Dead Horse Gap is a saddle on the Alpine Way, high in the Snowy Mountains, where the road crests the ridge between the Thredbo valley and the country that drains toward the Murray. At about 1,580 metres it is the highest point on this road, and it feels like the edge of something. The trees thin out, the snow gums are bent and silvery, and the wind arrives straight from the Southern Ocean with very little to slow it.
The name belongs to a story, and like many such stories it is told in different ways. The version most often repeated is that a group of brumbies, the wild horses of the high country, were trapped by a blizzard here and died, and their bones gave the gap its name. Whether it happened exactly like that or not, it gives a fair sense of the climate. Snow can fall in any month, and in winter the gap is cold, white and unforgiving, with the road often closed or restricted to vehicles carrying chains.
From the car park at the gap, walking tracks head out in several directions, including a route toward the main range and Mount Kosciuszko. It is a place for hikers more than motorcyclists, but a short walk on the open slopes gives a feel of the alpine environment, with tussock grass, tiny wildflowers in summer and views over the ranges. The air is clear and thin, and the silence is broken only by wind.
The riding is the real treat. On the Thredbo side, the road climbs in generous bends through eucalypt forest, and on the western side it drops toward the Khancoban end in a long run of curves, with views of ridges folding away to the horizon. This is a road where traffic is light, the surface is mostly good, and the scenery changes every few kilometres. It rewards a steady pace, and you should still keep an eye out for animals, especially in the early morning and evening.
Jindabyne, about thirty-four kilometres away, is the proper town. Carry extra layers, check the forecast, and tell someone your route if you are riding alone, because the weather turns rapidly and mobile coverage is patchy.