Hotham pics 2011

[El_Freddo]

G'day all.

I'm up here again at Mount Hotham for another season. Started much earlier this time around, been here for just over two weeks already working at sorting out the apartments we look after for the season before the punters (such as your fine selves that make it up here) arrive.

I've been collecting some pics along the way from various balconies of the apartments I've visited as well as others from around the traps as I've seen fit/haven't been in control of a vehicle...

^ Hotham Central with Mt Feathertop peaking over the top of the Heavenly Valley Ridgeline (should look up that ridge name...)

^ The snow fields looking over to Keogh's and Orchid chair lifts.

My Favourite pic so far - looking Southish from the Corral Carpark, slightly zoomed in - wish I had a better camera for taking images such as this...

Southerly slopes of Mt Hotham. The mobile phone tower, as ugly as it is has become some sort of icon in some of the images, particularly if you can get out early morning after a huge dumping of snow to capture an image of it covered in snow like some sort of artist's sculpture.

Another image from the corral carpark area looking south easterly, you can see a corner of the road up from Harrietville in the right of the pic.

The local watering hole year round, its the only venue open for drinks at the moment. Their license was reduced to 1am from 2am last year so all the riff raff will be headed up to swindlers further up the mt after 1am. I really don't know why the police went so hard on them to reduce their hours when they're the only venue on the mountain that claims to have put on extra security staff etc and they've documented any incidents (down from last year to the year previous most likely due to the extra security staff) - and the cop shop is directly across the road from this venue... Anyway, its going to be an interesting year for this venue! Massive loss of revenue per week from that one hour less per night!

And for this weekend's pics, another couple of the summit and the mobile phone tower in different lighting and weather conditions:

And now, here's a couple of pics from last night (08MAY11) when it started to snow at about 11pm:

And this morning (09MAY11):

I love the way the snow clings to anything, such as the grass below:

And here's another from before lunch:

The front of Ruby Scoo at lunch:

Hotham Central, I enjoy watching the cloud when its "stuck" on one side of the valley while rising vertically as it tumbles on itself at the same time:

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[El_Freddo]

Continued:

The summit:

I took this shot because of the way the sun light hit the lightly dusted slopes:

The summit about half an hour later:

Down at the Big D near the Higgi Drive apartments:

And more iced grass:

Tonight - Chaddy's liberty after its maiden voyage up the mount:

Ruby Scoo:

And the lovely drawing on someone's snow covered vehicle that my lovely wife thought was a hairy fish at first glance:

Ruby Scoo and the lib in the street light, snow covered:

Loving this weather - its predicted for snow all week :mrgreen:

Cheers

Bennie

 

[Kevin]

Looking good Bennie - I'd love to get back there again this year but perhaps not likely. It looks very different without snow.

 

[mr turbo]

Great pics El_Freddo :ebiggrin:
The snow & ice sticking to the grass & trees looks just magic

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[carljwnc]

Looks like you've got a great winter ahead of you!!!:biggrin:

Have fun up there.

 

[El_Freddo]

10may11 & 11may11

Late afternoon pics after we had a good dusting Monday night, most of it melted during tuesday when these pics were taken...

I had to change the 27s off Ruby Scoo for the 23s as dad needed his rangie jack back, so after putting the pro in procrastination I got to it at midnight tuesday in these conditions:

And the conditions when we woke up this morning (wednesday 11MAY11):

These are some pics while I was out and about at work: Looking towards the summit from the corral carpark:

The building where our office is located, again from the corral carpark:

Unfortunately I have to drive this at work (in the fresh snow):

Snow on Ruby Scoo in odd places:

This is what happens if you don't use alpine mix diesel in your diesel fuelled vehicle, even the expensive ones get caught out:

Al fresco at the General:

Got to eat well when working in the cold... Can't go past the Bikie's burger at the General:

And here's the venue today just after lunch:

The Mt Hotham Police Station across the road from the General, a bit ultra modern for my liking:

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[El_Freddo]

Boss left town for the arvo and the next couple of days, late lunch then no work vehicle, so I upgraded:

A balcony view of the summit as the sun tried to poke through the clouds:

This is how the snow clings to windows, it sort of looks like white lichen:

This roof was bare yesterday. You don't want to be standing or parked under the roof line when gravity decides its going to play with the snow on the roof:

I got the arvo off so I headed off mountain in convoy with chaddy in his lib so he could see how it went in the snow with the confidence of having a mate to help out if things didn't go as planned. All good. I also dropped off my other two rims (the black sunnies) for a new set of snow tyres, fuelled up - what's the go with the price of petrol?! 1.49cpl!!!

