Thredbo, New South Wales facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Thredbo Alpine Village
Thredbo, July 2011
Thredbo Alpine Village Location in New South Wales Show map of New South Wales Thredbo Alpine Village Location in Australia Show map of Australia
Location	Australian Alps, New South Wales
Nearest city	Canberra
Coordinates	36°30′17″S 148°18′20″E / 36.50472°S 148.30556°E / -36.50472; 148.30556
Top elevation	2,037 m (6,683 ft)
Base elevation	1,365 m (4,478 ft)
Skiable area	480 ha (1,200 acres)
Runs	>50
Longest run	5 km or 3.1 mi (Village Trail from Karel's T-bar down to Friday Flat)
Lift system	14 lifts
Snowfall	2,040 mm (80 in)
Website	Official Site: http://www.thredbo.com.au

Merrits

Thredbo is a fun village and ski resort located in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. It's about 500 kilometers south of Sydney. You can get there by driving along the Alpine Way through towns like Cooma, Berridale, and Jindabyne. The village is built in the beautiful valley of the Thredbo River, also known as the Crackenback River, right at the bottom of the Ramshead Range.

Thredbo has enough beds for about 4,150 people, but only around 477 people live there all the time. When there's lots of snow, Thredbo has the longest ski runs in Australia! About 700,000 people visit in winter to ski and snowboard. In summer, Thredbo is a popular spot for hiking and other outdoor sports. You can try rock climbing, fishing, cross-country cycling, and downhill mountain biking. Thredbo also hosts a blues music festival. Around 300,000 people visit in the summer.

The Thredbo resort was started by a group of people who were working on the Snowy Mountains Scheme. In 1957, they were given permission to develop the area where Thredbo is now. A company called Lendlease helped build it over the next few years. In 1987, another company, Amalgamated Holdings Limited (AHL), took over. Today, Event Hospitality and Entertainment manages the village's services and properties. Many other private businesses also offer activities, shops, restaurants, places to stay, and nightlife all year round.

History of Thredbo Village

The name "Thredbo" comes from the Aboriginal Australians who lived in the Snowy Mountains long ago.

Thredbo was even famous enough to host the first race of the Men's 1989–90 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup in 1989. This was a big event for the resort!

Skiing and Snowboarding at Thredbo

Skiing at Friday Flat, a great area for beginners.

Skiing at Merrits, a popular spot for all levels.

Thredbo is an Australian ski resort located inside Kosciuszko National Park in New South Wales. It was designed to look like a European ski town. This was inspired by workers from the Snowy Mountains Scheme, like Tony Sponar, who helped make Thredbo a ski area.

Unlike other resorts that are mostly just lodges, Thredbo is a real town with shops, restaurants, and places to go at night. Thredbo has 14 different lifts to take you up the mountain. These include an 8-person gondola, 3 fast quad chairs, 1 regular quad chair, 5 T-bars, 1 double chair, and 3 snow runners.

Thredbo has the steepest overall slopes of any ski resort in mainland Australia. It also has the highest point you can reach by lift, at 2,037 meters high. From the top of Karel's T-Bar, you can even go on special guided ski tours to Mount Kosciuszko and other areas in the Main Range.

Thredbo Village is at the bottom of the Crackenback Valley. Because it's at a lower height (1,365 meters), the lower parts of the mountain don't always keep their snow if it gets warmer. But Thredbo has invested almost $6 million in the biggest snowmaking system in the Southern Hemisphere! This system covers about 65 hectares of trails and works automatically, mostly at night, to make sure there's enough snow, especially on the lower slopes and busy areas.

Thredbo has over 50 ski runs. They use a simple color system:

• Green for beginners.
• Blue for intermediate skiers.
• Black diamond for advanced skiers.

The longest continuous run goes from the top of Karel's T-Bar all the way down to Friday Flat, and it's 5.9 kilometers long! However, this run is made up of several different trails. The single longest run is the Crackenback Supertrail, which is the longest single ski run in Australia.

