Tumbling Around Tumburrumba
To save money, while we were at the snow, we based ourselves at Paddy's River Flats. It was a lovely camping-ground and there was hot water up at the toilets. It was freezing, but there was plenty of firewood and we relied on a big fire while it was cold. We did have one unexpected visitor, a pig. It wandered onto the flats one day, quite excited at having escaped from a nearby farm! It disappeared back into the bush and we still don't know exactly where it is from, or whose it is. At the back of our caravan, there was a lovely little stream. Joel regretted that it was the closed season for trout, as it would have apparently been a cracker spot for trout. We ran the generator quite a lot, but it was still cheaper than a caravan park. Our heaters were a fan heater and a gas heater, which slots on top of the gas bottle. Our generator only broke down once.
At Paddy's River, we bathed ourselves in front of the fire. We reflected that this would probably get us as close to the trials of the early pioneers as we possibly could get. Not very close! There was a washing up sink up at the toilets, and amazingly it provided hot water. It was definitely our pick of the many camp-sites around there. To dry our ski clothes, we enclosed one of the picnic tables with our gazebo side and hang the clothes in there. The first few days we were there, we could not get a fire started. The wood was sopping wet as was the ground. It was a decided failure for a while, but then we got the hang of it and fires were the boys forte from then on. It was nice to go outside and have a nice fire to sit around. It was definitely one of the better choices for accommodation. It never snowed there at least.
For the snow, we went to Selwyn Snowfields. It is definitely the cheapest family one, although there was not much snow most of the time there. To be able to ski (or snowboard) at the snow a lot of slice was sold and lots of saving went on. As Selwyn is at a lower altitude than the other ski resorts, it didn't have a lot of snow. The only reason it was open was the snow guns were fired whenever possible. The two main runs were the only ones open until the last two days. The last two days, all runs were open and it was extremely fun. We got our skis and snowboards at a hire place. They were selling them off cheap, which made it cheaper to buy than hire. We always intended Chloe to ski, but we judged Tahlia was too young. As we had none in Chloe's size, we had to hire hers. After a few days, we decided we would try Tahlia on skis. She had a lesson, and got on remarkably well. Joel then took her skiing and put her in between his legs. By the end of the three weeks, we were all zipping down the slopes, including Tahlia who was doing it unaided. Chloe was nearly faster than Joel.
While at Selwyn, we took advantage of the cheaper lessons. Bethany had quite a few and learnt lots of tricks. Josh also had some with her. Joel judged that it was of no use to have a lesson until, hopefully, the runs were all open. We had all gone to the snow before. Joshua and Bethany went snowboarding again, while Joel skied, which he had done before. We didn't have to have any beginner lessons at least. Both little girls had lots of fun as it was their first time skiing.
Favourite Bits of the Snow
Chloe: I liked it when all the runs were open. My favourite runs were Racecourse, Kangaroo Ridge, and Long Arm.
Josh: My favourite thing about the snow was snowboarding. My favourite runs was Meadows and Pig Gully.
Tahlia: My favourite thing was going on the poma's (or the poppers) with ski-instructor, aka. Big brother Joel. My favourite run was New Chum.
Joel: I loved roughing it while going to the snow. The fires were nice. My favourite run was Racecourse.
Mum: Watching my beautiful children careering down the slopes.
Dad: I really enjoyed watching all the kids learning to ski and having a go with them. My favourite run was Township.
Bethany: My favourite thing about the snow was watching the little girls learn as well as further adding to my snowboarding expertise in the lessons. My favourite runs were Kangaroo Ridge and Long Arm.
Chloe: I liked it when all the runs were open. My favourite runs were Racecourse, Kangaroo Ridge, and Long Arm.
Josh: My favourite thing about the snow was snowboarding. My favourite runs was Meadows and Pig Gully.
Tahlia: My favourite thing was going on the poma's (or the poppers) with ski-instructor, aka. Big brother Joel. My favourite run was New Chum.
Joel: I loved roughing it while going to the snow. The fires were nice. My favourite run was Racecourse.
Mum: Watching my beautiful children careering down the slopes.
Dad: I really enjoyed watching all the kids learning to ski and having a go with them. My favourite run was Township.
Bethany: My favourite thing about the snow was watching the little girls learn as well as further adding to my snowboarding expertise in the lessons. My favourite runs were Kangaroo Ridge and Long Arm.