Here's some pics of my trip back up the mountain in the snow covered scenery:

The ticket booth. They're using a rego plate recognition system this season that checks to see that you've purchased your pass online:

This is easy driving, even with a little bit of haze. This pic is with the big lights on:

And with them off:

I've driven in conditions up here where you can't see the end of the bonnet - its not fun and VERY taxing.

The tunnel on entry to Hotham Village:

Ruby Scoo in the less than day old snow:

And put to bed for the night:

This is what was happening outside when I got home at about 8:00pm

Its currently -5.0 degrees C with prediction of it being overcast tomorrow.

Loving this snow!!!

Cheers

Bennie

 

[El_Freddo]

Looking good Bennie - I'd love to get back there again this year but perhaps not likely. It looks very different without snow.

Yeah its crazy different without snow! The first time I saw it without snow I thought it was very ugly. Now I'm used to it but I do enjoy looking out over the back country rather than the ski slopes with the naked chair lifts (no chairs at the moment). Shame you won't be back up this year, everyone's talking it up more so than last year. I hope they're right!

Great pics El_Freddo :ebiggrin:
The snow & ice sticking to the grass & trees looks just magic

Looks even better for real!

Looks like you've got a great winter ahead of you!!!:biggrin:

Have fun up there.

I bloody hope we do Carl! And I'm sure I will, I'm already having some fun! Circle work in the carpark was good fun, just couldn't manage the spin on one front wheel Still great fun none the less, just wish there wasn't the threat of being caught out...

Cheers

Bennie

 

[Escher]

What's the deal with all the pictures that are hosted on imageshack not showing up? And who on earth came up with that frog-inside-an-ice-cube placeholder icon?!?

I'm getting frustrated not being able to see people's pictures...

 

[carljwnc]

What's the deal with all the pictures that are hosted on imageshack not showing up? And who on earth came up with that frog-inside-an-ice-cube placeholder icon?!?

I'm getting frustrated not being able to see people's pictures...

Showing up fine for me, might be something on your end.

 

[taza]

Great photos. Its lovely up there, been up a couple of time when I was a teenager. Ruby Scoo looks lost with the 13s :lol:

fuelled up - what's the go with the price of petrol?! 1.49cpl!!!

Im paying 1.55 a litre. Then when I was home the other weekend went to fuel up and it was 1.81 a litre and thats just normal unleaded not even premium I almost fell over.

Taza

 

[mr turbo]

Im paying 1.55 a litre. Then when I was home the other weekend went to fuel up and it was 1.81 a litre and thats just normal unleaded not even premium I almost fell over.

And I thought 1.61 (for premium) was bad, when I filled up this morning

I had to change the 27s off Ruby Scoo for the 23s as dad needed his rangie jack back, so after putting the pro in procrastination I got to it at midnight tuesday in these conditions:

Brrrrrr that is cold. I'm glad it was you & not me
Once again, there are some great pics there.

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[El_Freddo]

End of may pics, sorry for time delay!

G'day again,

These should have been posted about two weeks ago - but I'd clapped out the internet with the Robe Sand 4wd video upload, it kept failing

Anyway, since those last pictures of so much snow we didn't have any rather had some really good weather - shorts and Tshirt weather. We even had arvo drinks on top of the substation one day until the afternoon clouds moved in (3.30 on the dot).

So here are some pics:

Visiting Melbourne on the 28th of May on our epic trip from Hotham to Melbs to home then back to Hotham, 23 hours in total from leaving to arriving - at Flinders Street station:

Back at Hotham the next monday - I went for a walk around the place venturing up to the summit of Mt Hotham for the first time.

