Letter from Australia is our weekly newsletter from our Australian bureau. Sign up Get it by email. This week’s edition was written by Melbourne-based journalist Julia Bergin.
A lone ski lift operator stood with his hands clenched, looking up the hill at four children running up and down a 50-meter makeshift sled slope.
There was no snow underfoot. To his right were two trash cans and a sign that read “Lift Open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.” To his left were empty cable cars going up and down the mountain. Behind him, cones, ropes and metal barricades outlined the cable car route, but there was hardly a soul in sight.
That was the scene at Falls Creek, one of Australia’s largest ski resorts, which kicked off the official opening of the national snow season last Friday. Similar conditions were reported at ski resorts in Victoria and New South Wales, the two states where most of Australia’s winter sports take place.
The snowpack, which was generally chilly with a thin ribbon of artificial snow, was replaced by a long weekend of sunshine, wind, fog and downpours that turned to snow this week as temperatures dropped across the Alps.
Wild swings in weather conditions are not uncommon during Australia’s winter, but with global warming, conditions are becoming more volatile.
For Carol Binder, a local business owner who has covered snow conditions at ski resorts for 20 years, this year’s weather has been “noticeably dry and warm” — with low rivers, dusty driveways and snow forecasts going from unpredictable to extremely unpredictable.
“This is Australia, which means it’s pouring — you could get snow, a few flurries or a big snowfall, you just don’t know,” Ms Binder said as the rain poured down outside the guesthouse she runs in Mount Beauty, a small town about 40 minutes’ drive northwest of Falls Creek.
With the constant fear of soaring temperatures and rain washing away weeks of accumulated snow in an instant, people often make last-minute decisions about whether to go skiing in Australia based on weather conditions.
From a business perspective, Ms Binder said it was difficult to keep up with Australia’s sporadic snowfall and spontaneous customers. She said whether in the accommodation, mountain services or hospitality venue markets, it was a large temporary labour market and ensuring workplaces were properly staffed was a constant battle.
For example, Victoria Police last week set up a breathalyser station halfway up a mountain in response to a crowd that never showed up.
Snow or no snow, Australian resorts switch into winter mode at the start of the official season, which means staff are on call and fees start to apply. A day trip to Falls Creek Resort costs 64 Australian dollars, or about 42 U.S. dollars. Drivers must carry snow chains. Lift tickets are extra, and at some resorts, parking is also charged.
Australia’s snow season lasts 17 weeks and Ms Binder said she is prepared for whatever snow falls and whoever comes. Whether her clients are avid snowboarders chasing “potential powder”, families, beginners planning their trips months in advance and taking advantage of available snow, or bus groups and retirees coming to see the flowers, she is optimistic about the 2024 season.
The good news came on Tuesday. Up to 30 centimetres (about a foot) of snow fell in the mountains of Victoria and New South Wales. Group chats were exchanged and ski trip plans were made. Just like that, the ski season had begun.
Here are this week’s stories.
