Mt Townsend
Mt Townsend is Australia’s second highest mountain. It’s a mear 19 metres lower than Mt Kosciuszko but a damn sight more impressive in terms of scenery and the skiing on offer.
Mt Townsend is really an elongated ridge that runs in a north south direction. Mt Townsend is the rocky peak at the southern end of the ridge. Further north there are a series of smaller rocky highs, the largest of which is named Alice Rawson Peak.
Like other areas on the main range the eastern facing slopes collect huge amounts of drifting snow and miss out on the afternoon sun. At the same time the western facing slopes get scoured by the wind and are subjected to the afternoon sun. The prevailing conditions result in the western facing slopes having a shallower snow pack and thicker vegetation and the eastern slopes having a deeper snow pack and slopes that are relatively void of tall vegetation. As a result the eastern facing slopes off Townsened and Alice Rawson are the most popular.
The Racecourse Runs
The Racecourse runs follow well defined gullies that head east from the Townsend summit. There are two pronounced gullies to the east of Twynam summit. Both offer similar terrain. The runs start with steep drops through massive granite outcrops (often corniced). The steeps provide about 100-150m vertical in a short amount of distance. The runs then follow gentler grades down to Lake Albina (south gully) and further down Lady Northcote Canyon (northern gully). Both gullies are large with many variations possible.
View of Mt Townsend and Alice Rawson Peak from Tenison Woods Knoll showing the location of 'The Racecourse' runs and other discussed below.
One of Australia’s first alpine ski lodges was built below the eastern slopes of Townsend in 1951. The Albina Hut was located at the southern end of Lake Albina. As you can probably guess from the name of the runs, they were often used for ski races by guests of the Lake Albina lodge. The Albina Hut was vacated in 1969 and decommissioned in 1983.
The Lake Albina Lodge being constructed in 1951 (Photo courtesy of National Library of Australia).
The 2005 Sutmap for “Mt Kosciuszko, Perisher and Thredbo” marks the northernmost gully as ‘Racecourse Gully’. According to Alan Andrews (Skiing the Western Faces) both gullies are referred to as ‘The Racecourse’. The SutMap also marks the slopes to the east of Lake Albina ‘The Grandstand’ as this is where spectators would sit to watch the ski races.
An early winter view of Alice Rawson Peak and a semi frozen Lake Albina from Mt Northcote. The photo shows the lower half of The Racecourse (South) Run and The Racecourse (North) Run.
Ian’s Gully
Ians Gully is described in Alan Andrews ‘Skiing the Western Faces”. It starts from the top of Alice Rawson Peak. From the peak you ski to the east. The first section of the run is a moderately sloped (approx 20degrees) featureless east facing slope. The grade eases somewhat before it heads into a well defined drainage gully through large granite outcrops. The lower half of the run is a little steeper and maintains a steady pitch down the fall line to Lady Northcote Canyon. The run provides around 450 metres of vertical skiing from Alice Rawson Peak to the Canyon.
The Alice Rawson Run
Like Ian’s Gully, the Alice Rawson Run starts on top of Alice Rawson Peak. In a typical season the options off the very top of Alice Rawson are limited due to the large granite outcrops. There’s typically an easy ski to the east (towards Ian’s Gully) or to the north east. You can head in either direction to ski The Alice Rawson Run. There’s two large granite outcrops between Alice Rawson Peak and the base of the run. Avoid skiing over the top of these as there are some pretty decent sized cliffs on the eastern side. You can either ski around the southern or northern side of the granite outcrops. If you take on the southern route you’ll get a view of the lower part of the run when you reach the southern outcrop. There’s a great stretch of fall line in a north easterly direction, which is the obvious way to go. Once you’re at the bottom of that stretch you can either veer to the skiers right and continue down the fall line or traverse a little to the skiers left and pick up another steeper gully that takes you a little further down into Lady Northcote Canyon.
Early winter view of Townsend north spur from Mt Northcote. This view provides a side on look at Ian's Gully, The Alice Rawson Run and Avalanche Alley.
The northern route loses a little more vertical on the tame upper slopes but provides a steeper and more consistent grade on the lower half. Ski to the saddle between the granite outcrops then drop down the obvious drainage gully all the way into Lady Northcote Canyon.
The upper sections of The Alice Rawson Run showing a few possible variations. The Avalanche Alley is located futher along the Townsend north spur.
Skier heads north off Alice Rawson Peak. The Alice Rawson Run can be skied by heading skiers right of the prominent rocky knoll in the middle ground. Other variations are possible by dropping in between the rocky outcrops. Stay clear of the outcrops as they feature a few large hazardous granite cliffs.
Ski tracks down the upper part of The Alice Rawson Run (south).
