Chunky's Snow trip diary

[chunky]

Well sort of anyway.

Had to work all day Friday and of course problems did not have me home until after 7pm so it was a late start getting the skipod onto the Prado and packing. Tried to sleep but couldn't - you know how it is - holidays and the adrenalin is going and you just want to go.

So we left Brissy at about 1.30am with our aim to get to Jindy in time for dinner. The worst bit was Warwick to Goondiwindi but only for the kangaroo's and their infatuaton with wanting to play frogger on the highway.

Had breakfast at Moree - they had this excellent park with a 15m high rocket and slides on it for the kids - the only reason we stopped there. Not much in Moree is exciting to me. Made a lunch break in Coonabaraban and then the long haul to Jindy, which we made by about 9.30pm.

Disappointing we couldn't get in earlier but we met some lovely people, who we would love to catch up with again when time permits. 1378km in about 17 and half hours with breaks for 4 kids and what ended up being a very very tiring drive. Done it plenty of times straight through before kids but was the first time with them and one I would not do again without the stopover somewhere. Leaving late without a nap wouldn't have helpd either.

Today was a lovely day but we were all pretty tired from the drive. We had a look around Jindy and also made a visit up to Wild Brumby and did sampled some lovely schnapps. Sour apple was my fav I think. The chilli one was not but it sure did clear up my cough!

Kaz, I think would be proud of me. Tonight I made a lovely melt off the bone lamb roast and am feeling quite comfy.

Tomorrow the plan is some snow play and maybe a ski with Jasper. Pics to come.

[Podlettte]

It was great to meet the Chunky's, and we all agreed, a shame about the timing!

Have a great trip

Hopefully on your return, though you'll be hell bent on getting home I'd imagine, and not in quite such a short time frame

:cheers:

[Azz]

Can't wait for the pics Chunky !!!!

See you soon.

[Xena]

Can't wait for the pics.

Have fun!

[chunky]

Yeah Pods, dammit we live so far away :(

[karen97]

Are you coming through Jindy on the way home?

[chunky]

Probably not :( Pods mentioned you are going to be down next weekend, when we have accomodation booked in DP. We leave DP the following Friday and I imagine we won't leave until late with the snow about and that will only give us 2 days to get back to Brissy. You should have organised back in March to have this weekend gone and today off ;)

[ 10. August 2009, 09:54 AM: Message edited by: chunky ]

[BlueHue]

Good to meet Chunky.

Hope the snow gods play nice with you at Dinner Plain.

[Polaris]

Hope you have a fantastic holiday Chunky but I can't let it slip without saying your trip down is just craziness!!!
17 hr drive after no sleep with 4 kids, even with 2 drivers is ........... um not sure what the right word is .....something not to be condoned IMO
Have a great holiday

[D-Dog]

wow and i though melbourne to sydney was a long way but it seems you can do that in about 9hrs, glad you all got there safely

[Wezza]

Originally posted by D-Dog:
wow and i though melbourne to sydney was a long way but it seems you can do that in about 9hrs, glad you all got there safely I've done the drive from Canberra to Townsville straight through a few times by myself.

Anyways, hope you have fun at the snow Chunky. Take plenty of pics. :cool:

[ 10. August 2009, 01:13 PM: Message edited by: Wezza ]

[D-Dog]

next week i am doint sydney to melbourne via thredbo, hotham and buller over 5 days then melbourne to sydney straight through.

[Xena]

If you ever need to know where the good accom is along the way to cater for families with more than two kids, ask me - done it many times. We've always stopped overnight at either Goulburn or Queanbeyan.

[chunky]

Thanks Xena. We have stayed at a few places in Queanbeyan. We don't often go via Goulburn. Shame we didn't get to catch up again Polaris. We were careful though. Whenever we got tired we did pull over and rest.

Bluehue - good to meet you too. Next time you can give me a tour of PB since I don't ski there much :D

[karen97]

Originally posted by chunky:
Probably not :( Pods mentioned you are going to be down next weekend, when we have accomodation booked in DP. We leave DP the following Friday and I imagine we won't leave until late with the snow about and that will only give us 2 days to get back to Brissy. You should have organised back in March to have this weekend gone and today off ;) Ohh gee! As if! tongue.gif You should have planned around my weekends off :D

[Spiceman]

Excellent stuff Chunky family... 17 hours is long no matter how many kids... Years ago I could just drive and drive, but I'm over it. Have a great holiday guys and enjoy the snow..

[chunky]

We almost always head down Ekka week ;)

[chunky]

Hey nice to hear from you Spicey. Was wondering where you had disappeared to :D

[karen97]

Originally posted by chunky:
We almost always head down Ekka week ;) Next year you are going to head down on the Slide weekend, aren't you ;) tongue.gif

[chunky]

Maybe we shall have to see smile.gif

Yesterday we spent the day up at Perisher just doing snow play with the kids. Was very tempted to take Jasper out for a ski.

I wasn't too keen on trying the Snowtube area once I saw how 'small' it was. Yeah I know it is one of only a few here in Oz but I just couldn't fork out the dosh when I could walk up the same hill for free and use our own toboggan and go almost as far on a good run out.

Missy Mel was cranky but with good reason - she fell asleep on our picnic rug in the snow and had a nice nap for an hour or two while we did some slides.

Bad thing - it was cloudy and the Chunky parents forgot that even though it wasn't sunny to put sunscreen on so our kids and us all are a little red in the face. Soon to be a snow tan of course when we get it right :D

[KT]

pics pics pics pics pics pics

[Farty The Snowman]

I will try and get up to Hotham while you are there Chunky. Try and get Yeti to hold off leaving for another week ;)

[Heli]

When are you in DP?

[Snow Yeti]

I hear he is in DP from the 16th, but they just had a near miss above Baldy's Hollow where they ALMOST went off the side!!!!! :(

They've turned around and now they are at DP with me!

[chunky]

Yes it was an interesting day. Pouring rain for a bit in Jindy this morning while I was packing and then we decided to do the Barry Way down. It wasn't bad at all. Passed 2 cars on its entire length once passed the Station. The only anxious moments were climbing up passed the half way area. Only a car width on the road and a very loong way down on the right.

We had dinner in Omeo and decided to push through to Bright for the night. We had heavy rain on the way up and just passed the DP turnoff on the first rise we had a pretty intense sleet/wet snow blizzard. It was snowing pretty intensely in parts but wasn't too bad.

We had passed Hotham and were heading down a steep bit just above Baldy's Hollow when the car just slid. Anyways lucky the car coming up couldn't go any further as she was stuck with no traction otherwise i would have hit her side on. As I hit the guard rail and snow I turned sharp left in the hope I could 'bounce' the car back away from the edge. It sort of worked the car was wedged up on the rail. The car was at a nice sharp angle sideways with the driver's side up on the rail. All I could see out my window was over the rail through the snowgums down into darkness.

+1 evac'ed the kids to the poor girl with the stuck car below who couldn't go any further while I stayed in the car. A few people stopped and reckoned I should not move the car in case I slid further over or did further damage. Eventually the Vic Police came while I was waiting for the RACV that Azz had kindly organised while I was in the car. Rang him in the hope he was at DP to help us out but he wasn't but he was very calming in a tense situation.

The Police checked the car's position and guided me out in reverse. Currently the only damage is I have lost my bumper below my lights on the driver's side and I will check in the morning for more. But a very close call methinks.

[ 11. August 2009, 10:01 PM: Message edited by: chunky ]

[Billy]

Sheeesh! How scary.. Glad to hear you guys are OK

[Silverwitch]

Wow! :eek: That would have been some scary experience..lucky you are all OK! Lucky there is a guard rail there!!!
So many accidents lately..I bet you are a bit shaken to say the least.. How are your children taking it all?

[chunky]

Thanks mate. I couldn't see anything below me out my window. It could have been the angle but I will be interested in very bright daylight and clear roads to see what the drop off is there.

[Farty The Snowman]

Far Can Hell Chunky!!!!!!!!!!! :eek: :eek:

Hope you are all ok now and the kids weren't too distressed. Good reflexes by the sounds of it, well done!

[chunky]

Silverwitch they were all crying after it happened. I remember telling +1 I can't get traction and to brace for the impact. They wouldn't have realised what was about to happen but the angle was quite scary though on the photos that i might post later it doesn't look so bad.

