Selwyn Snowfields

Selwyn Snowfields
The Township Triple Chair at Selwyn Snowfields, winter 2011.
Location	Snowy Mountains, New South Wales, Australia
Nearest city	Canberra
Coordinates	35°54′30″S 148°27′00″E / 35.90833°S 148.45000°E / -35.90833; 148.45000Coordinates: 35°54′30″S 148°27′00″E / 35.90833°S 148.45000°E / -35.90833; 148.45000
Vertical	122 metres (400 ft)
Top elevation	1,614 metres (5,295 ft)
Base elevation	1,492 metres (4,895 ft)
Skiable area	45 hectares (110 acres)
Longest run	Long Arm Run, 800 metres (2,600 ft)
Lift system	10 lifts
Terrain parks	Yes
Snowmaking	35 hectares (86 acres)
Night skiing	No
Website	http://www.selwynsnow.com.au

Selwyn traces its origins to nearby Kiandra, where skiing began in Australia in 1861.

View to Racecourse Run from Kangaroo Ridge.

Selwyn Snowfields is a small ski resort located in the most northern part of the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy Monaro Regional Council and Kosciuszko National Park.^[1] Selwyn Snowfields is located near the town of Adaminaby and is close to Cabramurra, which is the highest town in Australia.

History

Selwyn Snowfields traces its origins to the skifields at nearby Kiandra, where skiing began in Australia around 1861.^[2] The more reliable snowcover at Selwyn saw the establishment of a portable rope tow on what is now the Township Run in 1966. The remaining ski facilities at Kiandra were finally transferred to Selwyn in 1978 (including Australia's first T-Bar, which had been installed at Kiandra in 1957). In 2009 a triple chairlift finally replaced the T-Bars on the Township Run at Selwyn Snowfields.

Resort Statistics

Selwyn Snowfields is the most northerly of Australia's ski resorts with a base elevation of 1,492 metres (4,895 ft) and a top elevation of 1,614 metres (5,295 ft) AHD. The longest run at Selwyn Snowfields is the 800 metres (2,600 ft) Long Arm Run.

For the winter of 2009, Selwyn Snowfields comprised 45 hectares (110 acres), with 11 lifts including chair lifts, pomas, t-bars, a platter and a rope tow (as well as one snow tube lift). The resort also advertises 45 kilometres (28 mi) of marked cross country trails.^[3] Selwyn is well suited to families and first timers, with 88% of terrain catering to beginners and intermediates, however the steeper gradient of the Racecourse Run provides some more challenging terrain for advanced skiers and boarders.^[3] In 2007 some terrain park features were added to the blue run known as Township.

A relatively low altitude means that the resort can have trouble maintaining a good natural snow cover during the very early and the latest stages of the ski season (June and September). The resort has developed extensive snowmaking facilities to combat this problem, and a state of the art Lenko System, with a virtually inexhaustible supply of water from nearby Three Mile Dam now services the resort. 35 hectares (86 acres) are today covered by snow-making and Selwyn Snowfields is often the first New South Wales ski resort to advertise "100% access" to the mountain. Gentle, grassy terrain makes it easier for Selwyn Snowfields to open its runs on a thinner snow cover than is the case at the higher, rockier resorts further south.

Nearest accommodation

There is no public accommodation available at Selwyn Snowfields. Winter access to the skifields is via the Snowy Mountains Highway, from Talbingo in the west or Adaminaby in the east. Limited guest accommodation is provided at nearby Cabramurra. The closest major tourist accommodation is at the holiday village of Providence Portal on the upper reaches of Lake Eucumbene between Adaminaby and Kiandra.

Wolgal Hut at Kiandra was re-opened in 2012 for public accommodation as part of the rejuvenation of Kiandra by NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service (NPWS). The ski and fishing hut was built in the 1960s and is located close to the foot of the original Kiandra ski slopes. It is one of the four remaining historic buildings of the abandoned gold rush town which have been the subject of restoration work.^[4]

See also

• Skiing in Australia
• Skiing in New South Wales
• Kiandra

References

External links

• Resort Homepage
• Information on all lifts to have run at Selwyn in the Australian Ski Lift Directory

Snowy Monaro Region, New South Wales, Australia
Townships and Villages	Adaminaby Berridale Bombala Bredbo Cooma Delegate Thredbo Village Tyrolean
Localities and rural places	Anglers Reach Arable Avonside Beloka Blue Cow Mountain Bobundara Braemar Bay Buckenderra Bullocks Flat Charlotte Pass Coolringdon Cootralantra Crackenback Dalgety Dry Plain East Jindabyne Eucumbene Cove Frying Pan Grosses Plain Guthega Hill Top Ingebirah Ironmungy Jimenbuen Jindabyne Kalkite Michelago Middlingbank Moonbah Myalla Nimmitabel Nimmo Numbla Vale Old Adaminaby Paupong Perisher Valley Pine Valley Providence Portal Rhine Falls Rocky Plain Shannons Flat Smiggin Holes Snowy Plain The Brothers Wambrook
National parks and other natural features	Kosciuszko NP Valentine Falls
Rivers and other watercourses	Berrima Burrungubugge Cooma Back Eucumbene Goorudee Gungarlin Ingeegoodbee Jacobs Little Thredbo Mowamba Pinch Snowy River Thredbo
Dams and/or associated reservoirs	Eucumbene Guthega Island Bend Jindabyne Jounama Rainbow Lake Three Mile
Mountain ranges	Snowy Mountains Charcoal Rams Head Suggan Buggan
Attractions	Alpine Way Barry Way Big Trout Blue Lake Friday Flat Camp Kiandra Lake Albina Lake Cootapatamba Mount Kosciuszko Mount Townsend Perisher Ski Resort Selwyn Snowfields Skitube Alpine Railway Smiggin Holes Snowy Mountains Highway Snowy Scheme Museum
Main Article: Local government areas of New South Wales