Charlotte Pass, New South Wales facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charlotte Pass |
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Overlooking Charlotte Pass Village in winter
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| Location | Snowy Mountains, New South Wales, Australia |
| Nearest city | Canberra (city and major airport) Cooma (town and airport) Jindabyne (small town and small airport) |
| Vertical | 209 m (686 ft) |
| Top elevation | 1,964 m (6,444 ft) |
| Base elevation | 1,755 m (5,758 ft) |
| Skiable area | 50 ha (120 acres) |
| Lift system | 5 total; 1 triple chairlift, 4 surface lifts (1 T-bar, 2 platter Lifts, 1 moving carpet) |
| Terrain parks | 1 small, movable |
| Snowmaking | Mobile units |
| Website | http://www.charlottepass.com.au/ |
Charlotte Pass is a snow resort and village in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. It is located in the Kosciuszko National Park. This is where the Kosciuszko Road crosses Kangaroo Ridge. Charlotte Pass is the closest village to Mount Kosciuszko, which is Australia's tallest mountain.
The village is at the base of Kangaroo Ridge. It is one of Australia's oldest snow resorts. Charlotte Pass is also the coldest place in Australia. The lowest temperature ever recorded here was −23.0 °C (−9.4 °F). Winter temperatures often drop below −10 °C (14 °F).
The pass and village are named after Charlotte Adams. In 1881, she was the first European woman to climb Mount Kosciuszko. Charlotte Pass is a gateway to Australia's highest mountains. It is a special natural area.
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History of Charlotte Pass
The Snowy Mountains region has a long history. Aboriginal people lived here for about twenty thousand years. They held large gatherings in the High Country during summer. They would feast on Bogong moths. This tradition continued until about 1865.
Europeans first explored the area in 1835. In 1840, Edmund Strzelecki climbed Mount Kosciuszko. He named it after a Polish hero. Stockmen later used the Snowy Mountains for grazing cattle in summer. Banjo Paterson's famous poem, The Man From Snowy River, tells about this time. These cattle graziers left many mountain huts behind. Charlotte Pass is named after Charlotte Adams. She was the first European woman to climb Mount Kosciuszko in 1881.
The Kosciuszko National Park was created in stages. It started as the National Chase Snowy Mountains in 1906. It became Kosciusko State Park in 1944. In 1967, it was renamed Kosciusko National Park. The name was changed to Kosciuszko National Park in 1997.
The historic Kosciuszko Chalet was the first building in Charlotte Pass village. It opened on May 10, 1930. The Chalet was a fancy place to stay back then. It burned down in August 1938. A new Chalet was built the next summer. Today, the Chalet is still the main building in the village. It is the heart of the village in winter.
Skiing in Australia began much earlier in Kiandra. But the Kosciuszko Chalet made it easier to reach Australia's highest ski areas. Charlotte Pass village is at 1760m elevation. This makes it the highest ski resort village in Australia. In winter, you can only get there by special snow transport. More skiers came to Charlotte Pass. This led to a cafe opening at Smiggin Holes around 1939. Horse-drawn sleighs would take skiers from there to the Chalet.
The huge Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme started in 1949. This project really opened up the Snowy Mountains for skiing. It led to the creation of nearby resorts like Thredbo and Perisher. The Kosciusko Alpine Club built its own lodge here in 1952. Other ski clubs soon followed.
Ski fields beyond Charlotte Pass were also set up. The Australian Alpine Club was formed in 1950. They wanted to build lodges for ski touring. Huts were built near Mount Kosciuszko. One was Kunama Hut, which opened in 1953. A rope tow was installed on Mount Northcote in 1954. This spot was great for speed skiing. But the hut was destroyed by an avalanche in 1956. One person died in the avalanche. In 1964, Australia had the "World's Longest Chairlift" for a short time. It was meant to carry skiers from Thredbo Valley to Charlotte Pass. But it had problems and closed.
For many years, Charlotte Pass was a stop on the road to Mount Kosciuszko. But the Kosciuszko Road now ends at Charlotte Pass. The last 9 kilometers to Mount Kosciuszko have been closed since 1982. This was done to protect the environment.
The village and resort are part of the Kosciuszko National Park. A company called Charlotte Pass Village Pty Ltd manages the village. It has the Chalet and 12 other lodges. It can host 607 guests.
Climate at Charlotte Pass
Charlotte Pass has a very cold climate. It has the lowest recorded temperature in Australia. On June 28, 1994, it was −23.0 °C (−9.4 °F). On average, it snows about 55.7 days each year. This is similar to Macquarie Island.
The area gets a lot of rain, about 2329.6 mm per year. About half of this falls as snow between May and September. The snow usually reaches a depth of about 2 meters. In summer, rain often comes as thunderstorms. These storms can bring a lot of hail because of the high elevation. Severe hailstorms happen a few times each summer.
