Kosciuszko National Park, Alpine nature reserve in New South Wales, Australia
Kosciuszko National Park is a large nature reserve in southeastern Australia covering about 6,900 square kilometers (2,664 square miles). The park centers on Mount Kosciuszko, the mainland's highest peak at 2,228 meters (7,310 feet), surrounded by deep valleys, alpine meadows, and mountain streams.
The area was first protected as National Chase Snowy Mountains in 1906, then renamed Kosciusko State Park in 1944. It became Kosciuszko National Park in its current form in 1967.
Indigenous Aboriginal groups traveled to these high mountains each summer to hunt bogong moths, which were an important food source. This seasonal gathering shaped how the land was used and valued by the people living in the region.
The park includes all ski areas in New South Wales with facilities for winter sports and extensive networks of walking trails for summer exploration. Visitors should prepare for changeable weather, especially in colder months when snow and ice can affect conditions.
A weather station at Charlotte Pass recorded Australia's lowest temperature of minus 23 degrees Celsius (minus 9 degrees Fahrenheit) in June 1994. This remote location experiences some of the harshest conditions found anywhere in the country.
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