Alpine Bush Walks
Snowy Mountains Bushwalks
Difficulty Rating:
- 1 = Easy walk, little climbing
- 2 = Some climbing, not extreme.
- 3 = A harder walk with climbing.
No.1 Sawpit Creek Track – 1 Hour – 
Starts from Kosciuszko Tourist Park
This is a short easy circular walk starting and ending at Kosciuszko Tourist Park. For over half of the walk it follows Sawpit Creek down-stream then turns off and returns to the Park. The track winds through woodlands and there is some thick scrub growing beside the creek.
Distance = 2.6 Km
Difficulty = 1
No.2 Rainbow Lake – Walk – 1 Hour
This walk starts just a short drive (7 Klms West) from Kosciuszko Mountain Retreat. The track is quite clear and there is little climbing as as it winds through snowgrass the the lake.
Distance = 3 Km
Difficulty = 1
No.3 Pallaibo Track – 2 Hours – Starts from Kosciuszko Tourist Park
This is an easy all downhill walk. It is a one way walk and so will require a vehicle to be left at the a vehicle to be left at the finishing point which is only a few minutes drive from Kosciuszko Mountain Retreat. This track follows both Sawpit Creek and Thredbo River downstream.
Distance = 5.6 Km
Difficulty = 1
No.4 Snow Gums Boardwalk – 20 Minutes
This boardwalk is located at the end of Kosciuszko Road and provides superb views of many of Australia’s highest peaks.
Distance = 500 metres
Difficulty = 1
No.5 Thredbo River Walk – 1.5 to 2.5 Hours
This walk starts 4 kilometers west ot Thredbo Village and follows the Thredbo River downstream.
If you do not have a pick-up vehicle left at the village, then you will have some up-hill walking along the Alpine Way back to you car.
Distance = 4 Km
Difficulty = 1
No.6 The Waterfall Track – 2 to 2.5 Hours – Starts from Kosciuszko Tourist Park
This is a relatively easy walk along a small alpine stream. It is a circular walk that starts and finishes at Kosciuszko Mountain Retreat. Along the way it follows Sawpit Creek up-stream and passes a small waterfall before returning to the Park
Distance = 6 Km
Difficulty = 1 to 2
No.7 Mt. Wheatley & The Porcupine – 2 to 3 Hours
There is some climbing on this walk but generally it is regarded as an easy walk. From the ssummit of Mt. wheatley there are excellent views of the whole Kosciuszko Plateau. 1.5 kilometres from Mt. Wheatley is the Porcupine. This country is covered with open snowgrass and patches of low scrub, all making for easy going.
Distance = 8 Km
Difficulty = 1 to 2
No.8 Mt. Perisher & Back Perisher Mountain. – 2 to 4 Hours
This is a circular walk that starts at Kosciuszko Road and involves an initial climb of about 1 kilometre to the summit of Mt. Perisher after this climb the going is easier as you walk across the ridge to Back Perisher Mountain, then back down to Perisher Village. The views to the east and west from the ridge are some the best in these Mountains.
Distance = 5 Km
Difficulty = 2 to 3
No.9 Guthega Dam to Mt. Tate – 3 to 4 Hours
Most of this walk is fairly easy apart from a 300m climb on a gravel track. This walk from the Snowy River at Guthega to Mt. Tate, leads through alpine scenery of the main dividing range and offers splendid views. The route is not marked, but it is easy to find from natural landmarks. The most strenuous part of the walk is over once you’ve reached the trig station which is early in the walk and thereafter covers typical alpine landscape with views along Guthega and Snowy Rivers
Distance = 11 Km
Difficulty = 2
No.10 Mt. Kosciuszko Summit / From Charlott Pass – 6 Hours
There are two tracks to the summit of Mt. Kosciuszko. One from the Thredbo Village and this one from Charlottes Pass. This track follows the old summit road and passes through snow gums, heath and herb fields and provides extensive views of the main range and the Snowy River.
Distance = 18 Km
Difficulty = 2
No.11 Mt. Kosciuszko Summit / From Thredbo Village – 5 Hours
To commence this walk you take the chairlift to the top of Mt.Crackenback at Thredbo Village. It is a clearly defined walk and is slightly shortly than the walk from Charlottes Pass, however, if staying on the Perisher Valley side of the mountain, then you have a 1.5 hour drive (round trip) to Thredbo which should be taken into account
Distance = 13 Km
Difficulty = 1 to 2
No.12 Club Lake Walk – 4 Hours
This walk commences at Charlottes Pass and initially follows the Main Ridge Trail until it turns off and goes off-track at the latter part near Club Lake. This lake is the smallest of the five alpine glacial lakes. The return walk is along the same track as go in on.
Distance = 11 Km
Difficulty = 2
No.13 Charlottes Pass to Thredbo Village – 6 Hours
This is not a return walk so transport at the finishing point needs to be arranged. A common arrangement is for a group to split up and have half start the walk from each end and swap car keys when they meet for lunch along the track or at the summit. It is a well formed track easy to follow. It is not a difficult walk although it does have climbing on the ascent and the return is of course downhill and much quicker.
Distance = 15 Km
Difficulty = 1 to 2
No.14 Blue Lake Walk – 5 Hours
After setting out from Charlottes Pass it is downhill for about 1 kilometre. After crossing the Snowy River most of this walk is along the Main Ridge Track until just after passing Carruthers Creek you turn right (east) and about 1 kilometre further on is the Blue Lake. There is an alternative route back to Charlottes Pass and this is shown on you map
Distance = 9 Km
Difficulty = 2
No.15 Mt. Stillwell & The Restaurant Ruins – 4 Hours
This is one of the best but least known day walks that can be done within easy access of a vehicle, however, it is a harder walk with some steep climbs. Once the initial height of Mt. Stillwell is gained, the walking is easy over beautiful snowgrass plains where pools, waterfalls and snowdrifts abound.
Distance = 8 Km
Difficulty = 3
No. 16 The Lakes Walk / Via Kosciuszko Summit – 7 to 8 Hours
This circular walk is one of the most superb walks in Australia. The first part of the walk is along the Kosciuszko summit track to the summit lookout where you head north along the main range trail. It provides views of all five of our glacial Lakes, Albina, Club, Cootapatamba, Blue Lake and Headley Tarn. The track is well formed and is well worth the effort
Distance = 22 Km
Difficulty = 3
No.17
This walk can be as long or as short as you want it to be. The first kilometre is on the or down stream. For a shorter walk you can walk as far as you like then retrace you steps back to the Main Range Trail and your vehicle. There are two longer walk options, one is a circular walk upstream that brings you back along the summit track to you starting point.
Distance = 10 Km
Difficulty = 2
No.18 Rennex Gap to Snowt Adit – 3 to 4 Hours
This is a fairly easy walk with little climbing but a decent of almost 600m. It is also a one-way walk so a pick-up vehicle will need to arranged at Snowy Adit the finishing point. The track leads in a northerly direction from Rennex Gap and much of it is over open grassy plains. Along the way there are extensive views and a number of features including the ‘Giants Castle’ made up of giant granite boulders.
Distance = 10 Km
Difficulty = 1