Smiggin Holes
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Smiggin Holes New South Wales |
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Smiggin Holes Ski Resort, 2010
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 Smiggin Holes
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| Coordinates | 36°23′40″S 148°25′45″E / 36.39444°S 148.42917°ECoordinates: 36°23′40″S 148°25′45″E / 36.39444°S 148.42917°E |
| Established | 1939 |
| Postcode(s) | 2624 |
| Elevation | 1,680 m (5,512 ft) |
| LGA(s) | Snowy Monaro Regional Council |
| State electorate(s) | Monaro |
| Federal Division(s) | Eden-Monaro |
Smiggin Holes is a village located in the ski resort area of Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy Monaro Regional Council. It is primarily a winter-only resort village. It is within the Kosciuszko National Park, and is administered by New South Wales Department of Environment and Climate Change. Access to the village is via road. There is an access fee payable to the national park, and motor vehicles are not permitted to stay overnight in the winter months.
Smiggin Holes is one of four villages making up the Perisher ski resort. It is situated 1,680 metres (5,510 ft) above sea level.
The name Smiggin Holes is of Scottish origin. The trampling of hundreds of cattle consuming rock salt that graziers had placed there, caused depressions that filled with water. These depressions were called "the smiggin holes". The year 1939 signified the start of Smiggin Holes as a destination for skiers. Smiggin Holes is widely regarded as one of the best beginners' ski resorts on the Australian snowfields. The snow bowl is relatively sheltered, which protect it from harsh weather, avoiding the harsher weather experienced across the wider Snowy Mountains. A cafe was established to service skiers en route to Charlotte Pass and Mount Kosciuszko.
The Hotel Kosciuszko was opened by the New South Wales Government in 1909 at what is now Sponars Chalet, near Smiggin Holes. The first Kosciuszko Chalet was built at Charlotte Pass in 1930, giving relatively comfortable access to Australia's highest terrain. The growing number of ski enthusiasts heading to Charlotte Pass led to the establishment of a cafe at Smiggin Holes around 1939, where horse-drawn sleighs would deliver skiers to be begin the arduous ski to the Kosciusko Chalet. It was the construction of the vast Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme from 1949 that really opened up the Snowy Mountains for large scale development of a ski industry and led to the establishment of Thredbo and Perisher as leading Australian resorts. The Construction of Guthega Dam brought skiers to the isolated Guthega district and a rope tow was installed there in 1957.
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