Both variations offer around 550m of vertical skiing give or take.
Avalanche Alley
The Avalanche Alley run is another named by Andrews in “Skiing the Western Faces”. The run follows a drainage gully off the eastern side of the Townsend North Spur (the ridge that runs north from Alice Rawson Peak). The run starts in the most pronounced saddle along the Townsened north spur.
From Alice Rawson peak your target is the saddle on the ridgeline, which is obscured by a large outcrop of granite. Whilst the run down the north spur looks pretty tame and boring you should keep in mind that the saddle is about 1km away, and you'll drop approximately 300 vertical metres getting there. Definitely more fun than it appears. You need to balance skiing the fall line with traversing so that you can stay in reach the ridgeline.
Once you’re at the saddle the Avalanche Alley is the obvious drainage feature off to the east (or south east). The gully drains into Lady Northcote’s Canyon. In a good season there should be enough snow to reach the bottom of the valley but quite often the snow cover runs out above the bottom of the valley. For this reason you’re probably better off skiing one of the lines to the south unless the snow cover is in good shape.
A very bare Avalanche Alley run in the shocking 2006 ski season viewed from the mid parts of Little Austria.
Mt Townsend North Spur
Further north of Avalanche Alley there are several other inviting lines off the Townsened North Spur. Whilst these runs start well below the height of Alice Rawson peak and Townsend it’s worth noting that the northern end of the spur is over 1800m, which is around the height of Mt Buller in Victoria.
From the high point on the north spur several well defined gullies drain into Lady Northcote’s Canyon. Like the Avalanche Alley run these lines only hold decent snow at peak times of good seasons. You can only ski all the way into Lady Northcote Canyon in during exceptional years, or after a big low level dump.
There are many inviting lines off the eastern side of the Townsend North Spur.
On the western side of the spur there are also a few options which I’ve only observed from afar. Andrews identifies one run along the “Townsend West Spur” which follows the pronounced spur heading to the west. This area appears to offer some nicely gladed runs however, vertical metres are limited as they start around the 1800m mark (excluding the skiing you’ve done to get there from Alice Rawson Peak). Beyond this there is some great terrain but it’s aspect and elevation is likely to mean it only rarely has skiable cover.
Looking north of Alice Rawson Peak along the Townsend north spur (right of shot). The amount of vertical skiing looks limited but it is approximately 400m vertical down to the tree line from where this shot photo was taken.
I am yet to venture that far along the north spur. The runs closer to Alice Rawson Peak provide more sustained fall line and are easier to access so I’ve stuck to those. The lines further north are really for the die hards that want to tick all the boxes.
Mt Townsend West Face
In a case of ‘out of sight – out of mind’ I’ve overlooked the west faces of Mt Townsend in the past. It is very difficult to see what’s on offer on the western side of Townsend without actually skiing over there. Even when you’re on the top of Townsend and Alice Rawson you don’t get a true impression of the skiing available below (see the photo and caption above). Clear lines appear limited and the runs appear short. In reality these observations are not correct. I think it must be something to do with a lack of objects below to provide scale but there’s a good 400-500 vertical metres of skiing above the tree line and a few terrain features that offer consistent fall line.
The western faces of Townsend are not as steep as slopes in other areas of the Main Range (ie. the Crags, Sentinel, Twynam West Spur etc..) but they are enjoyable non the less. Some quick calculations from the topo suggests runs of around 1.5 km’s long with average grades of around 20-25 degrees. Nice cruisy intermediate level slopes. As with most other areas on the Main Range drainage features appear to provide the best lines. The west facing slopes get the afternoon sun and are exposed to wind so they are probably best skied on a corn snow day.
The Western Faces of Mt Townsend viewed from Scammel's Spur Lookout during the 2006 season. In the better parts of a typical season the snow cover would extend well below the tree line (approx. 1700m), providing 500 vertical metres of nicely graded skiing.
A side on view of the western faces of Mt Townsend from Watson's Crags. This angle shows the relatively gentle grade, wide open space and huge amounts of vertical that are available on Townsends western slopes.
Mt Townsend South
Unlike other aspects of Mt Townsend the south side drains onto the large flat plateau that surround Mt Kosciuszko so vertical metres and steep grades are pretty much absent. In most years a large corniced wind drift forms on the south east face of Mt Townsend. This feature offers around 100 vertical metres of steep skiing. Below that point the slopes become very gentle. They do offer some very relaxed skiing along Wilkinson’s Creek. A good spot for beginners.
The South East facing slopes of Mt Townsend viewed from The Ramshead Range.
Spring Skiing on the south east face of Mt Townsend. Beside the steep corniced area near along the ridgeline the skiing is very tame.