Snow has been seen at all times of the year. Sometimes, it stays on the ground for weeks even in summer. Unexpected snow can be interesting. But it can also come with very bad weather. For example, snow on Boxing Day in 1998 caused problems. It led to lives being lost in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.
Wildlife in the Snowy Mountains
The Charlotte Pass area is used for environmental research. Scientists study the plants and animals here. For example, they studied plankton in Blue Lake in 1937. More recently, in 1997, they studied the mountain pygmy possum.
An important animal here is the endangered mountain pygmy possum. For many years, people only knew it from fossils. But it was rediscovered in 1966. The threatened broad-toothed mouse also lives here. These small marsupials are good at living in the mountains. Most other Australian animals find it hard to survive the cold and heavy snow.
Animals that do live here include eastern grey kangaroos and wombats. You might also see platypus, crows, magpies, crimson rosellas, and flame robins. Some introduced animals are also present. These include rabbits, foxes, and red deer.
Fun Activities at Charlotte Pass
Skiing
The Charlotte Pass Alpine Resort is a special area for skiing. It is located between Kangaroo Ridge, Mount Stilwell ridge, and Guthries Ridge. It is the oldest and highest ski resort in Australia.
The resort has five ski lifts. There is one triple chairlift, one T-bar, and two platter lifts. There is also a moving carpet for beginners. This carpet replaced a rope tow in 2008. These lifts give access to 50 hectares of skiable land. The lifts are called the Kosciuszko Triple Chair, the Pulpit T-bar, the Basin Poma, Guthrie's High Speed Poma, and the Kosciusko Carpet. The highest point you can reach by lift is 1,964 m. The base of the resort is at 1,755 m. This gives a vertical drop of 210 m for skiers.
A small terrain park was built in 2008. The resort uses mobile snow guns. These help to add snow to busy areas. They also help open difficult ski runs earlier in the season. You can find a list of all ski lifts at Charlotte Pass on the Australian Ski Lift Directory.
Charlotte Pass is also very popular for cross-country skiing. The village gives easy access to Australia's highest peaks.
The resort usually gets more natural snow than other Australian resorts. This is because it is so high up. In 1981, so much snow fell that the top of the Kangaroo Ridge triple chair was buried. It was covered by up to 0.5 m of snow. But this much snow is rare.
Some people believe Charlotte Pass might be one of the few places in Australia with natural snow in the future. This is due to the effects of global warming.
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Kosciuszko Main Range Walks
In summer, Charlotte Pass is a great place for bushwalkers. It is a starting point for walks to the top of Mount Kosciuszko. You can also explore the Main Range. You can reach the mountain by the 18 km Summit Walk. Or you can do a 22 km loop walk called the glacial Lakes Walk.
You can see great views of the Main Range from the Snow Gums Boardwalk at Charlotte's Pass. The walk to the summit goes through sub-alpine forests. Mount Kosciuszko itself can be seen from the first lookout point.
The walk from Charlotte Pass to Kosciuszko follows the old Summit Road. This road was closed to cars in 1976. It crosses the Snowy River after 4.5 km. Then it goes uphill to Seaman's Hut (6 km). Next is Rawson's Pass (8 km). Finally, you reach the summit of Mount Kosciuszko.
The walk from Charlotte Pass to Blue Lake crosses the Snowy River. Then it goes through alpine fields. You pass Hedley Tarn lookout to Blue Lake lookout. Blue Lake is one of only four cirque lakes in mainland Australia. It has the best examples of glacial features in the Kosciuszko National Park. You can reach the Lake by a 4-hour round-trip walk from Charlotte Pass.
A shorter walk to the Kosciuszko summit starts from Thredbo. Other guided walks are also available.
How to Get to Charlotte Pass
In summer, you can drive to Charlotte Pass. You use the Kosciuszko Road from Jindabyne.
In winter, the area is covered in snow. You can only get there by snowmobile. These leave from the Perisher Valley Skitube Alpine Railway terminal. This terminal is 8 kilometers north-east of Charlotte Pass. It is also reached via Jindabyne. Charlotte Pass Village Pty Ltd has special vehicles. They transport people into and out of the village during winter.
In the past, some people thought Charlotte Pass was only for rich people. A local politician, John Wesley Seiffert, helped change this. He spoke out and got the bus fare to the area reduced. This made the snowfields open to more people.
Management and Services
The Charlotte Pass area is very special. It is protected by many government laws and plans. This is because it is an environmentally sensitive zone.
The company that leases the area is responsible for services. These include garbage collection and sewage treatment.
The resort also offers private services. There is a ski and snowboard school. Ski instructors are available. They also have over-snow transport like snow cats. A ski patrol service keeps everyone safe.
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Accommodation and service buildings in Charlotte Pass Village
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Other facilities and features (Guthries Poma (Platter lift) and Pulpit T-Bar not shown)
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Images for kids
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Looking through Charlotte Pass towards the main range in winter.
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The Chalet during August
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Charlotte Pass in April
