About Cooma
Cooma is the largest town in the Snowy Mountain region and consequently is seen as the gateway to the Snowy Mountains ski fields, the Snowy Mountains Hydro Electricity Scheme and the Kosciuszko National Park. In recent times tourism and the snowfields have ensured that it is more than just a rural service centre. It is the base for exploring the entire area and a prosperous tourist town.
Central to the town’s attractions are the Snowy Hydro Information Centre; the Centennial Park which celebrates the town’s historic multiculturalism; the excellent historic walk and the fascinating Correctional Services Gaol Museum; and the area’s excellent horse riding and fishing facilities. The town has a reputation for being bitterly cold in winter when the winds off the Snowy Mountains and the Antarctic whip across the flat, treeless Monaro Plains (sourced from the Aussie Towns website – click for more).
Cooma Caravan Park
We left Mallacoota today for the scenic drive up through the great divide to Cooma (maplink), the largest town in the Snowy Mountains. The weather was brilliant and the views spectacular with a few challenging stretches of road, but we all arrived safely in Cooma.
It was a bit of a squeeze for our large convoy of 19 caravans at the Cooma Snowy Mountains Tourist Park, with some of us having to dig to level our vans. But all good, we enjoyed our stay at the lovely park.
Of course, we had the standard happy hour after we had all settled in with plans being made for the remainder of our stay.
Cooma Historical Jail
A visit to the historical Cooma Jail is a must when in town.
A very informative tour was provided by a current inmate. The inmates undertake training and provide the tours as part of their rehabilitation and road to release. Our guide, Tom, was a top bloke who knew a lot of the history of the jail, which dates back to 1788.
The jail has a very long history dating back to the first fleet and is still an operating correctional centre – find out more on Wikipedia.
Cooma Hydro Centre
A visit to the Cooma Hydro Discovery Centre was really informative.
To begin with we discovered that all of the Snowy Mountains Hydro scheme is managed through this facility. They also allocate pricing on the available power via a bidding system by the electricity retailers who use the snowy scheme. Learn more from the SnowyHydro website.
The Snowy Hydro story is absolutely amazing considering that it designed and built from 1949 to 1974.