Australia’s Highest Suspension Bridge Opens, Expected to Attract 50,000 Visitors per Year

A supplied image obtained on Sunday, June 5, 2022, of part he new nine-kilometre Snowies Alpine Walk. The nine-kilometre Snowies Alpine Walk is part of a $27 million project between Guthega and Charlotte Pass in Kosciuszko National Park and officials recently marked the opening of its second stage. (AAP Image/Supplied by NSW Government)

New South Wales will be put on the map again, this time for claiming the title of having the nation’s “highest suspension bridge,” located 1627 metres above sea level in Kosciuszko National Park, which houses Australia’s highest peak, Mount Kosciuszko.

The bridge is part of the new nine-kilometre track along the Snowy River, completing the second of four stages of the Snowies Alpine Walk project.

Once completed, the Snowies Alpine Walk project, formerly known as the Kosciuszko Snowies Iconic Walk, will be a “world-class, multi-day walk across the alpine roof of Australia.”

“The Snowies Alpine Walk is putting New South Wales on the map for multi-day hikes, and it’ll be a must-do walk for anyone who loves Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain Overland Track. In fact, I reckon it’ll be a strong competitor with the Overland,” New South Wales Minister for Environment James Griffin said in a statement.

“I want to see everyone who comes to our magnificent NSW national parks arrive as visitors and leave as conservationists, and this walk will help us achieve that.”

The project is expected to create 30 jobs and bring in approximately 50,000 visitors per year; it will also boost local tourism and establish the region as a “key eco-adventure tourism destination.”

The second stage, which cost $5.4 million, was constructed over two years, during which the site was inaccessible for 14 months due to bushfires, pandemic measures, and snow. Approximately 1200 tonnes of steel, gravel, granite rock pavers and concrete were brought in by helicopter to construct the second stage, reported The Age.

According to the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, the Snowies Alpine Walk arose from a need to better disperse visitors to reduce overcrowding issues around Rawson Pass and the summit of Mount Kosciuszko and to provide a diversity of walking experiences.

The walk links the villages of Guthega, Charlotte Pass, Perisher and Lake Crackenback and includes reaching the summit of Australia’s highest mountain—the 2228-metre Mount Kosciuszko.

The Snowies Alpine Walk project was awarded more than $27 million from state and federal governments and is expected to be completed in 2023.

Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW Paul Toole said the walk will be “world-class” and will put “the Snowy Mountains region firmly on the domestic and international tourism map.”

NSW Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean said since 2019, the state government has invested more than $257 million across NSW national parks—“the biggest visitor infrastructure investment in the history of NSW national parks.”

Prior to the pandemic, the number of visitors to NSW national parks reached 60 million, generating more than $18 billion in spending.