The summer chair lift sorted for last summer:

Mt Feathertop under the Road Runner chair lift - the chairs have been going back on the cables of the lifts for at least a week if not longer before these pics were taken:

The top of the summit chair lift. I didn't know they took the "idler" wheel off for the winter - after talking to a local it turns out there was a mishap with something while pulling the chairs off last year, no other details but they usually don't remove this wheel:

Mt Feathertop and the Razorback ridgeline - yes I'm a little obsessed with this mountain, it stares at me all season:

You can't get away from anything these days, in what is one of the remotest parts of victoria you can still find these:

Love this pic - take note of the speed signs

Mt Feathertop and the summit marker at the top of Mt Hotham - about three hundred metres from where I thought it was...

The original marker I think - build into a large horizontal stone cross:

A closer look of the mobile phone tower near the summit:

One of the signs on the edge of the patrolled ski area - pretty self explanatory!

Hotham Central, the top end of Hotham Village from the slopes between the Summit and the Australian Drift looking east:

A memorial to an early pioneer of the area, Lindsay Salmon on Mt Higginbotham:

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[El_Freddo]

From the memorial on Mt Higginbotham looking over to a cloud capped Mt Feathertop:

Looking south from Mt Higginbotham near the memorial. I liked the way the light struck the slopes of the mountain ranges giving a good texture I reckon:

The afternoon sun on the ranges with low cloud that was touching the top of the Summit:

Now to get some snow pics, we've had some good falls. I enjoyed sliding Ruby Scoo around today - just wish that I could do it more without retribution...

Cheers

Bennie

 

[Barry]

Love the photos Bennie, it is one of my favourite parts of Vic. More years ago than I care to remember I did the one 'real' winter alpine climb in Vic = the only place you need crampons (spikes) on your boots and an ice axe ... the ascent of the western ridge of feathertop (aka Hellfire Ridge if I remember correctly) after a snow camp in Breakfast Gully.

 

[Escher]

The afternoon sun on the ranges with low cloud that was touching the top of the Summit:

That last one's my favorite, Bennie! Almost like winter fog, just without the snow.

 

[mr turbo]

There's some great pics there El_Freddo :ebiggrin:
The rolling hills with the clouds look fantastic

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[carljwnc]

More awesome pics Bennie!!!:ebiggrin:

Can't wait to see some snow up there.

 

[El_Freddo]

^ This pic was meant to make it in with the last ones - shorts and Tshirt weather!

Ok, so these pics were taken about 3 or 4 days after the last set.* This is a great setup for the opening weekend which went well - four lefts were open by the end of the weekend, Roadrunner being the last to open.

Tuesday the 7th of June 2011, before opening:

^ Frozen moisture on Ruby Scoo

^ The reason why remote central locking is good at times - while my locks weren't frozen this time I had them freeze a couple of times last year!

^ Air moisture sticking and freezing to objects such as my scorpions.* Now in a secret location...

^ My little fleabay special weather station.* Yes it is frozen but the wind speed gadget was still spinning - porbably an inaccurate reading but anyway.* It freezes solid at times giving no readings of winds speed.* Humidity and outside temp still work.

^ Moving Ruby Scoo from Higgi drive before all the snow arrived that would have made it extremely difficult to get her and the trailer out.* She lived down at the front of the Arlberg where i may have got her bogged in the snow (road tyres and snow while towing do not mix!).* Removed the trailer, shovelled some snow and I was sorted, my chains were handy too.* Re-attached the trailer and I was done with that for a while.

^ The "random number generator" aka the clock/temp gauge on the RMB building.

^ Random ice frost formation on the window.* Not the greatest pic but hopefully you get the idea.


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[El_Freddo]

Friday 10th of June 2011. The season officially opened at 3pm...

^ Ruby Scoo was parked here for a couple of days before having to be moved to staff parking later in the arvo.

^ Higgi Drive behind the Arlberg. Good snow coverage that's about to get better with the next front. All vehicles would be banned from here at 3pm. Fines would be issued for non-compliance but weren't starting to be issued until Sunday.

^ The Coral Day Carpark looking west from just above Higgi Drive.

^ One of the snow clearing machines! The one's that clear the main roads are old MAN or International trucks with a crazy snow plow mounted on the front.

^ The important sign to take notice of when leaving town or cruising around. I love that bottom sign when that is displayed.

^ The current random number for Friday the 10th of June 2011 at about 11am - which was about right for once as my weather station was saying the same thing.

^ Icicles off the side of White Crystal apartments.

^ More Icicles, this is how they drop off the roof, this is on the RMB entrance.


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