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Alpine National Park

Wilderness and the Snowy- around Benambra, Buchan and BonangIn the heart of the Australian Alps, this is one of Victoria’s largest and most remote areas

of national park. The rugged landscape features the magnificent Snowy River and Suggan

Buggan Valleys, the headwaters of the Murray River and spectacular peaks including the

Cobberas (No.1 1838 m) and Mount Tingaringy (1448 m).

Getting there and getting aroundThe Alpine National Park here adjoins Kosciuszko National Park along its northern boundary and the Snowy River National Park to the south.

The park is between 440 and 500 km north-east of Melbourne. The main access roads are all unsealed, narrow and winding and generally unsuitable for caravans.

The Snowy River Road accesses the Snowy River at Willis on the state border. This road becomes the Barry Way across the border and passes through Kosciuszko National Park en route to Jindabyne. The Bonang Road from Orbost is an alternative approach, McKillop Road branches from it a few kilometres south of Bonang.

The Limestone - Black Mountain Road crosses the central part of the park and links Benambra to the Snowy River Road. This road is often closed in winter as a result of heavy snowfalls.

Car touringAlthough unsealed, narrow and winding in places, the Buchan - Jindabyne, McKillop and Limestone - Black Mountain Roads are suitable for scenic driving in a conventional 2WD car.

There are also numerous tracks suitable only for 4WD vehicles. A few millimetres of rain can turn a track into one that is treacherous and impassable- even for the most experienced

driver. Please remember:

• check road conditions and river crossing levels before starting out

• vehicle access is limited to formed roads and tracks open to the public

• many roads and tracks are closed seasonally for environmental and safety reasons

WalkingThis area of the Alpine National Park has a great deal to offer adventurous, fit and experienced bushwalkers.

Management tracks (shown on the reference maps listed overleaf) are suitable for easy and medium walks and serve as approaches to the principal features of the park.

Other walks include:

• Rams Horn Walk

• Mt Stradbroke Walk

• Mt Tingaringy Walk

• Tingaringy Falls Walk

The long distance Australian Alps Walking Track (AAWT) passes through the area on its 650 km route between Walhalla (Gippsland, Vic.) and Tharwa (near Canberra, ACT).

This ‘track’, which at times is barely a foot pad, passes through the remote, untracked Limestone Creek country into the Cobberas Wilderness, eventually entering the Pilot Wilderness (Kosciuszko National Park) at Cowombat Flat.

Bushwalking along the AAWT in this area is only for experienced walkers with navigation and self sufficiency skills. There are no signs or track markers within wilderness areas.

The wilderness experienceWilderness areas have been set aside to provide opportunities for solitude and self reliant recreation activities including bushwalking, canoeing, dispersed camping, nature studies and photography.

There are four wilderness areas in this part of the Alpine National Park. They are Indi, Cobberas, Tingaringy and Buchan Headwaters (see map).

For more information call the Parks Victoria Information Centre on 13 1963 or visit our website at www.parks.vic.gov.au

For further informationParks Victoria

Information CentreCall 13 1963

or visit our website at www.parks.vic.gov.au

Parks Victoria Offices at Buchan, Bendoc and

OmeoPhone 13 1963

Caring for the

environmentHelp us look after your park

by following these guidelines:

All native plants, animals archaeological and historical

sites are protected by law

Take your rubbish home. ‘Carry out what you carry

in’

Dogs and other pets are notpermitted

Use a portable stove instead of lighting a fire - especially above or near

the tree line

Firearms, generators and chainsaws are

prohibited

Choose a firm, dry, well drained campsite at least 20

metres from any watercourse

Use of vehicles, including trail bikes, is restricted to

existing roads and tracks. Vehicles must be fully

registered anddrivers licensed

Always check fire danger forecasts. No fires (including stoves) on days of Total Fire

Ban.

