The Alpine National Park is a national park in the Central Highlands and Alpine regions of Victoria, Australia. It covers an area of 646,000 hectares (1,600,000 acres) and is located northeast of Melbourne. It is the largest national park in Victoria and includes much of the higher areas of the Great Dividing Range in the state. This range includes Victoria’s highest point, Mount Bogong, which reaches 1,986 metres (6,516 feet), as well as the subalpine woodlands and grasslands of the Bogong High Plains. The park’s northeastern edge borders New South Wales, where it is next to the Kosciuszko National Park. On 7 November 2008, the Alpine National Park was added to the Australian National Heritage List as one of eleven areas that make up the Australian Alps National Parks and Reserves.

Ecology

Alpine areas are places where the environment is too cold or harsh for trees to grow. Instead, plants like small shrubs, grasses, and low-growing herbs are found. In Victoria, these areas are usually above 1,800 meters (5,900 feet) above sea level. Below this height is the sub-alpine zone, where open forests with snow-gums grow, along with grasslands. In some parts of this zone, cold air collects in low-lying areas, making it hard for trees to grow. In wetter areas, these basins become Sphagnum bogs, which help store and release water, supporting the water cycle.

Water enters the alpine region as snow or rain. Bogs and frost hollows collect this water as snow melts or runs off. A key part of these bogs is Sphagnum moss, which can absorb up to twenty times its weight in water. These bogs slowly release water during summer, keeping creeks and streams flowing throughout the year. Damage to Sphagnum bogs, such as from trampling by animals (like pigs, cattle, horses, or humans), reduces their ability to store and release water. This causes more water to flow quickly in spring, leading to erosion, and less water in summer and autumn, causing droughts. Fire can also harm the environment by removing plants along rivers, increasing runoff and erosion. Alpine sphagnum bogs and associated fens are listed as endangered under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

Below the sub-alpine zone is the montane zone. On the southern side of the Alps, where rainfall is higher, this zone includes wet forests and rainforests. Tall trees like alpine ash and mountain ash grow in deep soils, while species like mountain gum are found in shallower or drier areas. The ground layer is usually covered with shrubs, grasses, lilies, and ferns.

Rainforests are areas where tree canopies cover more than 70% of the ground. Trees in rainforests often have specialized needs, such as myrtle beech in cool temperate rainforests or lilly pilly in warm temperate rainforests. Rainforest plants can grow in the shade and regenerate under tree canopies or in small gaps created when trees fall. Rainforests often blend with nearby eucalypt forests, which are usually wet or damp. These forests support many birds and mammals, some of which rely on specific plants or older trees with hollows for shelter. Unlike eucalypt forests, rainforest plants do not depend on fire for growth, and some animals may be harmed by fire. For example, fire in spring can threaten young spot-tailed quolls. On the drier northern side of the Alps, the montane zone includes dry forests and woodlands with eucalypt species like stringybarks, boxes, and peppermints. These dry forests surround wet forests on the southern side and provide habitat for many species.

Dry forests and woodlands are often near private land, leading to clearing, changes to the land, and broken-up habitats. Major threats here include poor fire management (focused on protecting private property rather than the environment), invasive plants, and lack of connections between forest areas.

The national park protects several threatened species, including the spotted tree frog, she-oak skink, smoky mouse, broad-toothed mouse, and mountain pygmy possum. Alpine bogs and associated fens are now listed as a threatened ecological community by the Australian government.

Bushfires

The park has been damaged by bushfires caused by lightning strikes in January 2003 and again in December 2006. Each fire burned more than 10,000 square kilometers over several weeks. The largest fire before these was the Black Friday fires in 1939. While fire is a natural part of many Australian ecosystems, some alpine areas, like Alpine Bogs and Fens, are more likely to be harmed because the plants and animals there are very sensitive. The 2003 fires created a mix of areas that were burned and areas that were not. In places where the 2006–07 fires burned the same ground again, some plants and animal groups have had trouble recovering. A lightning strike on the slopes of Mount Feathertop near Harrietville in January 2013 started a bushfire that burned 35,000 hectares and lasted about two months.

Agriculture

For much of the history of national parks in Europe, farming was allowed in these areas, with limits on how many cattle could graze on the High Plains during summer. In Australia, the alpine region was first used for grazing in the 1840s. Because of worries about how grazing affected the environment, governments began removing grazing from parts of the alps over the next century. Grazing was temporarily stopped in Mount Buffalo National Park in the 1920s and completely ended in 1952. In the 1950s and 1960s, cattle were removed from Kosciuszko National Park in New South Wales due to concerns about how grazing affected water quality for the Snowy River Scheme. Around the same time, grazing was also removed from Mounts Feathertop, Hotham, and Bogong. Later, in the 1980s, grazing was removed from around Mount Howitt, and in the early 1990s, it was removed from the northern Bogong High Plains, the Bluff, and part of Davies Plains. This left about one-third of the Alpine National Park—over 200,000 hectares (490,000 acres)—still available for grazing. In 2005, the Victorian Government decided to ban cattle grazing in the remaining part of the Alpine National Park, though grazing was allowed in nearby state forest areas. When the Bracks Labor Victorian Government announced plans to end grazing, the Howard coalition Federal Government suggested using laws related to cultural heritage to protect grazing, based on the cultural importance of mountain cattlemen, such as those described in The Man from Snowy River.

For more than five years, cattle were not allowed in the park, which made some farming groups angry. By January 2011, a group of cattlemen was allowed by Parks Victoria to bring a small number of cattle back to fenced areas in the Alpine National Park. By 2013, the amount of dry vegetation and weeds in the high plains had grown significantly, so the Victorian Government asked the Federal Government for permission to lift the ban and start a three-year trial to allow grazing again in the alpine areas.

Attractions

This area is a popular place in summer for activities such as hiking, cross-country skiing, mountain biking, four-wheel driving, and fishing. The main attractions are the cooler weather in the alpine region and the beautiful scenery from the tallest mountains in Victoria. Walking paths lead to most of these peaks, and many longer hikes are available. The Australian Alps Walking Track starts in Walhalla and continues 650 kilometers (400 miles) north to Tharwa, near Canberra, passing through the park. Camping in the bush is allowed in the park, but it must follow rules set by Parks Victoria and be done during certain times of the year.

In winter, much of the area is covered in snow and can only be reached by skis. Falls Creek and Mount Hotham are large downhill ski resorts near the national park. Cross-country skiers travel from these resorts into the park to areas like the Bogong High Plains and Mount Bogong.

Hunting is a common winter activity, and the park allows hunting sambar deer without using dogs between mid-February and mid-December.

The following major peaks are located within the Alpine National Park, listed from highest to lowest elevation above sea level: