Article Index
Page 8 of 10
| Whilst ski resorts with ski tows were growing in south-eastern NSW, a sharp reduction occurred in the early 1950's to the numbers of skiers making cross-country skiing trips into the Mt. Jagungal wilderness area from the Alpine Hut (which was described in our Second Installment). The Alpine Hut had made a financial loss in 1952, when only 44 person-weeks were booked out of the maximum possible 160 person-weeks available for the 1952 winter. It is likely that the easier access to Perisher, Charlotte's Pass and to the recently constructed/renovated Lake Albina and Illawong Lodges, attracted some of the ski tourers that might have otherwise stayed at Alpine Hut. |
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It was frequently possible, during the 1950's, 1960's and even into the early 1970's, to ski to Mt. Jagungal from any of Mawson's, Grey Mare, Derscherko's and Pretty Plain huts, without meeting another skier during the journey. Paul Reader, Douglass Baglin and Keith Field documented, in the 1955 Ski Year Book, their July 1954 Kiandra to Kosciusko (Guthega) trip of 7 days duration, on downhill skis with touring bindings, during which no other human was seen until their destination was reached. The adoption of lightweight Nordic ski gear by cross-country skiers in the 1970's, facilitated the making of long ski trips into wilderness areas, such as Mt. Jagungal and attracted many new recruits to ski touring. |
