Jerusha McDowell, Fields Of Gold - The Snowy Mountains High Plains (LANDSCAPE 2024)

The alpine plains and plateaus of the mountains are so beautiful. You climb up and up through the scrub and bush which eventually gives way to the vast open expanse of this secret world... Wild and untamed. For generations the Snowy Mountains drew those seeking a life beyond the boundaries of settlement. Those willing to pit themselves against the harsh conditions in pursuit of freedom and fortune. And it was the promise of these plains which which drew them. This vast and beautiful string of windswept plains high in, and adjacent, to the alpine ranges. As early as the 1830s they became the fabled summer grazing pastures. Then in 1859 they gave birth the gold rush when two high country stockmen discovered gold in the mountain plains of Kiandra. The trials that people faced chasing cattle and gold on these plains helped forge a fledgling national identity and still resonate today. There is a freedom of spirit found up here and nowhere else I’ve been.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.