|
Located in north east Victoria stunning
natural beauty abounds in Victoria's Alpine High
Country year round with alpine peaks, bubbling mountain
streams, picturesque gardens and pristine bushland.
The region’s towns and villages offer fine
wines and gourmet delights, lively festivals, and
a fascinating heritage of bushrangers, cattlemen
and gold.
Victoria's largest national park the
Alpine National Park, covering 646 000 hectares is
located in this region.
The High Country is famous for its
historic towns, bushrangers and legends of mountain
cattlemen made famous world wide in "The Man
from Snowy River".
The mountain resorts of Mount Buller,
Mount Hotham, Mount Buffalo and Falls Creek become
a snow sports playground during winter. Activities
include:
- skiing
- snowboarding
- cross country skiing
- snow shoe adventures
When the snow thaws discover Victoria’s
alpine regions, snow gum woodlands, historic cattlemen’s
huts, alpine wildflowers and the Bogong High Plains.
The high country is popular for a wide range of outdoor
activities including:
- four-wheel driving,
- mountain biking,
- horse riding,
- fishing,
- golf,
- tennis,
- hang gliding & hot air ballooning,
- rock climbing & abseiling,
- canoeing, kayaking & white water
rafting
- boating & sailing
- waterskiing & wakeboarding
- hiking on the high plains.
The valleys of the high country are
acclaimed for local wineries. Enjoy the delicious
local produce on offer at the numerous historic towns
and villages, many of which were built during the
gold rush of the 1800s.
The Great Alpine Road, one of Australia’s
great touring routes. It winds through the high country
region revealing stunning alpine landscapes, historical
towns, and local food and wine.
Whilst touring the High Country, choose from a wide range of award-winning
country bakeries, wineries, gourmet food producers, cosmopolitan cafes, restaurants,
fresh produce and fine food outlets.
Enjoy a cheese platter at the renowned
Milawa Cheese Factory or a food and wine experience
at the Epicurean Centre at Brown Brothers Vineyard.
The local produce which includes meats,
game, cheese, fresh fruits, berries, nuts, local
honey, jams, sauces and preserves. Enjoy freshwater
fish and crustaceans that are bred in the King, Ovens
and Murray rivers, including trout, chinook salmon,
Murray cod, yellow perch and yabbies.
In the Milawa area in the King Valley,
discover handmade cheeses and mustards. Road side
stalls sell apples, chestnuts, mushrooms, asparagus
and berries when in season.
Wineries
The Alpine Valleys have been growing grapes since the late 1800's. The valleys
are now becoming widely recognised for the quality of their wine.
This is a true cool climate region,
so Chardonnay and Pinot Noir produce wines with great
depth of flavour from a long growing season. You
will also find impressive Pinot Gris, Riesling, Sauvignon
Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot.
Barnawartha
Barnawartha is a small, historic village,
which is nestled in a scenic valley. Located just
off the Hume Highway, the main highway between Chiltern
and Wodonga in north-eastern Victoria, Barnawartha
is the ideal stop over to break the long drive from
Sydney to Melbourne. Read
More
Bogong Village
Established in 1940, Bogong Village is located between Mt Beauty and Falls
Creek. It is hidden in a quite valley surrounded by magnificent gardens. Located
on the edge of Lake Guy, canoeing, fishing and swimming are favourite summer
sports.
Bright
Bright is famous for its avenues of 70 year old deciduous trees including oaks,
elms, poplars and Japanese maples. The town is also known for the Bright
Autumn Festival, Springtime in Bright Festival, food and wine, fishing, canoeing,
rafting, cycling, bushwalking, 4WD, hang gliding, paragliding. Read
More
Dinner Plain
Created in the 1980s all 250 of its homes, apartments and lodges reflect the
heritage of the early pioneer buildings in the Victorian High Country. Built
of stone, timber and corrugated iron each is designed to blend in beautifully
with the surrounding snow gums and the high plains landscape. Dinner Plain
is a year round resort with skiing and snow boarding in winter and fishing,
white water rafting and fishing in summer.
Falls Creek
The ski resort of Falls Creek was created largely by European workers on the
Kiewa Hydro-electricity scheme, who quickly realised that the area was ideal
for skiing. Falls Creek is a year-round destination, with downhill and cross
country skiing and snowboarding in winter, and bushwalking,mountain biking,
fishing, windsurfing and boating in summer. Read
More
Harrietville
The last town before Mt Hotham, Harrietville is an old gold mining town settled
in 1852. Harrietville is the ideal base for mountain activities including
bike riding, bush walking, high country hiking, 4X4 driving, cross country
skiing, alpine skiing, snowboarding and fishing. Harrietville is also home
to an excellent trout farm and lavender farm. Read
More
Mansfield
Mansfield is also a major horse riding
area. Its association with horse riding stems from
the early cattlemen who use to drive their herds
up to the high mountain pastures. Mansfield also
services the local snowfields of Mount Buller
and is a popular base for mountain biking, rock
climbing, fly fishing and bushwalking. Read
More
Merrijig
A small picturesque town located between Mansfield and Mount Buller ski resort.
Merrijig's close proximity to Mount Buller makes it an ideal base for skiers
and snowboards in winter and for fishing and water sports at Lake Eildon
and the Delatite River in summer. Read More
Mt Beauty
Mt Beauty sits at the base of Victoria's highest mountain, Mt Bogong (1987m).
