Main Range Walk
Fast facts
- Inspirational one-day walk along the roof of Australia
- Circuit walk from Charlotte Pass, Snowy Mountains
- 21.5 km
Why walk it
This is one of the most inspiring one-day walks in the country, a stroll traversing the UNESCO Kosciuszko Biosphere Reserve, through the headwaters of some of Australia’s greatest rivers and to the very top of the continent.
Starting from the snow gums at Charlotte Pass, the trail dives down to cross the Snowy River and then climbs the other side of the valley through wildflower meadows, past glacial lakes and over Carruthers Peak to the ultimate conquest of Australia's highest peak, Mt Kosciuszko.
Total climbing distance for the walk is 633 metres, well within the ability of an average walker, but you’ll need food and water and protective clothing in case the weather changes. This is only one of the many sensational walking trails within the state’s largest national park.
Backpack camping is permitted virtually anywhere in the park but you should camp out of sight of the walking track and well away from watercourses. As well as a tent, you’ll need a fuel stove, since campfires are not permitted.
Along the way
- Be Australia’s top individual at the summit cairn on Mt Kosciuszko – with photographic evidence.
- Slip your boots off and enjoy a picnic on the grassy knoll just below Kosciuszko’s peak.
- Take along a wildflower book to help identify plant species.
- Admire the scenery from the 2,050 m saddle between Carruthers Peak and Mt Twynam, looking towards Mt Sentinel and Watsons Crags to forested ridges that retreat in a distant blue haze.
Don’t miss
- Seamans Hut, built in 1929 to remember two men killed in a blizzard.
- The colourful, weathered granite boulders.
- The view across alpine meadows to Blue Lake.
- Post-walk hot soak at an alpine resort in Jindabyne.
- Trout fishing in the alpine streams or lakes.