This park is located in the East Gippsland Total Fire

BanDistricts

Do not pollute waterways with refuse, detergent or human

waste. Use existing toilets or bury your waste at least 100

metres from any waterway or

campsite

Enjoy a visit to a hut but donot use them

for accommodation. Always carry

a tent

Please don’t throw this park note away. Keep it, return it for others to use, or recycle

it

Healthy Parks Healthy People

Visiting a park can improve your health, mind, body and soul. So, with over four million hectares of

parkland available to Victorians, why not escapeto a park today!

During 1839 - 1841, explorer Angus McMillan travelled from Currawong, NSW, south along the Snowy River and to the Murray on his way to Port Albert in South Gippsland. The Government botanist, Baron Ferdinand von Mueller, also explored much of this area during his journeys in 1853 and 1854 to Mount Kosciuszko and along the Murray River to East Gippsland.

In 1869 - 1872 the straight-line border between NSW and Victoria was surveyed, mapped and marked on the ground by Alexander Black and Alexander Allan. Black surveyed the headwaters of the Murray River to locate its source nearest to Cape Howe. A series of cairns and associated trenches marking the border can still be seen today.

Plants and animalsThe park is of great importance for nature conservation because it is relatively undisturbed. It contains a wide variety of vegetation types, including the habitat for several rare plant and animal species.

Vegetation ranges from Snow Gum woodlands and Alpine Ash forest at higher elevations to Cypress-pine and White Box woodlands in the much lower warm, dry country of the Snowy River and Suggan Buggan Valleys.

Brush-tailed Rock Wallabies inhabit rock faces with large tumbled boulders, ledges and caves. In the early 1900s, these wallabies were abundant in the Upper Snowy River area. However, they suffered a rapid population decline around 1910. This decline was attributed to unrestricted hunting and an increase in the numbers of foxes and wild dogs. Only a small number of colonies remain since the decline.

They are considered critically endangered in Victoria due to the extremely low numbers within the remaining population and their susceptibility to a range of threats.

Parks Victoria and the Department of Sustainability and Environment are carrying out extensive monitoring and predator baiting aroundthe colony to maximise long term prospects for the existing wild population.

The future recovery of the species across its former range is also dependent on a successful captive breeding program which includes the cross fostering of pouch young with other species of wallabies to increase the reproductive potentialof the Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby. These programs occur at several institutions including Healesville Sanctuary, Adelaide Zoo and Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve whose facilities have been rebuilt following the 2003 Alpine wildfires across Victoria, NSW and ACT.

At the time of European settlement, Spot-tailed Quoll or Tiger Quoll as it is also referred to, were found throughout southern and eastern Victoria. Since then forest clearing, hunting and habitat disturbance have greatly reduced the abundance and distribution of the Quoll.

Other significant species such as the Alpine Water Skink and the Broad-toothed Rat also rely upon the protection of the habitat in this part of the Alpine National Park.

Other publications

For more details and extensive coverage of the Alpine National Park see the following maps and publications:

MapsSpatial Vision Touring the Victorian Alps Map 1:140,000

VicMap 1:50,000 Omeo - Bindi, Deception - Deddick, Delegate and Murrindal - Yalmy

CMA 1:50,000 Suggan Buggan, Kosciuszko, Tombong and Thredbo

Natmap 1:100,000 Murrindal, Bendoc, Numbla and Jacobs River

Alpine National Park park notesOur Mountain Heritage- around Heyfield, Licola and Dargo

Valleys and Bluffs- around Mansfield & Whitfield

The High Country- around Bright, Mt Beauty and Omeo

Source of the Rivers- around Mitta Mitta, Omeo, Tallangatta and

Corryong

Horseriding in the Alpine National Park

BooksThe Australian Alps Walking Track and Alpine National Park by John Siseman (Pindari Publications)

Victoria’s National Park Explorer’s Guide (See Australia Guides)

Explore the Australia Alps - Car touring guide to the Australian Alps national parks by Australia Alps Liaison Committee (New Holland Press)

August 2012 Printed on Australian-made 100% recycled paper

The wilderness experienceThese wilderness areas protect large and essentially untouched areas containing significant plant and animal communities and a variety of geological formations.

