Day trip, Sydney to the snow.... Tips for a Defender more used to the tropics!?

[tact]

This could go into general chat but am tossing in some Defender specific questions and posting here....

So who here has taken their defender to the snowy mountains in winter? Any tips?
(Yeah I spent a year on an Australian Antarctic base and drove a 4x4 around nearly every day, but thats different. The snow there freezes hard as concrete almost as soon as it falls and is actually a fairly high grip surface to drive on. We ran regular MT tyres and no chains on the 4x4 utes. Only in the brief summer would there be some melt/refreeze creating blue ice conditions on hillsides and melt lakes - and that just made for some fun play times for all vehicle types. And also, yeah, have over several years driven a lot on steep slippery mud/clay slopes in the Malaysian jungles. So I have a pretty good idea, and lots of experience, on how drive my defender on traction-optional surfaces.)

Tips around these points would be helpful:
- research suggests it is likely a 6hr drive from my place in Sydney to Jindabyne. Have any of you Sydneysiders done such a 12hr return journey just for a few hours play in the snow? Sounds a bit silly but I know I'd enjoy the 12hr drive on is own. Pretty sure taking a longer trip, a weekend up the snow, will be wasted for my small family - after a couple of hours in the cold, damp snow they'd be miserable and ready to go home already. None of us are avid skiiers. Just interested in the snowy white scenery and a little play in the snow.

- maybe a better plan to drive in one day, play and get cold and wet. Stay in a hotel. Drive home next day.

- research also suggests that 4x4 vehicles are exempt from any requirement for carrying/using snow chains, though road transport site does suggest its not a bad idea anyway. I have 255/85R16 MT tyres fitted and ATBs front and rear. Likely not a great tyre for icy road conditions but ok to get by without chains?

- research suggests filling up with "Alpine Diesel" before going to the higher country. I suppose that's needed, specially with high pressure common rail diesels? Given the low temps being recorded around the ridges nowadays.
(In the Antarctic we used regular diesel in the summer (lows around -5C) before switching to Special Antarctic Blend ( SAB ) for lower temps down to about -20C. Once it got colder than -20C we switched again to straight Jet A1.

- any bits fall off your defender due to the cold?

[Tote]

Rather than Jindabyne consider going for a play somewhere along long plain, its about the same distance and you can access it via Gundagai and Tumut. There's no fees involved and usually plenty of snow if there has been a recent fall. If you need to get a bit more altitude you can pay to get into the Selwyn snowfields (although we never have)
Pretty much anywhere from Yarangobilly to a few KM the other side of Kiandra there are plenty of free opportunities to have a play in the snow. We've done it a few times as a day trip from Yass in winter. I think the first time we went looking for snow we had to go to Kiandra to find some white stuff anyway.
Diesel should not be an issue if you are not switching off for long enough for it to get cold, particularly on a common rail vehicle because they constantly circulate hot diesel back into the tank.

Regards,
Tote

[Xtreme]

.............................. None of us are avid skiiers. Just interested in the snowy white scenery and a little play in the snow.

- maybe a better plan to drive in one day, play and get cold and wet. Stay in a hotel. Drive home next day.

......................

If that's your main reason for going, have you considered avoiding a lot of the crowds and avid skiers by going to the western side of the range via Tumut?
Nice scenery and more chance to put the Defender to good use.
About the same travel time but less traffic also.

[The Cone of Silence]

I did a similar trip but spent a week up there...bucks party at Thredbo so I went a few days early and went over the top of the pass to Tom Groggin Camp (where The Man From Snowy River lived, on the Murray River) and a few other nice spots, the Big Trout at Adminaby, Tumut etc.

Alpine Diesel is sold as normal diesel in Jindabyne so you needn't worry about trying to find it especially....just fill up as you normally would but if you want to double check, just pop in and ask them.

I didn't use chains at all - I asked a bloke at the servo where they fit them and he told me I'd be fine in the Defender and not to bother despite there being snow and ice around. I had road pressures and took my time....the traction control got a workout but ultimately all was fine. The snow wasn't that deep but there was a ice going over the pass so it was all about crawling, using first gear, staying off the speed and off the brakes. Definitely no dramas getting up the hills, it was going down I was more worried about and it was all simple.

Didn't even have dramas with the heater, the starting, the coolant etc. Only problem was the water tank freezing up - I have a 60l underbody steel tank.

You'll be right mate. Just pack a bag and go and take loads of pictures!

[I Love My Landy!]

Rather than Jindabyne consider going for a play somewhere along long plain, its about the same distance and you can access it via Gundagai and Tumut. There's no fees involved and usually plenty of snow if there has been a recent fall. If you need to get a bit more altitude you can pay to get into the Selwyn snowfields (although we never have)
Pretty much anywhere from Yarangobilly to a few KM the other side of Kiandra there are plenty of free opportunities to have a play in the snow. We've done it a few times as a day trip from Yass in winter. I think the first time we went looking for snow we had to go to Kiandra to find some white stuff anyway.
Diesel should not be an issue if you are not switching off for long enough for it to get cold, particularly on a common rail vehicle because they constantly circulate hot diesel back into the tank.

Regards,
Tote

I agree. I did the same trip yesterday. I usually find snow in the places Tote mentioned, but there was nothing this time. I had to go into Selwyn Snowfields to play in man-made snow.

Take it easy on the roads though. I hit a patch of black ice on the bridge next to Yarrangobilly Homestead (I have heard that black ice is more common on bridges - something to do with air currents above and below the bridge).

Tumut had much cheaper accommodation than nearer to the snow if you wanted to break the trip up.

Enjoy your trip.

Edward :)

[DiscoMick]

Sounds good but it's a long day in the vehicle for kids. Why not stay overnight in Jindabyne, Cooma or Canberra and do some sightseeing?

[dromader driver]

The Questacon site in Canberra is good for a break after an overnight in Canberra with kids depending on age.

I agree with not doing it as a day trip. When living in south sydney the last bit from Goulburn up the freeway after a day in the snow is very good for a short noddy whilst driving. Northern Sydney is another hour each way even on the M7.

The big sheep on the south side of Goulburn breaks the journey well with kids. Good bakery or Maccas at the stop. [thumbsupbig]


Forgot to say ARE WE THERE YET

[Tote]

We went up there for a drive today, there was enough snow for a snow fight up near the top of the range between Kiandra and Yarangobilly. Kiandra had snow showers, Went over via Wee Jasper to tumut and back via the Hume. Then we went for a swim at Yerangobilly hot springs where the ambient air temp was 3 degrees.

125746

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/07/267.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/07/268.jpg


Regards,
Tote

[DieselDan]

- research suggests filling up with "Alpine Diesel" before going to the higher country. I suppose that's needed, specially with high pressure common rail diesels? Given the low temps being recorded around the ridges nowadays.
(In the Antarctic we used regular diesel in the summer (lows around -5C) before switching to Special Antarctic Blend ( SAB ) for lower temps down to about -20C. Once it got colder than -20C we switched again to straight Jet A1.

- any bits fall off your defender due to the cold?

Most places near to the snow sell alpine diesel as a matter of course, so you should be right. The servos in Vic have signs out saying as such, but it's a long time since I've been to the snow on the NSW side so can't remember!

Not so much fall off, but some bits seize up. If you're staying overnight and temps are forecast to get well below zero, consider smearing vaseline on the door rubber, at least on the drivers.
I forgot to do this and in my enthusiasm to get the door open, ripped the door seal.
Where once I had a nice solid, well sealed, non-leaky, non-squeaky door (for a Defender!), I now have a leaky, constantly squeaky door which is slowly driving me slightly insane....
I should really get a new seal [emoji12]

[DiscoMick]

Also endorse Questacon for the family. Our school groups have a ball there - it's the best thing in Canberra, I reckon.