Sanna and I took  a weekend trip to the Australian Alps to climb Mt Kosciusko which is Australia’s highest mainland mountain at 2228 metres (7310 ft) above sea level. We drove to the area which is a 5 hour drive from Sydney, 3 hours to Canberra, 2 hours further to the Alpine region.

We stayed at the Red Bank lodge which is a members lodge but guests can stay there too and is very cheap to stay right on the mountain. I’ve been there 3 times now and I’d really recommend it if your looking to stay in Thredbo.

The view of the mountain from the Red Bank Lodge at its base

On Saturday we set out to climb the mountain, you take a chairlift to the top of the ski runs and then walk the 6.4km to the summit. Conditions from looking at the weather station report were bad but we had 3 types of GPS with us, 2 iPhones with Motionx GPS running on it and an old friends borrowed GPS unit and a topographical map and compass for real backup. We packed lots of food and we were very well clothed for the extremes of the mountain top so we decided to at least set out and see how it was.

Map of the walk, the Orange chairlift from the base then the Blue walk to the summit

The first stage of the walk was pretty windy with gusts up to 100kph coming from the West carrying with it ice particles. After a while the gusts died down for a part of the walk where we took this photo.

The start of the climb to the summit is at just under 2000m from sea level

Then for the remainder it started getting much heavier and visibility started getting worse all the way towards the top. There was a metal path showing in parts but most of the snow and ice had covered it. When we lost our way the GPS put us back on course and it was showing a accuracy of 30m even through the snow and ice above us which gave me confidence.

Part of a metal path just showing through the snow and ice

3/4 of the way up Mt Kosciusko, big ice build-up from here onwards

When we were just 300 metres from the summit and we walked up the last steep bit to the very top, the wind coming over the peak was just so fast, 100km+ gusts again and visibility was down to around 5 metres only. We just wanted to get a photo to prove we made the top in the middle of winter and get back down again because in truth it was bit scary.

Reaching the summit of Mt Kosciusko, we lasted just enough time for a photo

For comparison, this is what the summit looks like on a normal summers day

Of course the walk down was a lot easier and faster than the walk up, and by the hallway down point the sun started to break through and we felt comfortable again. It was good to get back to the top of the main chairlift where we had 2 Gluvine’s and a goulash soup to warm us up.

The next day we took it easy and walked around the Thredbo ski resort village and did  a short walk around the valley where we tried to see how far we could skate small rocks and branches across a frozen lake and crossed a freezing cold stream without just about falling in.

Safe and sound back down at the base

Sanna on the rocks crossing a cold stream

On the drive home to Sydney we went and looked at a old historic hut called Bullocks hut built in 1934 as a fishing lodge. It is situated next to the Thredbo River near the Skitube train.

Walking on the way to Bullocks with a O hut

Driving back to Sydney took 5 hours again, the Audi RS4 averaged 9.8 litres per 100km over the 496km back. Cruising at between 110-120kph all the way back that impressed me to get under 10 litres per 100km for a high-performance large car.

A lovely weekend away to the snow, thanks for reading.

Driving on the way back to Sydney

This week my mum popped over to visit us at dinner time, how lovely for her to pop by and join us 🙂

How good is Skype!

I found this crate at work today to be thrown out full of all types of old disks and tapes from over the years. I picked these 4 out, from the 1980’s large spooled tape on the left to the modern DVD on the right, how IT has changed over the years.

Here is a random old photo Brendon found on his computer the other day of me driving the Ferrari California with him through the Sydney airport tunnel. That was a good memory as you can see from the grin on my face.

My new ibis Mojo SL taking its first shower

My last post on my blog was all about our Kangaroo valley camping/kayaking trip. It was great fun but unfortunately the bad news was over the weekend some f&%ker stole my cherished mountain bike I’d had for nearly 3 years which I absolutely loved and a lot of spare parts and bits and bobs that I’d built up over time, in total nearly $6000 of my stuff.

