The Snowy River was initially utilised sustainably as a food and water resource by Indigenous Australians for around 30,000-40,000 years prior to European settlement. Evidence of human occupation at Cloggs Cave, near the Snowy River, near Buchan, was dated at up to 17,000 years. Despite the cold climate in the river's higher reaches, the Ngarigo nation held territory around the Australian Alps and the Snowy Mountains in modern-day New South Wales. As the river flowed southwards into modern day Victoria, it flowed in the Gunai nation's territory, particularly, the Krauatungalung clan's territory.