Photos from 14th of May. Bit of melt happening, very slow skiing. Nice up top. Bowl picnic area Summit Trail Summit Cairn Mueller's Lookout
I wonder if ill be able to take the little one over the weekend. She gets her new skis on thursday for her birthday! she would love to go and use them!
According to Jane, there should be another top up by then. Hope the little one gets up there. I'm just pondering, hmm, tomorrow or would Wednesday be better?
Jane..? Im hoping so! i dont have any gear so happy to just help her up and down a small hill learning
Sorry, I mean www.janesweather.com - the most reliable commercial snow forecaster for Vic., at least last year, (not to disrespect the distinguished crew in the weather forum here). Plenty of small learning type terrain at BB. MOD EDIT: Fixed URL
Anyone out and about today? what were the conditions like? I'm thinking of a sneaky trip for some hiking / riding tommorow...
From @mick chopps in another thread. "Worth a look tmrw. More like 25-30 up the top and easily 20cm in the village when I left. Good day. Snow at Tanjil Bren on the way up and all the way to the turn off on the way back down." Any pics mick?
Hope you had your rock hoppers! Would love to see another 1995 at Baw Baw one day. 1-1.5m top to bottom, the year of the sw system and my second year of riding a board.
Nah. Not required. Took both, didn't bother with the hopper. Check the bases when I got back to the car, sweet!
Quad tracks down the lift line has put me off a bit. But would be a welcome change to the sandboard..
Went up today, didn't see anyone at all out there. Perhaps they were too early for me. Drizzle in the carpark at 11 despite the car thermo reading -1. Fortunately that cleared up as I headed through the village for my first ski for the season and first since major knee surgery 8 months ago. Malaysian visitors who had never seen snow were bemused by the "No Snow" signs in the Bowl. I took an hour to get to the summit/ lookout, (backcountry fitness has evaporated) but there were no tracks on the Summit trail, Boodoir must have gone straight up the d/h trail to the top. No sign of Strider. Fresh, dry snow all the way, 15-20cm in most places but more stacked up against the hut where I ate lunch. Wind scoured and icy at the top of Summit and Playground. Slid back down through the trees by Hut trail and zagged back onto the lower part of summit. Legs had had enough by then. Kelly's was not open so will catch up next time. In the carpark, the grader driver said they would normally have had 3/4 frosts by now but there have been none, so snow will melt off quickly. Local knowledge rules. Hope it snows soon. Enjoy.
I had a good ski today. Up there early, summit trail to top and down the icy run. Had to leave early. Unfortunately no facilities open yet. Road was icy in places but manageable without chains. Fingers crossed for more snow.
Anyone at Baw today? Decided we are ditching kinder and day tripping to Baw Baw for miss 5's birthday tomorrow (at her request. I think she's more excited than me for this season!) She will be so excited when she opens her brand spanking new skis in the morning. Will I need chains on my car? I won't be taking gear- but will just spend a few hours teaching her. Any advice as I haven't been up before the season started before! Thanks
You should not need to fit chains, but snow/ice could well be falling from the trees onto the road, so beware. No lifts running but if you are prepared to hike a short way up Tank Hill or the bottom slope of Hut run, your daughter should be able to have some fun and practise a few basics. Hope it goes well.
How will I know if I need to put my chains on? (I'm not normally the driver!) I'll bring a broom to lug her up the hill she can pretend it's a t-bar, 2 birds one stone!
If there's no snow on the road, you won't need to fit chains. Not a problem tomorrow. Ice could be an issue early in the day, but unlikely to be a drama after mid morning. Just take it easy where it gets a bit steep, after the old ticket box. Hope you have fun.
P.S. Weather looks like it could turn wintry later in the day. I would suggest being prepared to get off the mountain if it comes in from the SW. Like to see the broom performance, perhaps another time.
From Melb. suburbs going via Noojee is definitely faster. S Face road is unsealed but not as windy. Suggest going via Robin Hood Hotel at Drouin, then via Neerim and Noojee. Bendy road but very pretty. Watch for log trucks on narrow road. Have fun!
If your kids get car sick easily then go the South Face Rd - no contest. SFR: It's much straighter overall, yes gravel but a good, log truck quality, fairly wide road. Fairly well drained too. Would have had some snow on it a couple of days ago. Should be ok now but take chains & care. Be prepared to fit chains when snow is on the road - even if you aren't slipping yet. (Safer than sorry!)
I've done the exercise from Warragul to the Village and return, via tourist road and via South Face The South Face route is approx 30 km longer but is marginally quicker and uses less fuel From Traralgon, it's no contest, SFR FTW From Lilydale area, Tourist Road wins From the Princes Highway, IMHO, SFR wins, especially if kids are prone to car sickness
Im coming from SE melb- Frankston area.. not in a hurry so which road is safer/easier to drive? and no car sickness.
IMO South Face Road is an easier drive and safer. Much wider than the tourist road, fewer tight corners. Faster average speed. Before the road starts the drive up is very straightforward. From Frankston, get onto the Princes Hwy and drive to Moe. Turn off the freeway to Moe and follow the signs to Erica. Drive through Erica and follow Thomson Valley Rd/Moe-Walhalla Rd to the South Face Road. If you get to the Mt St Gwinear Rd turnoff you've gone too far. Turn left onto SFR and it will get you to the Baw Baw intersection. Have fun!
We made it! I decided to go tourist Rd as I was worried I may get lost haha! Lots of the smaller runs are closed to make sure they are good for opening!
Congrats! You OWNED the mountain. Sat will be very different. South Face Road will be snow covered and slow. Avoid!
Will be much better when the lifts are open! Little one had fun trying her skis! She told me she prefers ski school, guess I'm not a good teacher! Haha. I got a good workout dragging her up the hills!
S F Road clear and fast today. But wanting chains on 2wd AND AWD from the turnoff to the top. This season there might be lots of discussions on the way up of what an exempt Four Wheel Drive consists of.
IMHO The Summit run is the easiest to learn on Catch the T Bar to about 1/2 way up, then it's a long steady slope to learn on!