I’m awaiting from my home contents insurance now and hopefully I’ll get it all back in the form of cash minus the $300 excess. In the mean time I needed to replace the bike as its my only form of exercise and hobby of 3-4 times a week.

I was going to get the same bike as before but one model up the Trek EX9, but then I looked at the ibis Mojo which I’ve always wanted one and is a bit famous in the mountain biking world as being a small quantity boutique mountain bike brand from the US making hand laid carbon fibre mountain bikes in small quantities.

The carbon fibre weave shown all through the frame, with no paint on it its called ‘naked’

Ian who knows a lot more about the sport than me helped me spec up a medium to high spec components list for the bike over a week which I then emailed to the importer to agree on the spec and the price. All of the parts are brand new but some of them are 2010 year spec which lowered the price quite a bit and made smart sense. Sourcing the deal through the importer and not a retail outlet further helped reduce the price. RRP was $6,200 but we got it down to $4,700 fully built price, that was a saving of 24% great.

For any bike fans here is the components list:

Frame:                                          Mojo SL medium Black carbon clearcoat
Rear Derailleur:                        Shimano RD-M772, DEORE XT SGS 9-Speed Top-Normal, Low Profile
Front Derailleur:                       Shimano FD-M771, DEORE XT 34.9 Band Clamp Down-Swing Dual-Pull
Headset:                                       Cane Creek IS2 1-1/8″ Black
Cranks:                                          Shimano FC-M770, DEORE XT 175MM 44X32X22
Brakes:                                          SRAM ELIXIR CR Carbon 180mm Front Rotor, 160mm Rear Rotor
Shift Levers:                                Shimano SL-M770 DEORE XT
Cassette:                                      Shimano CS-M770 DEORE XT 11-13-15-17-20-23-26-30-34T
Chain:                                            Shimano CN-HG93
Handlebar:                                  Easton MonkeyLite XC CNT 26″ 660mm 31.8
Grips:                                             Ibis Foam grip with clamp / Ibis laser logo
Stem:                                             Ibis 3D Forged 31.8 Bar/28.6 Steerer 7075 90mm 120g
Saddle:                                         WTB Rocket-V
Seat Post:                                    Easton EC90 Zero CNT 31.6 400mm Weave
Tires:                                             Kenda Lopes DTC 26 x 2.1″
Fork:                                              2010 Fox Talas 15mm with fit damper cartridge
Wheels:                                       Sun Ringle Black Flag Pro Black rim with gold hubs, tubeless ready to go with stans tape, stem and solution
Pedals:                                        Shimano XTR race pedals

Very strong disc brakes and Gold hubs for that extra bit of bling in the bush

She’s a beauty alright, 90% of the bike is made of carbon fibre for the strongest and lightest material. My old Trek bike was made of good quality lightweight aluminium but this is even lighter and just as strong, carbon fibre is an amazing material.

I’ve taken it out for a off road lap of the bike park just today and there are a few things that need to bed in so are a little bit ‘sticky’ in feeling like the brakes and the suspension, but I know this is going to be a truly awesome bike to own and ride. It has an extra inch of travel front and rear compared to my old bike so I have to get used to that. I look forwards to taking it for its first real bush bash with friends.

The detail of the rear suspension linkages is amazing, this piece is called a ‘Lopes Link’ named after the famous world cup winning mountain bike racer ‘Brian Lopes’ who helped design it.

The carbon fibre even goes through to all the brake levers and brake fluid reservoirs made of the stuff

7/4/11 update

I’ve been riding it for around a week now doing some light off road rides and its starting to loosen up a bit. The brakes are still not biting so still need more time to bed in but overall I feel compared to my old bike im about 10% faster and 10% less tired. Im really impressed so far, it is a small but genuine step up in feel from the Trek Fuel EX8. Cant wait to get it out in the bush for a proper heavy ride.