Brisbane community plays along with fake ski field for Mt Coot-tha joke on Facebook

There will not be a zipline but thousands of Brisbane residents are hoping for a ski field to open on Mt Coot-tha this June.

The controversial proposed zipline might have been canned but there are thousands of Brisbane residents are hoping for a ski field to open on Mt Coot-tha this June.

More than 23,000 people have pressed the ‘interested’ button on a Mt Coo-tha (sic) Ski Field opening day page on Facebook since January, while another 4500 people have responded by saying they are ‘going’ to the June 22 event.

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Despite the name of the mountain being spelt incorrectly and it being too warm in Queensland to maintain an outdoor mountain of even fake snow, the mysterious page initially received some comments asking if the ski field was true.

A screenshot taken of the Mt Coo-tha Ski Field Opening Day 2019 Facebook page. Picture: Facebook

In a true display of Aussie humour, the occasional post sprouting the open day or a competition to win ski passes resulted in numerous Facebook users playing along with the concept, posting photos of themselves in the snow and even leaving fake reviews.

Elle MacLennan, 32, of Newmarket is one of the many people who came across the satirical ski-field plan and decided to join in on the fun.

“Mt Cootha turning it on,” she wrote on April 22 with a photo of herself skiing.

Elle MacLennan uploaded this photo of herself to the Mt Coo-tha Ski Field Opening Day 2019 Facebook page. Picture: Facebook

Ms MacLennan told the Courier Mail the photo was actually taken in New Zealand and she had no idea who was behind the Facebook page.

“I have no idea who started it, I just think it’s hilarious,” she said.

“I think I stumbled across the page when I was trying to find good hiking trails on Mt Coot-tha.

“I didn’t for a second take it seriously, but you have to laugh at some of the posts on there and just how far people have taken it.”

Victoria O’Callaghan wrote on the open day page that she could not wait for it to snow in Brisbane.

“Can’t wait for it to snow in Brisbane this year, finally after 11 years of warm winters,” she wrote.

“Will you be doing a buy one get one half price on the ski hire? I lost one of mine on a lime scooter.”

A screenshot from Facebook sprouting an upcoming open day for an alleged Mt Coo-tha Ski Field. Picture: Facebook

Amy Ellingworth also wanted to know if the slopes would be lime scooter accessible.

Jermia Turner asked if anyone knew where he could get snow chains for his tyres.

“The black ice around Sir Samuel Griffith drive is a killer, I’m not getting caught out again,” he wrote.

Many simply wished the concept was true.

“Don’t care if this is fake or not. Someone make it happen!” wrote Mia Fab.

File photo: View across to Mt Coot-tha from Kangaroo Point. Picture: Russell Shakespeare

Reviews on the accompanying Mt Coo-tha Ski Field Facebook page were just as amusing.

Kathy Jane posted that the Brisbane mountain had the best snow in Queensland.

“Magical experience! Best snow in Qld! Never had to queue for chair lifts, amazing crew and a wicked terrain park to play in! Does it get any better??? (sic)” she wrote.

Elisha Jahnsen posted a photo of herself standing in front of snow and wrote that the view from the peak was “phenomenal.”

“Mt Cootha may even be the best ski resort I have ever been to,” she said.

Elisha Jahnsen posted a photo of herself standing in front of some snow-covered mountains on the Mt Coot-tha Ski Field Facebook page and wrote that the view from the peak was “phenomenal.” Picture: Facebook

There were a couple of people who gave the ski field only a one star review.

“Non-existent. No snow. Too hot. Great view from the lookout thou (sic),” wrote Helen Lenaghan.

Toby Joshua insisted people see Mt Coot-tha’s natural beauty.

“There’s no snowing in Brisbane. Don’t bother reading any of the bs reviews,” he wrote.

“Come and see the natural beauty of Mt Coot-tha and Brisbane for what it really is.”

Sunny Rose, who asked for her real name to not be used, had also posted a review on the fake page saying she had never heard about an injury or kids arguing over toboggans at the ski field.

“It really is too good to be true,” she wrote.

Jack Weston posted this photo of a snow on the ground around a Queensland welcome sign on the satirical Mt Coo-tha Ski Field Opening Day 2019 Facebook page. Picture: Facebook

Miss Rose, 50, of Taigum, said she thought the page was hilarious.

“I thought it was a really fabulous piece of community fun,” she said.

“The Brisbane community recognises a joke and think it’s hilarious and so they participate and have a fun together.”

The mum of five said not being able to tell who started the page was part of the fun.

“It’s actually quite difficult to tell who is behind it because so many have found it funny so have jumped on board,” she said.

“I’d imagine if you were a tourist coming to Brisbane potentially you could be quite confused. It really seems to be completely and utterly dominated by the locals.

“It’s amusing to me that we could have our own little corner of snow season excitement.

Messages sent to the creators of the Mt Coo-tha social media pages by the Courier Mail have not been returned.

A Brisbane City Council spokesman confirmed there were no actual plans for a ski slope in Brisbane.

“Council has no plans for a ski slope at Mt Coot-tha,” he said.