A povvo’s guide to skiing in Australia

WHEN your mates are frothing for the snow but you can’t afford a lift ticket, this is the solution. Anyone can afford to ski the povvo way.

HORRIFIED by the huge rise in the cost of skiing since my uni days, I discovered that there is a way I can afford to ski in Australia — the Povvo Way.

Deserted runs dusted with fresh, fine powder snow. Endless groomed trails weaving between snow gums. Lunch for three bucks; not a penny spent on lift tickets.

Sound too good to be true? I thought so too, until last weekend.

That’s when my fiance and I were invited to join some mates at Jindabyne, and without putting too fine a point on our respective ages, we discovered that the number of years since our last ski trips could be measured in scores.

By crikey, have things got expensive since then!

Tallying up gear hire, lift passes, accommodation and transport, we were in for a four-figure weekend. Surely the point of skiing was to enjoy that great (free) resource — the wilderness? Not to be stuck flailing about in a chairlift with one’s nose up someone else’s armpit for the cost of a flight to Bali?

Enter the concept of XC.

The basic concept of XC (cross country) is that your skis and bindings are specially designed for going uphill as well as downhill. The hills are far less steep than typical alpine runs, but the amount of ‘wee!’ is, according to the following chart, undiminished.

Denby Weller's graph of the amount of 'weeee' in Alpine vs. XC skiing.

There was some sweat involved in getting up those hills, I’ll admit it, but the clever design of the runs meant that we usually started heading up a hill, then let loose on the downhills with a hilarious combination of free-heel snowplough (not very effective), aborted Telemark turns and occasional close encounters of a powdery kind.

The techniques could be mastered with a lesson, I’m sure, but that is against my Povvo religion. Regardless of technique, the day was an absolute blast.

ACCOMMODATION

Staying on the snow is for people who haven’t frittered away their fortunes on smashed avo, like me.

We stayed in Jindabyne, where failure to book could be rewarded with either a) A $69-a-night motel room (jackpot!) or b) a frostbitten sleep in your car (you don’t get to choose). Booking in advance will set you back upwards of $120 per night. Where’s the fun in that, I ask you?

Povvo accommodation: $69 / free

Regular accommodation: $120+

FOOD

You might think that a quick bakery stop in Jindi on your way up the hill is a harmless breakfast option, but unless you like parting with $20 for two croissants and a spinach-and-feta twist, I’d stick to cereal at home. On the other hand, the pub is a pretty reasonable dinner option, as long as you want a burger.

Of course, cooking your own grub is the perfect Povvo solution, but it’s not easy in the back of a car.

Povvo breakfast for two (muesli, coffee & banana): $5

Regular bakery breakfast for two: $18.80

Povvo burger dinner (no beer) for two: $30

Any other choice on menu: $50+

TRANSPORT

Friend, skip the Skitube. If there are two or more of you, it’s cheaper to drive.

Povvo transport for two: $29 national park entry fee + $25 snow chains = $54

Regular transport for two: $35 per person = $70

SKI HIRE

The cheapest day rate for gear was found in Sydney, but as we were away for two days and only skiing for one, it was better to hire in Jindabyne. When asked whether you’d like to hire “classic, skate or touring skis” we found a blank look was the best answer.

Instead of hiring fancy ski clothes, we wore normal stuff we’d wear hiking or running, plus a waterproof jacket.

Denby on a perfectly deserted run. Picture: Saxon Johns

Povvo ski hire for two: $114

Regular ski hire with clothing for two: $160

LIFTS

Gloriously, there are no lifts in XC skiing.

Povo lift passes for two: $0

Regular lift passes for two: $276

LUNCH ON THE SLOPES

The home of XC is across the road from the main Perisher resort, centred around the Nordic Shelter. Inside, you’ll find a full kitchen with microwave, tea and coffee, Wi-Fi and bathrooms. On weekends a bevy of hardy volunteers will treat you to a sausage sizzle lunch for three bucks.

Povvo lunch for two: $6

Regular lunch for two: $30+

The Nordic shelter is run by donation, so bring a few bucks to pop in the yellow box. If this feels like a hardship, just recall that a coffee on the other side of the road would set you back $7.

The Nordic shelter, left, home of the three dollar sausage sizzle. Picture: Denby Weller

And there you have it: For $272 per day, a Povvo couple can earn their turns in Perisher, eat their fill and snuggle up in Australia’s prettiest mountain town as the snow sifts down out of the darkness. Not bad.