Courts77

Snowboarding in Australia is always a unique experience…it reminds me of going to the beach in New Jersey.  I know that must sound crazy, but if you’ve ever been to the beach in New Jersey during summer, then you might know what I’m talking about.  

New Jersey has this strange thing that you have to pay to enter beaches during the summer.  Fall and winter and some of spring you can jump from the boardwalk to the sand and run around freely, but as soon as the silly season arrives and people really WANT to go and enjoy the beach…you have to pull out your wallet and pay for a beach badge.

Australia has the same mentality during ski season, but almost amplified. You not only have to pay for a lift ticket to get on the slopes, but you have to pay for car or bus access to the mountain and  parking… and if you are staying on the mountain you most likely will pay someone to help carry your luggage and ski gear to and from your accommodation (an oversnow transportation).

Just to give you a rough estimate of your outgoings before you hit the snow…it costs around $33 to $40 to enter in a car or bus (daily) and $30 each way for the oversnow, then it’s around $97 for a daily lift ticket in peak season. (And, they make it mandatory for chains, so if you’re driving up it’s another $25 rental a day for tire chains.)

Man, when I was in high school and college I would have never been able to afford snowboarding in Australia, kinda glad I grew up in the US riding mountains for under $60 a day and no parking fees, etc.  I grew up riding most of the mountains on the East Coast from West VA to Vermont and all you had to do was show up and scrounge enough money to get a lift ticket…thanks Mom and Dad!!

You have to remember the scale of economy here in Australia is much different from the US and the population is many times smaller.  And, those who want to ride seem to find the money somewhere.  But, it does really seem to separate people…those who can afford to ski and those who can’t.  It’s a strange thing to see for a girl who never saw it that way…unless you were headed to Aspen (Colorado).

So, this year I checked out Mt. Hotham in Victoria’s high country and it was very interesting to hear all my friends up there talking about New Zealand and Japan. All they could say is how much cheaper it is to fly to another country and get several days of boarding, with twice the amount of snow (if not more!) for possibly half the price.

I have been to NZ snowboarding a few years ago and I do remember it being pretty affordable with several mountains to ride in one area near Queenstown.  I will have to go back and see how it all adds up these days and love to check out Japan!

I wonder if they lowered the prices and made it more accessible to more people if they would make even more money during the ski season?? I know I personally would be up there more days each season if it was more afordable.

On the good side I have to say Mt. Hotham was a lot of fun to ride! It offered so many intermediate and black diamond runs with minimal lift lines, even on the weekend.  One of the highlights was the bordercross track and slalom hill where you could race your friends, hit jumps and carve over walls.  They also had a terrain park and some massive jumps.  

The snow was pretty good for two days, but we got rained out on the third day.  Another draw back to snowboarding in Australia…the weather can be very unpredictable in winter.  Some really cold days, some really windy days, some blue sky and then there's the rain.

But, hey at least you can snowboard in Australia! And beggars can’t be choosers, right! Most times when you tell people from other countries they don’t believe you.  Yes, it does snow in the mountains (high country) and sometimes it’s pretty dam good!!

Another bonus was the apres ski! Every good ski resort has a few places to party after a long day.  We hit up The General for some drinks and dancing...whoo hoo.

The season starts in June and usually wraps up by the end of September, so if you’re thinking of hitting the slopes you better hurry up!

Other mountains to try are Falls Creek and Mt. Buller in Victoria and Perisher Blue and Thredbo in New South Wales.

www.mthotham.com.au
www.thredbo.com.au
www.mtbuller.com.au
www.perisher.com.au

www.ExplorerGirls.com / Courtney Crow