During the Vietnam War, Australian soldiers could choose Thredbo for a week of rest and relaxation (R&R). They got a special deal that included travel, a place to stay, meals, equipment, a lesson, and a lift ticket. They even got gloves, ski pants, and a warm jacket, which they didn't have in Vietnam.

At the end of the ski season, Thredbo sometimes puts special mats on the lower slopes. This lets you ski all the way to the bottom even when the snow is melting.

The village also has a free shuttle bus service in winter. It connects the main Valley Terminal, Friday Flat, and most of the ski lodges around the village.

Chairlift Safety Incidents

Sometimes, unexpected things can happen on chairlifts. On July 22, 2019, a chair with people on it fell from the Gunbarrel lift. This was similar to an incident in 2016 when an empty chair fell from the same spot. The resort said it was caused by a "freak gust of wind."

On August 19, 2023, another chair with three snowboarders on it fell from the Kosciuszko Express chairlift. Again, the resort said a "freak gust of wind" was responsible. Some people on the chair were hurt and needed medical help.

Thredbo's Lifts

Merritts Gondola

The Merritts Gondola was built by Doppelmayr and opened in 2020. It's Australia's first gondola built just for this purpose! It replaced the old Merritts Chairlift and can now carry about 2,000 people per hour, which is four times more than before.

Awesome Terrain Parks

Thredbo has several cool terrain parks for skiers and snowboarders:

• Wombat World— This park is for younger kids. It has fun bumps, boxes, and arches. You can find it on Friday Flat.
• Merritts Park— This park is for beginners and intermediate riders. It has jumps and boxes. It's located near the Cruiser chairlift and the Merritts Mountain House Restaurant. A T-bar lift helps you get back up from this park.
• Cruiser Park — This park has rails, boxes, big jumps, and even a picnic table! The layout changes often to keep things exciting. It's just below the top of "The Cruiser" chair.
• Antons Park— This park is for experienced freestyle skiers and snowboarders. It has large jumps, rails, and a wall ride. You'll find it on Antons.
• Ridercross— The location of this park changes each year, so it's always a new challenge!

Gunbarrel Express Chairlift

A wide view of Thredbo Village and the Thredbo River valley from the Kosciuszko Express Terminal.

The Gunbarrel Express is a fast, detachable quad chairlift at Thredbo. It starts at the Friday Flat beginners area and goes up to The Traverse trail. This lift was built in 1988 as part of a big investment in the mountain. It's special because it crosses over other lifts, like the Easy Does It quad and the Merritts double chair. This chairlift gives you great access to many different runs and is close to the Woodridge and Friday Flat lodges, as well as the main car parks.

Two runs, The Glades and Pegasus, go under the higher part of the Gunbarrel Express. The lower half of the Gunbarrel Express area is quite steep and has hidden obstacles, including a creek. Pegasus often doesn't have full snow cover and is usually closed for most of the season, only opening after a lot of snow.

Here are some facts about the Gunbarrel Express:

• Base elevation: 1,365 meters
• Base location: Friday Flat
• Terminal elevation: 1,791 meters
• Terminal location: The Traverse, about halfway between Cruiser terminal and Antons base.
• Length: 1,679 meters
• Vertical Rise: 426 meters
• Average slope: 1 in 3.9

1997 Thredbo Landslide

On July 30, 1997, at 11:30 PM, a tragic landslide happened in Thredbo Alpine Village. Eighteen people died when two lodges, Bimbadeen and Carinya, collapsed. The ground above Carinya Lodge slipped downhill, destroying Carinya, and then hit Bimbadeen Staff Lodge, causing it to collapse too. People who saw it said they heard "a whoosh of air, a crack and a sound like a freight train rushing the hill."

Amazingly, one person, Stuart Diver, survived. He was pulled from the wreckage after being trapped for three days. Stuart was stuck in a small space between two concrete slabs. His wife, Sally, sadly drowned next to him in a rush of water, but Stuart was able to keep his face above the water.

