By Anthony Mitchell
When you walk from the Skitube building over the bridge to Perisher’s Front Valley slope, have you ever glanced over your left shoulder and wondered what that small building is between the Marritz Hotel and the Eiger Chalet? Maybe you figured it is an electrical substation or perhaps a public toilet? Well, it's actually the Rock Creek Ski Club, and it's the oldest building in Perisher Valley.
It was not the first building – that was Perisher Hut up towards Perisher Gap, a tin building built in 1939, but that was knocked down in the 1950s. Rock Creek Hut (as it was then known) was the second building in the Valley, built in 1946 by the Kosciusko State Park Trust.
It was sited and designed by Sir Garfield Barwick, who to this day, is the longest-serving Chief Justice of Australia (1964 – 1981). It was intended to be a rest stop for guests travelling between the Hotel Kosciusko (Sponars Chalet) and the Chalet at Charlotte’s Pass. Remember, this was before the road to Perisher Valley was cleared, so it was quite the journey!
Construction was by Jack Piazza, a local stonemason from Italy, and supervised by George Day, (Manager of the Chalet, legendary skier, horseman, and wrangler of the dog rescue team).
Private groups of four could rent it out if they wished, but they all had to be the same sex. This must have displeased [insert deity of choice here] because on Australia Day in 1949, she smote it with a lightning bolt – it split the chimney, and the lodge was destroyed.
It sat there for another 10 years as a stony ruin. Seven different groups applied to rebuild it as a functioning ski lodge, but all were rejected by the Park Trust, which favoured much larger-sized lodges.
An application from Keith Line in 1958 was finally accepted, and the rebuild began in March 1959. The new building then became Rock Creek Ski Club, which has continued to this day – no mean feat, given all the ways the lodge was nearly destroyed. There have been two near misses with fire, one earthquake, and two fights against bureaucracy. In 1977, a planning report recommended that the lodge be knocked down, and in the 1980s, there was a push to consolidate the smaller lodges and knock down those remaining. Both times, after much fervent letter writing, common sense prevailed.
For such a small building, it did have an impact on the Valley – it was the first building to have beer on tap, and only upon visiting Rock Creek did Ken Murray (owner of The Man from Snowy River Hotel) realise that kegs didn’t freeze. The Man then had beer on tap the following week. Also in 1968, one of the original members, Barrie Mitchell, founded the Volunteer Ski Patrol.
Besides a bathroom upgrade, the lodge has remained largely unchanged since 1959, and staying there is like living in a bit of history. But don’t take my word for it – you can stay there too, as bookings are also open to the public.
It sleeps 6 people, and you need to book the whole lodge for a week, but prices aren’t as crazy as you’d think for the best location in the valley.
Contact rockcreekskiclub@gmail.com for more information.
Anthony Mitchell is the Club Secretary of Rock Creek Ski Club and an avid skier.