People visiting wilderness areas need a level of self reliance far exceeding that required for most other natural areas.

Horseriding and vehicles, (including motor and mountain bikes), are not permitted in wilderness areas. All tracks in wilderness areas are closed to public vehicles.

Rafting and canoeingThe Snowy River is renowned for its challenging white- water canoeing and rafting. Consult canoeing guidebooks and park staff when planning your trip, and check river flow levels and weather close to your date of departure. The safe level for the Snowy River (at McKillop Bridge) is between 0.9m and 1.6m. River levels, normally quite low in summer, can rise suddenly after heavy rain over the catchment. Please register trip details at the Buchan Police Station.

Follow the Australian Alps River Users Code (available at the Buchan and Omeo park offices). River heights information can be obtained from the Bureau of Meteorology website www.bom.gov.au

On horsebackThe area is excellent for horseriding in remote country. Keep to the tracks where possible, and ensure that your horses are secure at night.

The Bicentennial National Trail, a long distance national trial designed primarily for horseriding, passes through the area on its journey from Cooktown in Queensland to Healesville in Victoria.

Look for the red and yellow triangular markers around Limestone Creek and Tom Groggin. Bicentennial National Trail Guidebooks are available. Guidebooks 11 and 12 covers Victoria and the Alpine National Park.

Chances are you will see feral horses. Treat stallions with caution. Contact the rangers at Omeo to register your trip.

Setting up campDispersed bush camping is permitted throughout the area but there are several sites where basic facilities such as a pit toilet and fireplace are provided:

• McKillop Bridge beside the Snowy River on McKillop Road.

• Willis on the Barry Way (NSW/Vic. border)

• Native Dog Flat (Limestone-Black Mountain Road)

• Limestone Creek (rough 2WD, 4WD when wet)Other vehicle based (4WD only) dispersed campsites with toilet and camping facilities include The Poplars and the Davies Plain area.

Take care!All visitors, and especially walkers, should realise that weather conditions can change rapidly in alpine areas.

Snowfalls can be experienced at any time of the year and water can be extremely scarce, so always be prepared with:

• w arm clothing

• w ind and waterproof jacket

• gloves, hat, sunglasses and strong footwear

• first aid kit and sunscreen

• compass and relevant topographical map

Before you go, let someone know where you are going, and when you expect to return. Also, please keep your group small (4 - 8 people).

Tour guidesA number of licenced tour operators run tours (four wheel driving, nature rambles, bushwalking, horseriding and rafting) in this area.

Contact Tourism Alliance Victoria for details on(03) 9650 8399 or visit their website www.tourismalliance.com.au

Fire in the AlpsDuring the summer of 2006 a number of fires swept through the Australian Alps. As a result some roads and tracks have been closed in the interest of public safety. To assist with regeneration please keep to tracks and trails, especially in fire affected areas.

Reflections on the pastAboriginal presence in the area can be traced back at least 4000 years. It is believed that the Jaithmathang were the largest tribe, inhabiting large areas of the north eastern Alps including the Mitta Mitta and Gibbo Rivers. Sub tribes of the Jaithmathang were the Kandagora- mittung, who occupied the Mitta Mitta area.

The tribes lived at lower altitudes for most of the year, but visited the high plateaus during spring and summer. Limestone Creek may have been part of a trans- montane route used by Aboriginals of the Monaro Tablelands and Gippsland. The Krauatungalung clan of the Gunai/Kurnai tribe also passed through the northeast of this area en route to the Snowy Mountains in summer.

European history in this area of the Alpine National Park can be traced back to the 1830s when the search for new grazing land led McKillop, McFarlane and Livingstone from the Monaro Tablelands in New South Wales to the Omeo Plains.

One of the earliest runs in northeast Victoria was established by James McFarlane at McFarlane Flat in 1835. In 1837 John Pendergast settled in the Lake Omeo area and later his sons took up runs at Tom Groggin, Limestone Creek, Native Dog Flat and McFarlane Flat.