Monaro Highway

Victoria Monaro Highway begins at the intersection with Princes Highway in in the East Gippsland region. After leaving the town, it heads north along a relatively flat area following the Cann River upstream through a locality known as Noorinbee. To the west is farmland between the road and river and a mountain range beyond and to the east are some smaller hills. The land to the east is largely part of Drummer State Forest. As the sides close in at the northern end of this wider valley area, the highway crosses to the west bank of the river highway and enters the Noorinbee North locality. Continuing north, the terrain is more hilly and forested and the alignment more closely parallels the winding river upstream to the area of Weeragua. At this point, the land to the west of the river is part of Buldah State Forest, and to the east is Coopracambra National Park. The road has now entered the Chandlers Creek locality and at Weeragua, the road crosses the west branch of the Cann River and continues further north along the east branch through a small farmland area. From here, it follows the river through more forest before coming to another small farmland area and crossing Chandlers Creek itself. The road once again enters forest as it follows the Cann River east branch to its upper end at the confluence of Fiddlers Green Creek and Flat Rock Creek, the latter of which the road follows through Coopracambra National Park to the New South Wales border. New South Wales From the state border, Monaro Highway continues north through forest, generally keeping Bondi State Forest to the west and South East Forest National Park to the east. The immediate landscape by the roadside also includes the occasional small tract of farmland at several points. There is a crossing over the Genoa River within the forest, and the road roughly follows it upstream. Upon exiting the large forested area that exists near the border, the road enters farmland. This farmland continues as a patchwork of pastures for the rest of the journey within New South Wales and is only interrupted by the occasional town. The road continues roughly northwest until it meets Delegate Road at a T-intersection just outside Bombala. Turning towards the northeast at the intersection, the road quickly reaches Bombala. Within the urban area, the road firstly takes on the name Maybe Street. It then turns northeast at Forbes Street and crosses over the Bombala River. After the bridge, the road returns to a northeast heading as Mahratta Street. This street continues for a short distance before a right angle bend to the northwest to match the same manoeuvre by the river. The road then becomes Stephen Street before returning to the Monaro Highway name at the edge of the urban area and concluding its zig-zag trajectory through Bombala. The highway then travels in a north-easterly direction, crossing the Bombala River again and making its way towards . The road bypasses the village just to its west and makes a further crossing of the Bombala River. Continuing north, the road winds its way towards a ridge near Native Dog Creek. After crossing the creek, the road climbs the ridge and continues northbound. At this point, the former Bombala railway line alignment winds along the western side and is visible in some locations. Eventually the road swings east and meets the western end of the eastern section of the Snowy Mountains Highway at another T-intersection. The highway turns towards the northwest at this intersection and, after a short distance, crosses the Maclaughlin River. A little further along this heading, the road enters . The highway takes on the name Bombala Street within the urban area and swings to the northeast through the small town. From here, the road continues northwest once again with the railway alignment never far to the west and sometimes paralleling the road. The road crosses several small creeks along this stretch of road. Before reaching , the road also passes to the west of Kuma Nature Reserve and crosses over the former Bombala railway line. Within the town of Cooma, the road initially takes up the name Bombala Street. Where this street meets Sharp Street at a 4-way roundabout, the highway turns east, while the western section of Snowy Mountains Highway begins from the same point and heads west. Continuing east as Sharp Street, the road soon curves north and transitions back to Monaro Highway. It then parallels the railway within the urban area and also passes by the Tadeusz Kościuszko Monument as it leaves the town. North of Cooma, the highway follows the same general path as the railway alignment as far as the area of Bunyan. From there, it continues along the same rough heading and crosses the Numeralla River just prior to its confluence with the Murrumbidgee River. The road then follows the Murrumbidgee downstream at some distance to its east. The highway continues on towards Bredbo and crosses the Bredbo River as it enters the village. The highway takes on the name Cooma Street through Bredbo and crosses over the railway yet again just north of the town. Further to the north, the road passes through Gungoandra Gap to the east of Round Hill. Mount Colinton is now visible to the highway's east, and a larger range known as the Clear Range is visible to west. The ridgeline of the Clear Range forms the eastern border of the ACT in this area. Heading further downstream, continuing the distant parallel of the Murrumbidgee, the road enters and crosses the railway a final few times as the railway winds through the area. It does not enter the urban area of Michelago itself and instead passes to the west of the village. North of Michelago the road and railway parallel each other very closely as they head towards the ACT border at the north end of the Clear Range. The road crosses the border just east of Cunningham Hill. ==History==