Dear TFSL Members and Friends,

The snow season looks like starting with a huge bang this week with an enormous polar storm pushing snow as far North as the Queensland border. The forecast is still bouncing around in terms of snow volumes and freezing levels, so keep an eye on updates from the resorts (Thredbo & Perisher) through the week. The official opening weekend is this Saturday June 12, but Perisher managed to open Front Valley last Friday with the good snowmaking conditions in recent weeks, all promising early signs for a fantastic ski season!

Record Member Bookings

As noted in the last newsletter, Winter Priority bookings from Lodge Members are at record levels through the peak of the ski season from July school holidays through to mid September. While this is a great outcome as a Member-focused Lodge, it does mean limited availability for guest bookings with only a few small vacancy gaps before Spring.

Current availability includes:

• June 19-25: Excellent Availability

• June 26 - July 11 (School Hols): Limited availability in week 2

• July 12 - August 1: Some availability

• August 2 - 15: Very limited availability (Bunks)

• August 16 - September 5: Some availability (Upper wing & bunks)

• September 6 - October 4: Good availability

Please make any additional booking requests via the TFSL website and Karen will let you know what options remain. Also, please remember that when paying via bank transfer, you must note the booking reference number in the payment, as it cannot be reconciled and confirmed without this.

We’ve also made great progress with moving to a new Credit Card payment system to facilitate easier booking management and are testing online bookings for Members that we hope to trial in Spring. This won’t replace our Winter Priority Booking process, but should make it much easier to book rooms in off peak periods.

Work Parties

We had an excellent turnout of Members at the two weekend work parties in May which helped prepare the lodge for Winter, so our heartfelt thanks to everyone who volunteered!

Members who volunteered one weekend:

• Julie and John Reis

• Michael and Jane Terley

• Tony and Yvonne Brady

• Ivars and Eriks Reinfields

• Steve and Hamish Pearce

• Sam and Karen Edwards

• Eduard and Liz Grueninger

• Cath Glover

Members who volunteered both weekends!

• Mark Glover

• Matt and Robyn Mitchell

• Pat Sowry and Mel Rhodes

• Matt Gane

• And, of course, our Lodge Managers Mick and Cath Jane.

A big special thanks to Steve Pearce who brought his earth mover and truck to the wood chopping work party which made moving the logs a far easier task than previous years. You may have seen the photos and videos on our Facebook page with the shed now full of chopped logs ready for cosy nights by the fireplace.

Peak Season Dishwashing

Mick and Cath have kindly offered to do the extra dishwashing through peak season (July & August) to ensure the kitchen flows smoothly during dinner time. This starts at 7pm and finishes at 9pm and requires people to scrape and stack their plates neatly at the end of their meals so they can be washed and sterilised.

Everyone will still need to clean up after their meal preparation so that space is made available for the next group to cook, and you’ll still need to wash and put away dishes outside of the washing up service time. People not cleaning up after themselves and putting away their own dishes is still the single biggest complaint we receive from guest feedback, so we really appreciate everyone playing their part in this regard.

In the event that Mick & Cath are unavailable on a particular night they will ask Members who are able to volunteer their time to assist. In return, a $50 accommodation credit will be provided to be redeemed on a subsequent visit.

Wi-Fi Fair Use Policy

As the Lodge is unable to use the NBN with unlimited data downloads, we’ve reiterated our Wi-Fi fair use policy in the last couple of newsletters. We ask that you let your guests and children know to avoid using video streaming services like Netflix, iView and YouTube etc. which chew up our data allowance and may result in the Wi-Fi being disabled for everyone. If you want to watch videos on your own devices, please download these before you arrive or use your own mobile data - Telstra and Optus have good coverage these days. Notes with more details about this policy will be posted in visible areas of the lodge.

COVID-19 Policy

There’s obviously still lockdowns occurring due to COVID-19 outbreaks, so we can’t let our guard down despite broadly relaxed restrictions. The most important aspect of this is to avoid travel to the lodge if you are sick with cold and flu like symptoms, with full refunds available if this is the case.

If you develop symptoms whilst at the lodge, you must self-isolate in your room and avoid all contact with other guests or be present in shared areas. In the worst case scenario, you may be required to vacate the lodge for the safety of staff and guests. Full details of the process if someone develops symptoms at the Lodge are available in our COVID-19 Policy.

We maintain our advice to reconsider travel to the lodge if you’re in a high risk group and haven’t been vaccinated, and continue to follow all current restrictions outlined by the NSW Government.

Manager’s Accommodation Build

Our plans for commencing the new building of the Manager’s accommodation are still held up by the local council and we’ve even resorted to escalating this to the local MP to try and move the process along. While this is underway, we’re also investigating the best financing options with a hope that things will be able to proceed in early 2022.

Combined with this project, we’re looking to install a large rainwater tank so that all water in the Lodge is drinkable, not just the filtered water in the kitchen. This will also help with the long term maintenance of the Lodge’s plumbing which is affected by corrosive minerals from our existing water source.

Welcome Our New Members 

We’ve had a lot of activity with share sales in recent months due to the long waiting list of people wanting to buy shares and shares being sold consistently for well over $20,000. If you’re considering selling your share, please check our Frequently Asked Questions and contact members@tfsl.com.au for more details.

In the meantime, we’d like to welcome our new Members and their families: Mathew Brooks, Richard Gregorio and Gaenor Benney.

We hope you all have a safe and enjoyable ski season!

The TFSL Board