Saying a fond farewell to the Fyfes (in shifts, as each member of the family headed off to work or school) I headed south towards Cooma. I had no reservations for the rest of the journey, but maps indicated that Jindabyne would be a reasonably good place to stay, being somewhat central to the area; much more so than Cooma. But I figured this time of the year would alleviate the need for planning in advance, and that I could just stop where I felt like it.
And thus it turned out to be. I reached Cooma far too early to stop, and, with all due respects to Cooma, there wasn't much to encourage me to stay there. So on to Jindabyne. Arriving early afternoon I looked at the accomodation guide and decided that the Quality Resort would be a nice place to stay. Garmin's GPS maps of Australia do not have a good coverage of motels (at least in Jindabyne), so I just drove around until I found the Quality.
Needless to say, there were plenty of rooms available. I'd guess there were fewer than 20 rooms occupied, based on the number of people who turned up for breakfast. I planned to stay 2 nights before heading over to the coast to return home. Or perhaps head inland.
There were two main reasons for heading to the Snowy Mountains. Firstly it's been 40 years since the last visit, so it was time to catch up. The last visit to Jindabyne was before the dam was built - Dad drove through the old town, and we reached the new one, which was still under construction! Secondly, to see how low the dams are following seven years of below average rainfall. I hesitate to add I wanted to see some mountains again, because seventeen years in Seattle makes these look more like mole hills.
There is also a map of the places visited today.
The view from my room's balcony, looking towards Lake Jindabyne.
A closer view of Lake Jindabyne. The trees on the island more or less mark the high water level. Clearly it is a long way down, and note the trees growing down near the water's edge - it's been a while since the water level has been much higher. Jindabyne Dam is on the Snowy River, and is the last of the dams in the Snowy Mountains Scheme on that river.
Looking west towards the mountains - roughly in the direction of Smiggin Holes, a ski resort these days.
Having settled in, it was now time to head off towards Charlotte Pass, the end of the road. In the olden days (i.e. one of the first times I was here) it was possible to drive almost right to Mt. Kosciuszko, but driving now stops at Charlotte Pass.
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