The second snow gum summit will happen on Ngarigo Country in Jindabyne over the weekend of March 14 and 15 next year.
The first summit happened at Dinner Plain earlier this year, attracting about 100 people, who heard from wonderful speakers.
Tickets for the 2026 gathering have just gone on sale. Like the 2025 event, this is expected to sell out, so grab one today if you’re planning to attend.
Snow Gum Summit – Next Ascent: Protecting Alpine Landscapes
Friends of the Earth Melbourne is excited to share that we are organising a second Snow Gum Summit, which will take place in March 2026 on Ngarigo Country in Jindabyne. The Summit will bring people together from across the Australian Alps bioregion spanning Victoria, NSW and the ACT, to address the threats facing these iconic landscapes we all know and love.
Snow gum forests and woodlands are under accelerating stress from climate change, fire, and beetle-driven dieback. The widespread dieback is equivalent to that of a mass bleaching event of the Great Barrier Reef. Without bold interventions, these ecosystems face ecological collapse within our lifetimes.
The summit will happen over the weekend of March 14 and 15.
There will be a series of screenings of the new Australian backcountry film STEEP REFLECTIONS, happening across a number of towns and resorts in June.
With a warming climate, there is growing concern for the future of snowsports in the Kosciuszko National Park. STEEP REFLECTIONS aims to change your perspective on the Australian backcountry, and create greater awareness around the importance of both mountain safety and our environmental footprint. Follow local guides and freeriders as they showcase the hidden beauty of the Snowy Mountains, taking you to the highest peaks and the steepest slopes, whilst uncovering the harsh reality our winters face if we don’t act now.
Locally owned gear shops have long been a cornerstone of the outdoors community. But, faced with the rise in online shopping and the buying power and reach of large chain stores, it’s remarkable that there are still so many locally owned outdoor gear shops in and around the Australian Mountains.
Here are a few of them. If we don’t support them, we will lose them. And as we know, all these places offer local knowledge in a way that online stores can’t.
2023 note: this guide is a couple of years old. If you want to suggest any changes, please send me an email: cam.walker@foe.org.au
Continue reading “Local gear stores. If we don’t love them, we’ll lose them”
We’re ready for winter.
And We’re ready for climate action.
Join our actions over opening weekend (Saturday June 11).
We all know that winter is in trouble. Cold powder and snow pack are in decline. We have a window of opportunity to protect winter. But we need to act now.
Continue reading “POW actions to mark Opening weekend – please join in”
The New South Wales government has released its 40-year plan to turn the Snowy Mountains into a ‘year-round tourist destination’. The draft Special Activation Precinct plan outlines options for future growth in and around Jindabyne.
The public is encouraged to submit feedback on the draft plan by mid-August. Amendments to the Kosciuszko National Park Plan of Management have also been released for public feedback. This proposes substantial new developments within the Kosciuszko National Park. It is also open for public comment.
Continue reading “Major new developments planned for Kosciuszko National Park”
Recent snowfalls across the Alps has got every snow lover excited about winter. Here is an initial list of snow related events happening across Victoria, NSW and the ACT this winter.
Please check here for a list of tour guides, all avalanche training providers, and gear hire options.
Finally, after affecting more than 1.5 million hectares of Victoria, all the fires are out. It’s the same story in NSW and the ACT and towns are fully ‘open for business’. Of course all mountain areas have suffered economically over summer, with lost business and less work. While some areas remain closed (for instance, significant sections of the Australian Alps Walking Track remain closed) the vast majority of mountains areas are getting on with life.
Now is the time to get out and visit mountain areas and spend up big, to help communities get back on their feet.
Continue reading “#RollOnBack to mountain towns this autumn”
The backcountry film festival will have another showing, this time in Jindabyne, on saturday 7th July.
Venue: Jindabyne Central School
Doors open @ 6pm
Check here for a full listing of the films.
Further info: Adam West, adam@snowsafety.com.au
What’s winter without a decent road trip? As I wrote earlier this year, I reckon the ultimate Australian winter snow road trip is the journey between the Snowy Mountains and the Victorian Alps via the Alpine Way.
There are lots of ways to cross the Alps or link up different mountains. But the Alpine Way has a special appeal I think, as it brings you under the western face of the Snowy Mountains, surely the most impressive alpine views on mainland Australia.
Just a reminder that the NSW Splitfest DownUnder will be held on weekend of the 25 – 27th of August in the NSW main range.
Register here.
There is the usual friday night entertainment at the Jindabyne Bowling Club in the downstairs room, starting @ 6pm 12 Bay St, Jindabyne NSW, camping up at Island Bend in the national park, and a tour out of Guthega on the saturday.
For full details please check here.
In Victoria, ski resorts operate on designated permanent Crown land reserves, each managed by a Resort Management Board appointed by, and responsible to, the Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Water. The Boards are responsible for the development, promotion, management and use of each Alpine Resort. In contrast, the resorts in NSW exist within the Kosciuszko National Park and operate through negotiating a lease with the government through the Parks Service (NPWS). They are then required to develop an environmental management system (EMS), which seeks to regulate and minimise the impacts of the operation on the natural environment.
As has been reported widely in regional media, it has been recently announced that the Parks Service has not granted any company a new head lease arrangement for Perisher Range in their recent Governance Review. Having a head lease allows the holder of the lease to then sublet to other businesses such as venues, accommodation, family lodges, etc.
This has caused a lot of anxiety among businesses, both in the park and adjacent communities who are reliant on the smooth functioning of the industry. While it is obviously essential that the conditions of the lease ensures minimal impacts on the surrounding environment, the uncertainty in terms of the future of Perisher and Charlotte Pass is very stressful for people whose livelihoods depend on these operations. One local owner said “NPWS made the announcement publicly before the stakeholders knew that it was off the table ….this means that clubs are unable to accept bookings for the following year or budget, invest or plan due to lack of vision first & foremost.”
The following article written by Steve Cuff comes from the Snowy Mountains Magazine, and provides a comprehensive overview of what the delay means for businesses (and hence the ski industry in general).
Continue reading “What is happening with the lease at Perisher?”
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