Of course, Rodney took his camera - and here he shares his love of the snow as only a Tasmanian can.
Crunch! crunch!
I had missed that sound of the steel teeth of my snowshoes piercing the snow and ice as I head up a mountain.
It had been too long - almost two years since I packed my Alpine equipment to venture out and spend the night in sub-zero temperatures.
On August 14-15 I had a weekend free and as luck had it, it was the last weekend before our previous long lockdown.
I selected Mt Stirling to spend the night sleeping on the snow.
Snow depths were more than 85 cm, temperatures around -2 degrees C and wind gusts were forecast to be around 50 km/h.
Nothing too difficult to plan for.
I arrived at an overnight car park at the Mt Buller resort gate in Mirimbah - about a two-hour drive from Shepparton.
The air was already getting crisp.
For me, the snow is a whole new world where nothing is normal. Cooking, eating and sleeping in below-zero temperatures is a challenge - like a puzzle - and you have to think things through very carefully.
Of course, for me the opportunity to capture the stunning landscape with my camera is a big drawcard.
I parked for $8 for 24 hours and organised transport from the Mt Stirling resort to pick myself up and return for $40.
That's a good option if you don’t have chains or a four-wheel drive. I started my hike at Telephone Junction where there was only a small patch of snow. You can grab a coffee here or have a toboggan if you don’t want to go any further.
This is an easy day trip from Shepparton for families wanting to play in the snow without going to a large ski resort.
It’s about 5 km from the Mt Stirling office to walk to the snow at the moment - but it can be a bit patchy at this end of the season.
For more information and entry prices visit https://www.mtstirling.com.au/plan/resort-entry-pricing/
35°C