The Falls Creek Alpine Resort is an alpine ski resort located in the Hume region in northeastern Victoria, Australia. Situated in the Alpine National Park in the Victorian Alps, it is approximately 350 kilometres (220 miles) by road from Melbourne. The nearest town is Mount Beauty, which is approximately 30 km (20 mi) away.
Falls Creek Village. Source: Wikipedia
Location and Elevation
The resort lies between an elevation of 1,500 and 1,830 m (4,921 and 6,004 ft) above sea level. The highest lifted point is at 1,780 m (5,840 ft).
Skiing and Snowboarding
Falls Creek is beginner/intermediate friendly, with almost 80% of the resort dedicated to these types of skiers/snowboarders. However, Australia's notoriously fickle snow conditions ensure that snowmaking using the water from the nearby Rocky Valley Lake is sometimes, particularly early in the season, the main source of skiable snow.
Skiing at Falls Creek. Source: snow-online.com
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Accommodation and Amenities
The resort features 4500 accommodation beds, and consequently a large number of restaurants, bars and nightclubs to entertain guests at night.
Summer Activities
The resort also serves as a summer base to explore the national park surrounding the resort. Some of the cattlemen's huts still survive and are a tourist attraction in summer. Mount Bogong, Victoria's highest mountain, is nearby.
Falls Creek Alpine summer hiking
Hiking Trails at Falls Creek. Source: trailhiking.com.au
Accessibility
Falls Creek is accessible by the Bogong High Plains Road from Mount Beauty all year round, though like all of Australia's snow resorts snow chains must be carried during winter and fitted if directed.
History
After World War II, the Kiewa electrical scheme was started in the Kiewa River valley by the State Electricity Commission of Victoria. The high plains in the area were used for summer cattle grazing from 1851 until 2005, when the Government of Victoria did not renew grazing licences due to concerns about the cattle's impact on the fragile alpine environment.
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Climate
Falls Creek has a very cold Oceanic / Subpolar oceanic climate (Cfb / Cfc) under the −3 °C (27 °F) isotherm, or a Humid continental / Subarctic climate (Dfb / Dfc) under the 0 °C (32 °F) isotherm, with short, cool summers and cold, very snowy winters.
Here's a summary of the climate data for Falls Creek:
| Month | Average High (°C) | Average Low (°C) | Average Rainfall (mm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16.2 | 6.5 | 78.8 |
| April | 9.8 | 1.7 | 96.0 |
| July | 2.0 | -4.4 | 122.1 |
| October | 11.3 | 2.5 | 114.8 |
Recent Developments
In 2009, the Falls Creek resort plan proposed replacing the Gully triple chair with a gondola, having a capacity of 1800 passengers per hour and a speed of up to 6 metres per second. This proposal also made its appearance in the 2016 masterplan, but nothing has resulted as of yet. In 2021, Falls Creek invested AU$1.88 million into snowmaking machines. These new TechnoAlpin guns were placed along Wombats Ramble, Main Street and at the base of Drovers Dream. 2022 saw unusually large snowfalls in June, resulting in an established snowpack before the start of the ski season.
Notable People
- Steven Lee, Olympic and World Cup alpine skier.
- Britteny Cox (born 1994), Australian Mogul Skier and the youngest athlete to compete at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
- Scott James (born 1994), Australian Snowboarder, Australia's youngest male Olympian in 50 years and the youngest male competitor at the Vancouver Games.
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