate change on Australia’s terrestrial ecosystems has additional concerning news.

Continue reading “‘Evidence of the impact of climate change on our country’s distinct flora and fauna is beginning to emerge’” →

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Senate calls for a full assessment of the Lake Malbena development

The ‘eco tourism’ development planned for Lake Malbena will introduce ‘helicopter tourism’ to the central plateau of Tasmania. Approvals have been ‘waved through’ by the federal government, despite three official expert bodies lashing the proposal or calling for it to be rejected.

The decision threatens to open the floodgate to a host of other private tourism operations proposed for the World Heritage-listed area.

In a new development, the senate has called on federal Environment Minister Melissa Price to conduct a full assessment of the Lake Malbena development, including public consultation.

Continue reading “Senate calls for a full assessment of the Lake Malbena development” →

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International Mountain Day 2018 – #MountainsMatter

December 11 is International Mountain Day.

The United Nations says:

“Almost one billion people live in mountain areas, and over half the human population depends on mountains for water, food and clean energy. Yet mountains are under threat from climate change, land degradation, over exploitation and natural disasters, with potentially far-reaching and devastating consequences, both for mountain communities and the rest of the world. Mountains are early indicators of climate change.”

The theme for 2018 is #MountainsMatter. Continue reading “International Mountain Day 2018 – #MountainsMatter” →

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New tourist accommodation near Cradle Mountain

The north end of the Cradle Mountain Lake St Clair national park is the gateway to the famous Overland Track. There are a small number of tourist developments in the area, which provide accommodation outside the park, and plans are underway to build a major new tourist centre and a gondola from the centre to Dove Lake.

A new $20 million development for has just been announced, which will be a 62-room luxury development called My Cradle. The developers are Simon McDermott and S.Group and the site is located at 4004 Cradle Mountain Road, between Peppers Cradle Mountain Lodge and Devils @ Cradle.

Continue reading “New tourist accommodation near Cradle Mountain” →

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‘Save Kosci’ walk to finish next weekend

Since November 3, a group has been walking the 560 km from Sydney to the summit of Mt Kosciuszko, to highlight the damage being caused by feral horses. The walk is nearing its end! Join the walkers on the final day – 9th December (or the 8th depending on weather forecast) – from Charlottes Pass or Thredbo to celebrate the end of the walk and add your voice to the call to reclaim Kosci from feral horses.

Continue reading “‘Save Kosci’ walk to finish next weekend” →

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Federal Environment Minister fails first test – approves helicopter tourism in World Heritage Area

As we know, under the current very pro ‘development’ Liberal government in Tasmania there are no end of proposals for private developments in national parks and other parts of the conservation network.

One that has been receiving a lot of attention is the proposal to build a small ‘top end’ facility that would rely on helicopter tourism at Lake Malbena, inside the Walls of Jerusalem National Park in central Tasmania.

It has been reported that the Morrison government ‘waved through approval for a luxury tourist development and helipad in the pristine Tasmanian wilderness’ despite three official expert bodies lashing the proposal or calling for it to be rejected.

Continue reading “Federal Environment Minister fails first test – approves helicopter tourism in World Heritage Area” →

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Alpine Australia – A celebration of the Australian Alps

This recently released book features 150 images from across the Australian Alps. The publishers describe it as a ‘coffee table pictorial (which aims to) bring this magnificent region to a wider audience.’

Although I haven’t seen the book yet, the excerts below look gorgeous. You can find it in bookstores or online.

Continue reading “Alpine Australia – A celebration of the Australian Alps” →

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