Blue Rag Range, Victorian Alps, Australia

Blue Rag Range, Victorian Alps, Australia

The Blue Rag Range. Top of The Victorian high country. Only accessible in a good four wheel drive competently driven. Isolated because it is hard to get to. But worth the effort! Spectacular views! Nerve wracking driving!

Some of these pics may show scenes that have significantly changed since they were taken.

For a discussion on the causes of bushfires and how we can limit their dangers, read Bushfire!.

More info on bushfires in Victoria at State Library of Victoria.

Aussie Stories - telling about Australia in words and pictures

Joe Mortelliti's life long love, from when he was first given a Brownie camera as a boy, was photography. It was the focus of his work life for many years. He loved to travel with his wife Marion to as many parts of Australia as he could. He had the ability to 'see' the beauty of our land in such a way that he could photograph it for the delight of others. These photos are a legacy that he has left us. Used by permission and with appreciation.
Aussie Stories - telling about Australia in words and pictures

Blue Rag Track, alpine Victoria, Australia
Blue Rag Track, alpine Victoria, Australia. Spectacular Views along Blue Rag Track. The damage caused by the 2003 fires is reported will take 100 years to recover.

Press reports from High Country people point out that if you fly over the Bogong High Plains, a little further north from the Blue Rag Range, you will see everywhere that the areas that have been grazed are not burnt, and areas where there are no cattle, these areas are totally burnt. Parks Victoria refute such claims. February 2004.

Copyright © Joe Mortelliti Photography

Hmm. That'd be an interesting drive to tackle. Not much margin for error, and the price of a mistake could be high! It's a long way down if you get it wrong.

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Blue Rag Track, alpine Victoria, Australia
Blue Rag Track, alpine Victoria, alpine Victoria, Australia. Blue Rag Track snakes its way over the tops of the range. This area makes you feel like you’re on top of the world. January 2005.

Copyright © Joe Mortelliti Photography

Interesting to compare it with the similar picture (above) that was taken eleven months earlier. A lot of regrowth is happening already. Perhaps the environment is not as fragile as some people believe, but has the ability to recover from natural disasters..

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View from Mt Blue Rag, alpine Victoria, Australia
View from Mt Blue Rag, alpine Victoria, Australia. This rugged track is extremely steep in many places, and as you crest the top of a climb, you are looking at just the blue sky. The descent is then immediately on other side and you slowly edge over until you can see which way the track goes. With steep drops on both sides some people find this track too daunting. January 2005.

Copyright © Joe Mortelliti Photography

I understand the daunting bit. But I reckon it'd be a challenge! With a good vehicle and careful driving you should have no worries, and the rewards would be amazing!

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View from the Blue Rag Range, alpine Victoria, Australia
View from the Blue Rag Range, alpine Victoria, Australia. At the top of Blue Rage Range at 1500 metres high. The forest to left lies dead after the summer 2003 fires. A couple of valleys over lies the historic Wonnangatta Station and Wonnangatta valley, surrounded by mountains.

As we travelled through this area which is no longer grazed we could not help but notice the weeds that were taking over. People commented that they could not work out why this had to be so, why the politicians think they are doing the right thing. It would be only a matter of time before a fire started and all would be destroyed for years. February 2004.

Copyright © Joe Mortelliti Photography

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Nature's colours, Blue Rag Range, alpine Victoria, Australia
Nature's colours, Blue Rag Range, alpine Victoria, Australia. Ground cover of grasses and wild flowers with stunning colours contrast against the ranges in distance that were blackened by the summer fires of 2003. Those fires burnt vast areas of the Great Dividing Range in both Victoria and NSW and was so intense that many of the burnt trees were killed by the intense heat and will not recover.

Many high country people claim that closing off areas to cattle grazing and a track access contributed significantly to the fires' destructive force. January 2005.

Copyright © Joe Mortelliti Photography

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