It was a snowy day that the worst experience we can recall of the snow happened. Dad had been teaching at Cabramurra school and it had started snowing. Now we were supposed to carry snow chains, but we had no snow chains available to us of the right size in Tumbarumba. There literally had been no snow so we factored in a day at the snow then going to pick up the chains in the afternoon. We were planning to go over to Adaminaby that very afternoon to pick up chains. As it turned out, we didn't need to. As we were driving up from paddy's river, it had started to snow. There was also a light covering of ice. As dad was heading to the snow to pick us up, he slid off the road and into a snowbank. Stuck about 10km from the snowfield, Dad started to walk to the snowfields. About 4 kms along, he was picked up by a Snowy Hydro guy who dropped him at the snowfields. We called up the NRMA and they towed us out and sold us some snow chains. On the way to the snowfields from Adaminaby, 4 4wds were rolled on their roof. Shows you need to take extreme caution when driving in snow. The staff at the snowfield were extremely helpful in this emergency.
Tumburrumba
"Experience the Magic"
Located 504km south west of Sydney, on the south western slopes of the snowy mountains.
Our favourite camp spot (free):
Paddy's River Flats Campground: 18km south of Tumbarumba, beside Paddy's River. There are toilets, hot water in the sink, shady trees, fireplaces and picnic tables. We traveled from here to Selwyn Snowfields which took approximately one hour.
Places to visit:
Tumbarumba Visitor Information Centre- 10 Bridge St Ph: 02 6948 3333
Tumbarumba Museum: Located at the Visitors Centre. 10 Bridge St, Tumbarumba. Phone: 02 69483333. Displays about gold mining, timber and more.
Boggy Creek Shows: 55 Boggy Creek Rd PH: 02 6948 8273
Learn about life in the mountains as a cattleman. A show that is funny, entertaining, and on top of all that informative!!
Pioneers Woman Hut Museum: Wagga Rd Ph: 02 6948 2635
Detailing the struggles that everyday rural women went through in this harsh but beautiful land, this museum will show a race of woman that were stubborn, inventive, and just slogging through everyday life.
Activities:
Selwyn Snowfields- Kings Cross Rd, Cabramurra PH: 02 6564 9488
Selwyn Snowfielsds is definitely the family friendly snowfield. We greatly enjoyed our time their, even though the snow was patchy to say the least. Later on in the season is best for skiing, but it does depend on the snowfall. Selwyn was the cheapest snowfield, and the lessons were reasonable too. It is half price (approx.) less than the other snowfields for season passes.
Creekscape Walk (Tumbarumba): Located behind the shopping centre. Take a walk along Tumbarumba Creek to the Bicentennial Gardens. Stop and have a picnic lunch!
Drives: Plenty of scenic drives around. One of our favorites was the drive to Paddy’s River Falls. Contact Visitor Information Centre for more information.
Family Eating Out:
4 Bears Cafe: 32 The Parade, Tumbarumba. Ph: 02 6948 3228. Highly recommended by Chloe and Tahlia(aged 6 and 4). The place is filled with bears of all kinds! Food at good prices.
Paddy's River Flats Campground: 18km south of Tumbarumba, beside Paddy's River. There are toilets, hot water in the sink, shady trees, fireplaces and picnic tables. We traveled from here to Selwyn Snowfields which took approximately one hour.
Places to visit:
Tumbarumba Visitor Information Centre- 10 Bridge St Ph: 02 6948 3333
Tumbarumba Museum: Located at the Visitors Centre. 10 Bridge St, Tumbarumba. Phone: 02 69483333. Displays about gold mining, timber and more.
Boggy Creek Shows: 55 Boggy Creek Rd PH: 02 6948 8273
Learn about life in the mountains as a cattleman. A show that is funny, entertaining, and on top of all that informative!!
Pioneers Woman Hut Museum: Wagga Rd Ph: 02 6948 2635
Detailing the struggles that everyday rural women went through in this harsh but beautiful land, this museum will show a race of woman that were stubborn, inventive, and just slogging through everyday life.
Activities:
Selwyn Snowfields- Kings Cross Rd, Cabramurra PH: 02 6564 9488
Selwyn Snowfielsds is definitely the family friendly snowfield. We greatly enjoyed our time their, even though the snow was patchy to say the least. Later on in the season is best for skiing, but it does depend on the snowfall. Selwyn was the cheapest snowfield, and the lessons were reasonable too. It is half price (approx.) less than the other snowfields for season passes.
Creekscape Walk (Tumbarumba): Located behind the shopping centre. Take a walk along Tumbarumba Creek to the Bicentennial Gardens. Stop and have a picnic lunch!
Drives: Plenty of scenic drives around. One of our favorites was the drive to Paddy’s River Falls. Contact Visitor Information Centre for more information.
Family Eating Out:
4 Bears Cafe: 32 The Parade, Tumbarumba. Ph: 02 6948 3228. Highly recommended by Chloe and Tahlia(aged 6 and 4). The place is filled with bears of all kinds! Food at good prices.