[Farty The Snowman]

Go find Yeti.

I hear he has a stash of really good stuff that might take the edge off after you unpack ;)

[chunky]

And a big thank you to the hospitality of our friends up here who have saved us the drive down to Bright. We are being well looked after by SnowYeti atm.

[SA]

Bloody hell chunky.

[chunky]

Yeah I know.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2601/3810684987_e89fce7105.jpg

[chunky]

I am lucky I was able to turn the car at the last second or so as I hit that bank straight on.

[Podlettte]

Wowsers! :eek: no point buying a lottery ticket now!

How fast was your heart racing? how is +1 and kids? did you have a stiff drink?

I'm not that familiar that I know exactly where the accident happened, I do remember the name baldy hollow, but can't place where it is.... google maps is no help either :(

[chunky]

I will try and get some pics during the day to get people's bearings on it.

[SA]

Originally posted by chunky:
I will try and get some pics during the day to get people's bearings on it. Start with one of your undies tongue.gif

graemlins/outtahere.gif

[karen97]

Geeze Chunky :eek: Glad you lot are all ok!!

[BlueHue]

Glad your ok Chunky! All looks a bit scary.

[Azz]

Hey Chunk's hope you had a good nights sleep, we'll be up in a few hours. See you then. smile.gif

[Boardingbuny]

Ah Geez chunky..

SO glad you and the fam are ok. Lots of love, Take a day off.. Great to see lots of help coming your way.

[chunky]

Originally posted by Azz:
Hey Chunk's hope you had a good nights sleep, we'll be up in a few hours. See you then. smile.gif Thanks very much smile.gif Looking forward to seeing you all!

[dilbert]

nasty stuff. Glad everyones ok.

[Tobi]

Glad to hear the chunkies are all ok.

smile.gif

[Blowey]

Good to see you got a photo of it. Every time i get into greif i get so tied up in the situation i forget to take a photo. Then i get the ****s when all is sorted and i have nothing to show my mates!!

Glad to hear noone was injured. Should make for a good family story for years and years to come.

[snowtyres]

” We had passed Hotham and were heading down a steep bit just above Baldy's Hollow when the car just slid “

Hopefully the following may help to explain why..........” heading down a steep bit just above Baldy's Hollow when the car just slid.”...........


All-wheel drive on the Prado is certainly an advantage…but its advantage can be multiplied by using correct winter tyres designed for the road conditions you’ll encounter. While more tyres share the torque of your vehicle, think of the ice and snow performance that snow tyres provide. All of the reasons that encouraged you to select an all-wheel drive are the same reasons that dedicated snow tyres will make your winter driving more enjoyable and enhance your car’s braking, handling and cornering traits.

However, it is important to remember that while the all-wheel drive vehicle’s ability to accelerate in slippery conditions provides a lot of confidence, it doesn’t really offer any unique advantage when the vehicle has to stop or turn. This is because the other vehicles also use all four tyres to provide braking and cornering traction. Since all-wheel drive vehicles actually weigh more than their two-wheel drive counterparts, bringing them to a stop or turning a corner actually requires more traction.

So, whether your AWD vehicle has anti-lock brakes, traction control, a vehicle stability system or all-wheel drive, it is your tyres that provide the real traction.

[Polaris]

Glad all are OK Chunky

[Polaris]

and Mr Snowtyres.....

Chunky ain't going to buy a pair of snowtyres for his one off road trip to the snow from Queensland :rolleyes:
bit of inappropriate spamming there buddy
Time and a place........

[Polaris]

hindsight is a wonderful thing and I bet Chunky is now thinking he could have/should have/might have/if only/if I did this instead of that........

bottom line is all are OK and he gets a new bumper out of it :D

[KT]

wow chunky......that's some scary stuff! glad u're all ok....and that u remembered to take pics~ altho, when i demanded pics this is not exactly what i had in mind~ smile.gif have fun and be safe for the rest of ur trip!

[Tobi]

Originally posted by Polaris:
and Mr Snowtyres.....

Chunky ain't going to buy a pair of snowtyres for his one off road trip to the snow from Queensland :rolleyes:
bit of inappropriate spamming there buddy
Time and a place........ I totally agree with this statement.

