Advice from the Snow Queen

DEBBIE Startin was up at 3am yesterday to see the first snow of the season fall on Pol Blu something she has done for the last 18 years.

She lives at Coolongolook, near Nabiac and when the weather is right she stays at Gloucester at the foot of the Barrington ready to head to Pol Blue for day break.

“Give me snow and I’m there,” laughed Ms Startin.

“I’m riddled with arthritis, but you tell me snow is coming and that’s it, my pain switches off and I am just on a high, it’s just magic, it’s a winter wonderland to me it is one of my favourite places in the world,” she said.

“Not every time is the same, sometimes it starts out as little tiny balls, they call it sago and then they can turn into bigger bean balls and then they can turn into little flakes and big flakes,” she said.

“When we got up there it was still dark so we lit a fire in the community shelter and I cooked the kids a feed, bacon and eggs and sausages on rolls and then we just waited for the sun to come up and fed kookaburras, magpies and currawongs.

“It just kept coming down and coming down and getting heavier and heavier.

“We go up every year, usually a few times a year and I’ve even been up in November when there has been snow.

Debbie Startin in the Barrington Tops.

“If it’s going to snow it’s going to snow at Pol Blue.

“I read the weather and watch the low fronts coming through on the news ad I switch from news to news for the weather report,” she said.

“There are not many times we’ve been up when it hasn’t snowed,” Debbie Startin said.

Her advice to people who want to see the snow at Barrington is to be prepared and take things slowly.

“Just be fully equipped plenty of blankets and things to keep you warm if things go wrong, water proof boots for the kids, plenty of blankets, sleeping bags and warm food and drink, we take firewood, newspaper and fire starters and you let people know when and where you are going and if you are not back at a certain time to let the police know,” she said.

“Just take your time there is no hurry and don’t pull up on the side of the road, pull up somewhere where you can be off the road so that nobody runs into you, it is so dangerous and people just go too quick,” she said.

“We’ve see people up there in two wheel drives, people going too quick and seen cars roll,” she said.

“Just take your time and remember there are families with little kid up there,” Debbie Startin said.