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Environment, news, culture from the Australian Alps

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Winter Van Life

‘Van life’ might be a popular Instagram hashtag, but it hides the multitude of reasons why people spend winter in their vehicles. More and more people are choosing to spend their winters outside as they pursue their snow dream. For others it is a necessity as rents climb and erratic winter snow impacts on the availability of work. James Worsfold delves into the issue.

This story originally appeared in the 2024 Mountain Journal magazine (#4). Available as a PDF here > https://themountainjournal.com/2024/03/19/mountain-journal-magazine-4-now-online/

Continue reading “Winter Van Life” →

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‘Mountain Redneck magazine’

This year’s Mountain journal magazine is now starting to pop up in various places around the high country. Our ‘distribution strategy’ (such as it is) mostly revolves around me chucking a few magazines in my pack or car as I wander around the Alps. So its all pretty haphazard, and reflects where I get to, which means they don’t get placed right across the Alps. But the 2024 edition is now out there, in spots as random as Cope hut, Moscow Villa and Bluff Spur hut on Mt Stirling.

That means the feedback starts. Its always great to get a message from someone who has found one in a hut. The most common spot is Mt Wills, and mostly from people who are walking the Australian Alps Walking Track (AAWT). The next most common spot is Derrick hut (maybe because I’m out there often, so its easy to keep stocked up).

Continue reading “‘Mountain Redneck magazine’” →

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Finding the Centre.

It’s a perfect autumn morning in Pretty Valley. The grass and tents are frosted with ice, the air is cold and invigorating, the silence immense. Sitting and waiting for the sunlight to spread across the plains from the hills to the west, it feels so silent you can hear the earth itself humming. In the shallow valley below, white mists form above the marshy landscape and braided waterways, rising until they meet a temperature inversion, which creates a ceiling effect that stops further upward movement. The flat topped mists then flow slowly towards the south east. Finally, the sun starts to warm my back. The air fills with bird call, the parrots sweep through, chitting as they fly past. After a cold night, it seems like everyone and everything is glad to be alive this morning.

Continue reading “Finding the Centre.” →

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Mountain Journal magazine #4 now online

Once a year we produce the Mountain Journal magazine. It is distributed through mountain and valley towns from Melbourne to Canberra each autumn. 2024 is the fourth print edition, and the magazine is being distributed at present.

You can also enjoy this PDF of the magazine MJ4.

Continue reading “Mountain Journal magazine #4 now online” →

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2024 Backcountry film festival Melbourne screening – April 22

The annual Backcountry Film Festival is put together by the Winter Wildlands Alliance (WWA), screens around the world, and is hosted locally by Friends of the Earth and RMIT Outdoors Club.

The 2024 season will screen in Naarm/ Melbourne on Monday April 22.

It will be screening a collection of short documentaries and ski movies about the pursuit of adventure in the mountains, artistic vision, friendship, and how the snowsports community is adapting to a changing environment.

Continue reading “2024 Backcountry film festival Melbourne screening – April 22” →

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‘Lets be really intentional about the stories we choose to perpetuate within our sport’

Connor Ryan is a Hunkpapa Lakota skier based in Colorado. Prominent for his work with Natives Outdoors and his film Spirit of the Peaks (and more recently his series called the New Radical), he is a strong native voice in what is still largely a community dominated by Anglo people.

Recently while speaking at a conference organised by the Winter Wildlands Alliance he was asked for his thoughts about how environmental advocates can become better story tellers.

His response really resonated with me.

Continue reading “‘Lets be really intentional about the stories we choose to perpetuate within our sport’” →

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MJ turns 14

JAN 2024

What even happened last year? Another mild summer, no big fires, then truly dazzling amounts of autumn snow, a great start to winter, then, nothing. Rain and warm temps and misery and the snow pack was gone, not to return. Early end to the season in many places, especially the lower resorts. The usual denial and grumpy guys ranting on line if you dared to mention the ‘climate’ word. Muddy spring and now, another mild summer – a bit different to the El Niño scorcher we had been expecting (so far at least).

Yes, this is the new reality. Climate systems turned on their heads. Wild floods up north, while more than 14 million hectares burnt across the Northern Territory alone during our spring. Erratic winters and wild swings of weather. Buckle in, because it’s not going back to ‘normal’ any time soon.

Then there are the wars raging across many parts of the planet.

And yet, the world can still feel right. Those long autumn days with a slow wander across snow plains, the light rich, the air cool, the distant peaks calling. We are blessed to live in a safe corner of the planet with beautiful hills and forests, rivers and high plains. The freedom and safety to explore. Let us be grateful, as we work for a better world for all.

You can read the full reflection here.

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2024 Backcountry film festival lineup announced

The 19th Annual Backcountry Film Festival is put together by the Winter Wildlands Alliance (WWA). It will be screening a collage of short documentaries and ski movies about the pursuit of objectives and ideals in the mountains, artistic vision, friendship, and how the snowsports community is adapting to a changing environment.

We are yet to set the date for the 2024 festival: it will happen in Melbourne in late April or early May.

We normally start with some speakers from local backcountry groups and feature a couple of short locally made backcountry films, then get into the WWA program.

Continue reading “2024 Backcountry film festival lineup announced” →

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‘Giles’, Mt Bogong, and Cleve Cole Memorial Hut

We love receiving feedback on the magazine. Lately there have been quite a few emails come in from people who have spotted copies of the magazine in places as scattered in Derrick Hut and a cafe in Thredbo. But this is the first time the feedback was a mountain poem.

Stephen Whiteside has provided this one as part of his efforts to help create a body of bush verse that relates to the snow country.

Continue reading “‘Giles’, Mt Bogong, and Cleve Cole Memorial Hut” →

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Summer podcasts for your next roadtrip

If you’ve got a bit of spare time, or need to do a long drive, and are looking for some outdoors content to listen to, here are a few ideas.

Continue reading “Summer podcasts for your next roadtrip” →

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Backcountry film festival – Melbourne, 2024

Date claimer / Call out for local films

Each year the Backcountry film festival (BCFF) celebrates the connection between humans and wild winters. It is a ‘collage of human-powered stories and backcountry-inspired experiences. Backcountry Film Festival ignites wild conversations and inspires action to communities that celebrate the present while looking towards the future’.

For more than 10 years, Friends of the Earth has held the BCFF in Melbourne before winter. The 19th Annual Backcountry Film Festival is screening documentaries and ski movies about athletic pursuit in the mountains, artistic vision, friendship, and how the snowsports community is adapting to a changing environment.

In 2024 we will again co-host the Melbourne screening with the RMIT Outdoors Club. We are looking at dates in late April or early May.

We are looking for some short Australian made backcountry films to be included as part of the evening. Yes, 2023 was grim. But if you have a film you would like to see screened at the festival before an enthusiastic audience, please get in touch: cam.walker@foe.org.au

Continue reading “Backcountry film festival – Melbourne, 2024” →

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Call out for MJ magazine #4

Mountain Journal magazine comes out once a year and is a free journal that is distributed throughout mountain and valley towns from Melbourne to Canberra. Now in it’s fourth year, this is a call out for contributions for the 2024 edition.

You could either contribute to the cover theme (mountain icons), one of the regular sections (see below), images for a photo essay, or an image for use on the cover.

Contributions would be needed by January 20, 2024.

Continue reading “Call out for MJ magazine #4” →

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