[snowtyres]

Chunky is not on his own in having this type of incident..........

Refer VicRoads - Road Safety (Vehicles) Amendment Regulations 2009 RIS, page 66.

VicRoads – Mount Hotham (snowfields) road crash data 2008,
Quotes in 2008 there were

“400 vehicles with and without snow chains, lost control and required assistance to be recovered”
“ 7 vehicles running off the side of the road and required recovery”
“ 18 Collisions involving AWD/4WD vehicles“


The post offered a possible explanation as to why ” heading down a steep bit just above Baldy's Hollow when the car just slid.”...........

As shown on the top of this forum page Snowatch posts are “informative” so hopefully the information in this post will be of interest other Snowatchers and help to improve the overall road safety in all the alpine areas.

[Podlettte]

I think Polaris is more suggesting the appropriateness of your post, not questioning that it was informative.

Your post provided information, but perhaps you could have started a seperate thread in equipment or similar with information on snow tyres.

ANY vehicle whether it has snow tyres or not or has chains on or not is capable of sliding on ice.

[Silverwitch]

Well Chunky how did your day go today? Hopefully a more relaxing one was had by you and your family! smile.gif

[chunky]

Sorry it has taken me awhile to get back on here. I have no net access and am only able to pop on when I visit some friends up at DP.

The next day was relaxing. A little anxious to get out in daylight and check for any further damage to the car. Apart from the bottom right bumper being torn off and the inner guard there 'appears' to be no further damage. Though I will get this checked out later.

We spent the next 4 days in Bright and did a few walks around the area. We also went up to Mt Buffalo - my thoughts are that the season is well and truly over there unless the ground freezes back up and they get a decent amount of snow. It really did look sad and for mid August even sadder.

We also visited the Great Alpine Winery in Bright and also on recommendations from here went to the Big Shed Cafe in Smoko - absolutely lovely food and Faith the host was lovely.

This morning we woke to some very heavy rain in Bright and well it was/is still raining up in Hotham and DP atm. We went through Hotham about 2pm and all lifts were closed due to lightning though some would have been shut anyway due to the gale force winds along the ridges up there.

Settling into DP, having a nice wine with Tambo and Azz and we have the next week here. Hope to have some interesting photos to post later. I better get off here and be socialable with the crew here :D

snowtyres thank you for your info. I must admit I wouldn't find it viable to have these tyres for a one off trip each year to the snow. I did have chains but obviously wasn't using them at the time and in 15 years of driving here and overseas this was my first 'mishap'. Saying that cos I guess I was lucky and it could have been worse.

I will also update with photos from the previous days later in the week :D

[Podlettte]

Don't forget about Gapstead winery, it's on the other side of bright to Hotham. Oh and Snowhite loves their chardy ;)

[skijacski]

Good to hear that you are all relaxing and all well.

Very lucky indeed!

Safe home travel and happy holiday.

[chunky]

I haven't had net access and I won't until hopefully tonight when I can put some photos up. Let's just say I arrived in the rain and am going to leave in the pouring rain :( Plus we have 65km+ hour winds so it will make for an interesting descent.

[chunky]

We had some nice skiing days up at Hotham after the snow last Sunday. It totally transformed Dinner Plain from a patchy mainly grass cover to for a brief moment - snow covered streets and yards to rejuvenating the DP ski and toboggan slope.

Jasper and I had some nice skiing together. A mix if bluebird days combined with the cloudy whiteouts. A bit annoyed that on one day we skiied over to Keogh's in white out conditions to see the sign for Orchards saying closed so we skiied back to the village side only to find out the stupid lifites hadn't changed the sign to open. Not a problem normally just to dash on back over but with the prodigy still learning to ski it takes a bit more time.

The girls attempt to ski at Big D was met with huge panic attacks by one to the point I had to head back from DP to collect her as she refused to ski anymore. Lucky for us that 5 and under ski free.

And of course some of the largest snow flakes we have ever seen fell on Thursday for half an hour that even locals were commenting about it and we didn't take the camera out that day :(

I promise pics and they will come. Settling into Dubbo now to get some zzzzz's smile.gif