Located just 100 km’s from Sydney but world’s apart from city life, the World Heritage listed Blue Mountains is noted for its stunning mountain views, vibrant forests, thundering waterfalls, charming small towns and quaint villages.
If you are planning a holiday to Sydney I strongly recommend including a side trip to this beautiful part of New South Wales.
Getting there:
The drive from Sydney to Leura or Katoomba is just 90 minutes with trains departing every hour from Central Station taking two hours. There are also local buses in the Blue Mountains that enable visitors to get around without a car as well as the useful Blue Mountains Explorer Bus which stops at Leura, Katoomba, Scenic World, Echo Point and numerous other lookout points and trail heads. Blue Mountains Explorer Bus.
Towns and villages:
Leura
The charming town of Leura has a tree lined main street filled with a delightful collection of small shops, boutiques, book stores and cafes. With heritage buildings galore, accommodation to suit all budgets, an attractive golf course and the starting point for numerous walking trails it’s an ideal base for exploring the area.
As we were staying in the town we enjoyed wandering around the shops and stopping for coffee in the cosy Cafe Leura.
Katoomba
Home to the photogenic Three Sisters, Katoomba has been drawing visitors for more than a century. But beyond the town’s most famous icon, this attractive town also makes for another great base to explore the Blue Mountains National Park.
One evening we dined at Basil Nut, a cosy restaurant tucked away in an arcade that specialises in South East Asian cuisine. Some locals had recommended it to us and I’m glad we listened to them as it’s an absolute hidden gem and worth checking out for a delicious, reasonably priced meal. Booking is recommended as it’s very popular with only a few tables.
Blackheath
Blackheath lies close to Katoomba and has a welcoming village feel. Boasting a good range of shops and cafes it’s another interesting small town for a wander, and is close to the attractive Govetts Leap Lookout. A cafe called Hounslow piqued our attention as it’s well known in the UK as being a town lying close to Heathrow airport. It turned out to be a lovely place serving delicious food that punches well above its weight. Our choices of porcini mushroom gnocchi and zucchini fritters were superb as was the locally roasted coffee. Open for breakfast and lunch its definitely a reason to visit Blackheath.
The cafe takes the name Hounslow as it was the first name Governor Macquarie gave to Blackheath when he passed through on his way west in 1815. The name was short lived though as he renamed it Blackheath a few weeks later in reference to the dark colour and texture of the shrubbery in the area which he noticed on his return.
Wentworth Falls
The historic village of Wentworth Falls dates back to 1910 with its short but attractive high street having some interesting small shops. Feeling peckish, we popped into the FED cafe where we satisfied our appetite with tasty steak and mushroom pies sitting out on the terrace. We then had a short walk to Wentworth Lake to walk off our excess calories before returning to the car.
Lookout Points and Walking Trails:
Leura Cascades Trail
Leura Cascades is a popular place for a walk. On the morning of our visit the pathway was quite muddy in places and there were lots of steps for us to take down to the valley bottom. Fortunately the visibility was quite clear down there, unlike on higher ground, and we were able to view the cascades.
We parked quite a way from the trail head so the Explorer Bus might have been a better option. The only drawback being that not knowing how long the walk would take, there might be a long wait for the return bus. Several other walks can be accessed from this point taking you along the cliff top as far as Echo Point or down through the Leura Forest.
Three Sisters Walk
The Three Sisters is by far the most famous and popular sight on any visit to the Blue Mountains. It’s easy to access being an 800m walk from the Echo Point Visitor Centre which offers free parking. Pass through the archway next to the Visitor Centre where the gently sloping path leads along to the lookout point. We marvelled at the incredible views of the Three Sisters weather eroded sandstone turrets, and the hazy ‘blue’ Jamison Valley from which the Blue Mountains take their name.
Govetts Leap Lookout
If you have time, another top vantage point is Govetts Leap Lookout near Blackheath. We parked at the heritage centre which is free to visit and had a look at their displays first.
It was very misty but in and out of the clouds we were able to glance the breathtaking views of the blue gum forested valley with the Bridal Veil Falls to our right and the Pulpit Rock straight ahead. The Pulpit Rock is an isolated pinnacle that stands away from the cliff face on a massive blade of rock.
Wentworth Falls Lookout
Next we headed along to the Wentworth Falls Lookout for waterfall glimpses. Here you can seek out the path to descend the steps to Fletchers Lookout for up close waterfall views. Unfortunately, on the day we visited the lookout point was shrouded in low lying mist and drizzle, resulting in us only being able to hear the falls rather than to see them!
We plodded on down to the lower falls hoping to get a glimpse through a break in the clouds but sadly it wasn’t to be. On the positive side we did spot a cicada which is an insect that makes loud screeching noises that resonate through the forest.
Attractions:
Scenic World
Katoomba’s Scenic World is a really fun place to spend a day. Travel down to the rainforest floor on the world’s steepest railway then wander through the ferns on a series of wooden walkways before returning to the top station via the cableway. If that’s not enough you can then take the glass floored Skyway over towards Echo Point.
Mt. Tomah Botanic Garden
This is the only botanic garden in Australia located in a UNESCO World Heritage Area, and is a delightful place to visit as the Mt. Tomah garden features many rare species, spectacular cool climate trees and colourful herbaceous borders. The gardens are free to visit and open daily. Mt. Tomah Botanic Garden.
The gardens are divided into four distinct areas connected by winding pathways with benches and picnic spots to relax and enjoy the stunning views. Whilst we were wandering through the gardens we spotted two black snakes amongst the flower beds.
The gardens were really noisy with the screeching of cicadas, I thought crickets could be noisy but they have nothing on cicadas.
Sample cider in Bilpin
Located on the other side of the valley is the small town of Bilpin which is home to many fruit orchards. We stopped off at Hillbilly Cider where we enjoyed refreshing glasses of their pear cider sitting out in the large garden. A great way to round off a visit to the Blue Mountains.
And there you have it, my guide to the scenic Blue Mountains. With so many lovely things to see and do, I’m sure you will agree that a day or two there should be an integral part of any visit to New South Wales.
Our time in the Blue Mountains was supported by several local businesses and as always, all views and opinions are entirely my own.
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