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| Australian Alps Walking Track | |
|---|---|
| Name | Australian Alps Walking Track |
| Location | Australia |
| Established | 1972 |
| Length | ~655 km |
| Trailheads | Walhalla; Tharwa |
| Use | Hiking |
| Difficulty | Moderate to very difficult |
| Season | Summer to autumn (variable) |
Australian Alps Walking Track is a long-distance hiking trail traversing alpine and subalpine country across Victoria, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. The corridor links historic mining towns, national parks and wilderness areas, offering extended access to peaks, high plains and river headwaters. The track is used for multi-week treks, scientific fieldwork and conservation-oriented recreation.
The route stretches roughly from Walhalla in Victoria through the Victorian Alps and Alpine National Park into the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, passing through the Kosciuszko National Park and terminating near the Canberra region adjacent to Namadgi National Park and Australian Capital Territory. Key sections include the Howqua River and Hotham Heights approaches, crossing the Great Dividing Range and linking to the Mt Hotham to Falls Creek corridors, the Cobungra River valley, and the Victorian High Country saddles that reach the Razorback and Mt Feathertop. In New South Wales the track follows ridgelines near Mt Kosciuszko, Charlotte Pass, Perisher Valley, Blue Lake, Targangal (Mt Townsend), and the Snowy River headwaters. The ACT segment approaches Namadgi from the west, interacting with the Cotter River catchment, Brindabella Range spurs and the historic Gordon catchment. The trail connects to side routes and huts such as the WWII Granite Flat hut, Daveys Hut, and historic stock routes leading to Mitta Mitta and Eucumbene River junctions.
Early Indigenous presence in the region included seasonal movement by peoples such as the Monaro and Taungurung groups across the high plains, with trade routes linking to the Snowy Mountains Scheme catchments prior to European exploration. European interest in the high country grew with the Victorian gold rush towns like Walhalla and the livestock grazing industry around Kosciuszko and Kiandra during the 19th century. The modern walking track concept emerged from conservation and bushwalking advocacy by organisations including the Federation of Australian Walking Clubs, the Australian Conservation Foundation, and state-based bushwalker clubs such as the Federation of Victorian Walking Clubs in the 1960s and 1970s. Planning and alignment were influenced by park managers at the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NSW), Parks Victoria, and the ACT Government as the corridor passed through multiple jurisdictions. The route was progressively formalised with signage, maps and guidebooks published by authors associated with the Australian Alps Liaison Committee and organisations like the Federation of Bushwalkers before contemporary digital navigation by groups such as Bushwalking Australia and mapping by Geoscience Australia.
The track traverses the highest catchments of the Murray River and Murrumbidgee River within the Great Dividing Range, crossing glacially influenced cirques, tarns and moraines near Kosciuszko and reaching alpine plateaus such as the Bogong High Plains. Geomorphic features include the granite domes of Mount Buffalo, the schist outcrops of Feathertop, and glacial lakes like Blue Lake and Club Lake. Climate gradients are sharp: maritime cold fronts from the Tasman Sea produce heavy snowfall on the Snowy Mountains and orographic rainfall across the Victorian Alps and Brindabella Range. Soils range from skeletal alpine loams to peat swamps on the alpine sphagnum bogs and rich alluvial flats in valley bottoms near Lower Snowy River tributaries. The corridor lies within several bioregions recognised by the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment and features internationally significant hydrological linkages utilised by the Snowy Mountains Scheme infrastructure.
Alpine and subalpine vegetation communities include snowgum woodlands dominated by Eucalyptus pauciflora on ridgelines, montane ash forests of Eucalyptus delegatensis in higher rainfall gullies, and herbfields and feldmark on exposed plateaus. Peat-forming sphagnum bogs host specialised bryophytes and alpine daisies recorded by researchers from CSIRO and the Australian National University. Fauna includes endemic and threatened species such as the alpine specialist Corroboree frog found in sphagnum wetlands, the montane macropod Mountain pygmy-possum recorded near boulder fields, and the arboreal Leadbeater's possum remnants in montane ash stands. Avifauna observed along the route includes Alpine Parrot populations, Gang-gang cockatoo movements into subalpine woodlands, and raptors like the Wedge-tailed eagle hunting across valleys. Introduced species and grazing history have affected native assemblages; pest species monitored by park authorities include European rabbit and Red fox, with control programs by entities such as the Invasive Species Council.
Access points include trailheads at historic towns such as Walhalla and access via sealed roads to Mt Hotham and Charlotte Pass with seasonal vehicle restrictions enforced by VicRoads and Transport for NSW. Hikers rely on topographic maps from Geoscience Australia and navigation aids such as the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation datasets and commercial guidebooks by publishers like Outdoor Press and clubs such as the Bushwalking Victoria. Water sources are variable; alpine winter snowfields require knowledge of snowcraft and crevasse-free navigation unlike the creeks draining the Eucumbene River catchment. Search and rescue incidents are managed by volunteer and statutory services including Victoria State Emergency Service, NSW Police Rescue, ACT Ambulance Service, and volunteer organisations like the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard in lower catchments. Permit regimes, camping restrictions and fire bans are governed by Parks Victoria, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and the ACT Government, with safety briefings advocated by the Royal Life Saving Society Australia and local alpine search-and-rescue groups.
Recreational use balances multi-day trekking, day walks, ski touring and scientific monitoring. Management involves coordination between the Australian Alps Liaison Committee, state and territory park agencies including Parks Victoria, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, and ACT Parks and Conservation Service. Conservation initiatives include alpine restoration projects led by the Australian Alps National Parks Cooperative Management Program and threatened species recovery plans funded through the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment and collaboration with universities such as the University of Melbourne and Australian National University for adaptive management research. Fire management strategies draw on historical records from the Black Summer bushfires response and integrate prescribed burning and fuel-reduction planning with input from Indigenous organisations like the Alpine Peoples Council for cultural burning techniques. Volunteer groups, bushwalking clubs and ranger programs contribute to track maintenance, hut restoration and visitor education to sustain both recreational access and conservation outcomes.
Category:Hiking trails in Australia Category:Alpine National Park Category:Kosciuszko National Park