The landslide was caused by a water leak from a broken pipe that ran along the Alpine Road, which was above the lodges. The leaking water made the ground very slippery, causing the top layer of earth to slide away.

The Brindabella Ski Club later opened its new lodge on June 5, 2004.

Thredbo's Climate

Thredbo has a climate typical of the Snowy Mountains. Winters are cold and snowy, while summers are cool to mild. It's not unusual to see snow in summer! Temperatures have ranged from a very cold -12.8°C to a warm 34.8°C. The village usually has snow on about 34.9 days each year.

The weather at the very top of the mountain (Thredbo Top Station) is much colder than in the village. It has some of the lowest temperatures ever recorded in Australia. On average, the Top Station gets snow on 56.9 days each year, and it can snow in any month!

Other Fun Activities

Thredbo Leisure Centre

The Thredbo Leisure Centre opened in 1996 and is a great place for sports and fun. It has a 50-meter and a 25-meter indoor swimming pool, plus a wading pool with a waterslide. There's also a cool inflatable obstacle course called "Mission Inflatable"! The center has two full-size basketball courts, a gym, squash courts, a physiotherapist, and a climbing wall. Many famous athletes, including those from the Australian Institute of Sport, have used it for high-altitude training.

Mountain Biking Adventures

Since the early 1990s, Thredbo has been super popular in summer for mountain biking. Riders from all over Australia and even other countries come here. There are many kilometers of cross-country trails and fire trails around Thredbo Village and the golf course. You can also find trails connecting Thredbo to nearby villages. Some local businesses offer guided mountain bike tours in Thredbo and the Snowy Mountains.

Thredbo is home to the famous downhill track called the Cannonball Run. You get to the top by taking the Kosciuszko Express Quad-Chairlift up to Eagles Nest. From there, the course goes all the way back down to the bottom of the chairlift, dropping 600 meters in height. The Cannonball Run is about 4.2 kilometers of fast singletrack, rocky sections, a wall-ride, tight turns, and lots of drops and jumps. It's one of Australia's longest downhill courses! Many races are held here in summer, including national and state competitions.

Two newer gravity trails have also opened: the Kosciuszko Flow Trail and the All Mountain Trail. These offer different levels of riding. The All Mountain Trail connects to the Thredbo Valley Track, which follows the Thredbo River from the village down to Lake Crackenback Resort.

The Thredbo Mountain-cross track, designed by an Australian trail expert named Glen Jacobs, opened in 2005. It's on Friday Flat and has a start gate, jumps, rollers, berms (banked turns), moguls, and more. This track has also hosted many races.

Alpine Coaster Thrills

Get ready for a new adventure! The Alpine (Roller) Coaster is set to open in winter 2024. It's a 1.5-kilometer track that winds through the resort. You can ride it all year round, and it can reach speeds of up to 40 kilometers per hour!

Thredbo's Green Efforts

Caring for the Environment

Thredbo has earned the "EarthCheck Sustainable Destinations Gold" award. This shows how committed they are to protecting the environment and fighting climate change. It's part of their plan to use less energy and reduce harmful gases, helping to keep the environment safe.

Reducing Waste

The resort is working hard to create less waste that ends up in landfills. Landfills can harm the environment, so Thredbo wants to reduce how much trash goes there. They encourage everyone to avoid waste, reuse things, and recycle as much as possible.

Managing Water Wisely

Thredbo is located in the Australian Alps, which is where important rivers like the Snowy River and Murray River begin. The resort knows how important these rivers are for Australia's fresh water. They are dedicated to using water responsibly. The Thredbo River is a key source for the resort's drinking water, washing, and swimming pools, so they focus a lot on saving water from this river.

Measuring Their Impact: "Person Year"

To keep track of how much waste and water they use, Thredbo uses something called the "Person Year" measurement. This helps them count how long each person stays in Thredbo. This way, they can compare their waste and water use each year, even though the number of visitors changes with the seasons. This method encourages everyone—residents, staff, and visitors—to help reduce waste and use water wisely.