This beautiful town was planned and created by the State Electricity Commission
in the late 1940s, and was originally home to the workers who built the Kiewa
Hydro-electricity Scheme. Mt Beauty is the perfect base for cycling, bushwalking
and gliding, swimming, boating and fishing. Mt Beauty is the home of mountain
biking in Victoria and hosts downhill and cross-country races.
Mt Buffalo
Proclaimed a national park in 1898, it is renowned for its magnificent granite
tors, spectacular valley views and waterfalls. Mt Buffalo Gorge is breathtaking.
Read More
Mt Hotham
Mt Hotham is Australia's highest alpine resort. It is one of Australia’s
most famous ski touring routes and takes you 18km along the Razorback route
to Mt Feathertop. More than 20 cafes and restaurants are dotted around the
village, serving everything from cakes and café latte to superb a la
carte dinners. Mt Hotham offers year-round activities.
Myrtleford
Myrtleford has a dramatic backdrop of Mt Buffalo and is situated on the beautiful
Ovens River. Myrtleford is situated at the gateway to the alpine resorts
and Alpine High Country.
Omeo
Omeo was one of Australia’s most infamous towns during the gold rush
of the mid 1800s. It is a base for white water rafting, fishing, 4WD tours,
mountain biking, horse treks and skiing.
Ovens and Happy Valley
A popular stop-over for travellers for almost 150 years, Ovens still boasts
its landmark hotel of 1854. A state forest creates a beautiful backdrop as
you drive to Happy Valley. Explore a lavender farm, an olive grove, wineries
and orchards. For garden lovers spring and autumn are an ideal time to visit
this area.
Porepunkah
Porepunkah is a small village located
on the Great Alpine Road, right at the foot of Mt
Buffalo. Porepunkah offers the perfect holiday
base to enjoy the Mt Buffalo National Park, the peaceful
Buckland Valley, and trout fishing in the Oven and
Buckland rivers. With its close proximity to Bright,
Porepunkah can offer easy access to the ski fields
of Falls Creek and
Hotham, and the beautiful gardens in the Bright area. Read
More
Wodonga
Wodonga lies along the southern side
the great Murray River on
the Hume Highway, which connects Sydney to Melbourne.
Wodonga is the ideal destination for water skiing,
jet skiing, canoeing, kayaking and paddle steamer
trips of the Murray River. Read
More
The High Country is home to 13 national
and state parks including the largest National Park
the Alpine National Park, and Victoria’s oldest
park, Mount Buffalo National Park. The Alpine National
Park boasts 10 of the state’s 11 highest mountains.
The local wildlife ranges from mobs
of kangaroos to the rare mountain pygmy possum. Other
wildlife includes lyrebirds, wallabies, wombats and
possums, as well as Horn ravens, Bogong moths and
peregrine falcons, brilliant crimson rosella.
The high country offers spectacular
views across the lowlands, and transforms itself
from pristine white in winter to a carpet of alpine
wildflowers in summer. It is dotted with rustic cattlemen’s
huts that are still used. Mountain streams wind their
way from mountain tops to the wide valley rivers
and the vast lakes.
The high country is home to more than
1100 native plant species, 12 of which (including
the Bogong daisy bush and silky daisy) are found
nowhere else in the world, alpine ash forests, snow
gum woodlands, heathlands, alpine herb fields, grasslands
and moss beds.
Other parks in the region contain
original Box Ironbark forests and many historic sites
that reveal the region's gold rush and early pioneering
past.
Albury's Wonga Wetlands comprise seven
lagoons covering about 80 hectares on the Murray
River flood plain. There are plenty of bird hides
and viewing points to see over 130 bird species living
in and using the wetlands.
AUTUMN
In Autumn the air turns crisp, the huge trees shading shimmer with gold and
copper autumn leaves. Average valley temperature 20C (expect 5-10 degrees
cooler for alpine areas)
WINTER
In Winter, skiers and snowboarders head for the alps as the snow creates a
magical winter playground. Average valley temperature 12C (expect 5-10 degrees
cooler for alpine areas)
SPRING
In Spring, melting snow swells the mountain rivers, creating the perfect environment
for white water rafters, canoeists and kayakers. Average valley temperature
19C (expect 5-10 degrees cooler for alpine areas)
SUMMER
In summer enjoy a walk across a carpet of alpine wildflowers. Average valley
temperature 28C (expect 5-10 degrees cooler for alpine areas)
By Car
The High Country region is easily accessible from both Melbourne and Sydney
via the Hume Highway, which passes through Benalla, Glenrowan, Wangaratta
and Albury Wodonga.
From the Hume Highway at Wangaratta,
the Great Alpine Road heads through the Ovens Valley,
past Mount Buffalo and across the Great Dividing
Range. Snow chains must be carried when going up
the mountains during the snow season.
By Air
Albury Airport is located 10 minutes from the centre of Albury and 15 minutes
from Wodonga. Daily flights to Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and other regional
centres operate here. Flights direct to Mount Hotham Airport from all capital
cities and major regional centres are also available.
Alpine Region Tourism http://www.thealpinehighcountry.info/
If you would like to display your business here,
click here to contact us.
|
