Beasts of the Blue

Blue Mountains, 14th January 2011

It took us for EVER to get back from the area around the Brown Brothers to the Blue Mountains. I mean, I love car journeys: I have all my favourite things with me, books to read, yummy snacks and best of all I’m in a confined space where Jon has no choice but to take notice of me for hours and hours!!! However, even I was bored 5 hours down the road and all you’re seeing is yet more farmland. We stayed in a nice motel overnight in a place where they held prisoners of war during the Second World War and the lady at the tourist information centre (which had a brilliant hologram play) said it was just down the road. Just down the road? Just down the road?! If we’d gone that far ‘just down the road’ at home we’d have hit Scotland 2 hours back and be heading for its northernmost point!

Anyway, we eventually got to the Blue Mountains, which I would recommend not approaching from the west because it just seemed like it was going to be the biggest let down (- there didn’t seem to be any hills in sight!). When we finally got to the main tourist destinations it actually turned out to be pretty cool! We headed to the Jenolan Caves… which again we didn’t go in (way expensive – and Jon has a thing about caves just being caves… yes, I know you could say it about anything!). I was more interested in walking around the Blue Lake in search of a platypus and there were a coupleof other tracks around the site. There is an awesome descent to this place and we kept saying it would be a great hill climb on our bikes, if a little bit of a beast. At the bottom of the hill in the valley is the most Welsh looking building I saw in the whole of Oz. It’s a great big hotel, built by an Englishman I think and its so like the old hotels with waterwheels you see in Wales and Cornwall and even in the Pennines (I suppose a bit like the place we stayed on the last night of the C2C Mum and Dad!). I should have taken a photo but we were too busy with the wildlife. There were loads of skinks all over the path and Jon had great fun creeping up on them – mean boy! There were also some wonderful butterflies and dragonflies near the lake.

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After the Jenolan Caves we managed to get over to the Three Sisters before the sun went down. I really wanted to go on the cableway which takes you down onto the forest floor but it was closing up for the day… I might head back out there when we go back to Sydney as you can get the train to just down the road.

Again the views from the Three Sisters were pretty cool. We took the path down to the rocks (the Sisters) and I was knackered walking back up the steps as we returned – they were so steep!  Jon eyed up the rocks for a bit of bouldering but there was a climbing prohibited sign on there. I guess there’s a good chance of falling to your death if you popped off!

The Three Sisters overlook a massive expanse of forest in the valley below.  There were steps all the way down if you’d wanted to head out on a proper hike – that was pretty cool. I suppose the Three Sisters is a little bit like a mini vegetated Grand Canyon! If we get to the Grand Canyon, I’ll confirm whether I’m correct or not!

It was extortionate to stay in Katoomba (which is the town next to the Three Sisters) so I guilt-tripped Jon into us ‘at least having a proper meal if it was going to be another night in the car’. Picture a whiney voice and you’ve got it. We ate in Cafe Zuppa and I mention it because I had an awesome pasta dish with pumpkin in, which sounds terrible but was yummy!

Anyway, here are the typical tourist photos… enjoy! ; )… oh and if anyone can identify the birds…?

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