Mt Bogong day walk on Grand Final day

[GazmanfromMelbourne]

Hi

Would a day walk in boots up the Staircase Spur this Saturday be possible? I would be happy with a shortened walk if say the summit is covered in deep snow.

All input welcome.

Thanks

[Xplora]

If the forecast holds true then there will be a good dump of fresh snow Thursday and Friday. Snow is down to 1000m so on top will get much more. This is more of a problem than old snow which has been packed down for the season. If you are in the area then you could see how far you get but I would not drive a long way for it.

[andrewa]

Looks like there'll be plenty of fresh snow this weekend, which makes walking a PITA. You might get up to Bivouac Hut, but if you want to go higher, I'd take snow shoes, or skis.

[benjabimon]

I went up Eskdale Spur early September, and up that way we didn't see much snow at the start of the track (which is around 1000m I think). There wasn't any snow patches until around the 1500m mark I reckon, so there must have been a bit of snow dumped up there since then.

http://www.mountain-forecast.com/peaks/Mount-Bogong/forecasts/1986 The forecast looks good, I'm tempted to go myself, hahaha. If the weather doesn't change too much it looks like Sunday would be the best day to go up.

Have fun

[neilmny]

I went up Eskdale Spur early September, and up that way we didn't see much snow at the start of the track (which is around 1000m I think). There wasn't any snow patches until around the 1500m mark I reckon, so there must have been a bit of snow dumped up there since then.

http://www.mountain-forecast.com/peaks/Mount-Bogong/forecasts/1986 The forecast looks good, I'm tempted to go myself, hahaha. If the weather doesn't change too much it looks like Sunday would be the best day to go up.

Have fun

Err.. ..1000m looks pretty wet but ok snow wise but 1986 is looking like a 103cm by midnight Friday and another 4cm Saturday and more to come Sunday.

[Xplora]

The forecasts have been wrong. I will look out my window tomorrow. I can see 1700m if it is clear.

[neilmny]

The forecasts have been wrong. I will look out my window tomorrow. I can see 1700m if it is clear.

You must live in a fantastic spot Xplora.

[Xplora]

Yes Neil, we live in adventure paradise with the ANP as our boundary. Summer or winter we can be on the High Plains in half an hour and we have some of the best trout streams in Vic at our doorstep literally. Well not that literal. Not bad also if you paddle. The only thing I miss are the Blue Mtns canyons but that is just a trip. So far this is just a rain event but the cold air mass has not hit (just hitting Adelaide now). The rain is constant but not heavy but it will still melt snow. Falls is 3 degrees which means rain. I think some snow will form when the cold air comes later today (Thurs) but there will be a net loss. My thoughts are there will not be much snow in it but the weather will be ordinary. That is what it is like this time of year. Hard to predict what will actually happen and you have to be prepared to change your plans. I could be wrong and it could really dump. At this stage I would think if you have sufficient waterproof clothing and your boots are as well then there is a good chance to make the summit. There may be a slight freeze overnight Friday but that should be soft by the time you made it from Mountain creek. This snow cam http://ski.com.au/snowcams/australia/vi ... wood1.html gives you a pretty good idea of what is happening up there and how much snow they get. Just make sure you check the time at the bottom as it may have been yesterday's shot.

[paidal_chalne_vala]

We were up at Falls Ck. on Sat. and there is a lot of wet deep snow out there. Much more than there was this time last year for sure . The weather is the challenge. October is just cranky in terms of mountain weather in the Australian alps. If you have to pull the pin on your trip half way then that is the safest thing to do . That's what we had to do on Sat. The weather was dangerously bad on Sat. 1/10/16 above the tree line near the Ruined Castle.

Last edited by paidal_chalne_vala on Sun 09 Oct, 2016 1:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[GazmanfromMelbourne]

Thanks everyone for your input.

We went up Mt Bogong on Sat 1 Oct 2016. All eight made it to Bivouvac Hut which was about 500m above the snowline. Five of the group continued on to the treeline in calf-deep snow. Visibility was about 100m so the group turned around at the treeline. We all enjoyed the walk and will return over summer to bag the summit when views are to be had.

[Xplora]

Excellent. Glad to hear you had an enjoyable and safe trip. The weather can be the hardest challenge.