Longtime Le Bent ambassador and backcountry aficionado Rohan Kennedy has been living in Jindabyne since 2007 and skiing the Australian Main Range since 2012. Now a backcountry guide for SMBC after spending 10 years in ski patrol, Rohan practically lives on the Main Range during the winter and spring months.
Rohan helped guide Cody Townsend, Elyse Saugstad and the Le Bent team out along the Western Faces back in 2019 and has been inspired by Cody to complete a kind of 'Aussie Fifty Project', drawing inspiration from an incredible local book and our answer to Cody's muse, 'The Fifty Classic Ski Descents of North America.'
The below was written by Rohan.
THE WESTERN FACES 50 WITH ALAN ANDREWS' SKIING THE WESTERN FACES OF KOSCIUSKO
By Rohan Kennedy
If there’s one book that stands out as the ultimate guide to the NSW Main Range backcountry, it’s Alan Andrews’, “Skiing the Western Faces Kosciusko.”
Published in 1993, this book has been described by many as the definitive guide for skiing this remarkable area, and I couldn’t agree more.
Alan Andrews poured his love for the Kosciusko region into this book, combining decades of experience with a unique approach. His guide is more than just a collection of routes; it’s a blend of poems, hand-drawn maps, and detailed information covering 14 sections of the Main Range from Dead Horse Gap to Mount Tate.
I first bought this book over ten years ago, and since then, it has been my source of inspiration for planning and dreaming about backcountry ski tours. The notes and photos in its pages have guided me to discover 40 ski lines, and I’ve added another 10 lines myself that represent some of the steepest challenges the range has to offer — lines that Alan himself envisioned might one day be skied.
Having watched Cody Townsend's 'The Fifty' series and having had the pleasure of guiding him while he was here in Australia, I was inspired to undertake a similar project in our own mountains, to shine a light onto the great skiing we have here and bring this personal challenge to life.
With snow falling and more in the forecast, I’m excited to continue this journey and see if I can complete my list of 50 lines.
I’ll be sharing updates and stories from the slopes along the way as I work towards my goal.
View of Watsons Crags South Face from Sentinel Summit.
Below is the full list with names of lines taken from the book or names of lines that I have heard most about from the area.
| 1. Strzelecki Creek 2. Little Austria 3. Avalanche Alley 4. Townsend West Spur 5. Anderson Crags 6. Friars Alp 7. Watson Creek 8. Siren Song Creek 9. Kosciuszko 10. South Rams Head area |
11. Cleft Rock Run 12. Golden Gully 13. The Spur 14. The Couloir 15. The Corrie 16. Twin Humps 17. Abbotts 18. Byatts Camp 19. Muellers Peak 20. The Racecourse |
21. Ians Gully 22. The Alice Rawson 23. Twynam North Spur 24. Triple A 25. The Scimitar 26. Goes Forever 27. The Awesome Spur 28. Walters Gully 29. Ant Ridge. 30. Avalanche Gully |
31. Avalanche Face 32. Tenison Woods North Face 33. Carruthers West Spur 34. Middle Gully 35. Erics Funnel 36. Carruthers Variant 37. Sentinel SE Face 38. Sentinel SW Face 39. Sentinel N Face 40. Sunshine Chutes
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41. Watsons Crags North Face 42. Dog Leg 43. Waterfall 44. Crags Hidden Line 45. Club Lake 46. Blue Lake 47. Twin Valleys 48. Tate E Face 49. 11 Highest Peaks Traverse 50. Jagungal |
You can follow Rohan Kennedy on Instagram for updates on the project as he hopes to tick off a number of lines each week!
