Ain't No Blue Mountains High Enough, New South Wales, Australia

- October 12, 2017

Magnificent nature as far as the eye can see. Deep gorges, misty mornings, cicadas singing and cockatoos flying high over the valleys. The Blue Mountains is one of Australia’s most spectacular area, recognized with a World Heritage listing, and with its sublime beauty, it is not hard to understand why.

The Blue Mountains in Leura

The Blue Mountains are an absolute favorite of mine. A breathtaking piece of nature, and quaint small cities surrounding the entrances.
The mountain range is a dissected plateau carved into sandstone bedrock.
It is a beautiful place, and definitely worth at least one-weekend camping trip. If you are short on time, you can take a one-day guided tour, but doing it yourself gives you more freedom, and is a lot cheaper. The mountain range is located just 90 minutes from Sydney by car and around two hours by train.
 The most popular place in the Blue Mountains is called the Three Sisters and is where most tours will take you. It is right next to the Katoomba Scenic Railway, which should be the steepest railway in the world. I do not consider myself afraid of heights, but I was terrified on my way up through the gorge.
The adverts claim the maximum gradient is 52 degrees, but it felt like free fall. At this location, you will also find the Scenic Skyway, a glass-bottom aerial cable car, and the Scenic Cableway. Both are part of The Giant Stairway, a walking track that runs down a cliff into the Jamison Valley, providing access to nature walks throughout the valley. But I think you are missing out big time if that is all you scout out! The Blue Mountains have some of the country’s most dazzling natural attractions. With dramatic views over the deep valley, troughs gouged out over millions of years.

Two stories of The Three Sisters
In the dreamtimes, there were Three sisters. They were named Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo. They were the most beautiful girls in the world and they lived in Katoomba as part of the Katoomba tribe. The stories about these girls are many, and different, but in one of them, the girls were treasured by three boys from another tribe. These boys decided to steal the girls away to marry them and bring them to their own tribe. The girls’ father, the chief of the tribe, casts a spell on the girls, an enchantment for their protection, and turns them into rocks while the battle between the two tribes is going on. Sadly the magicman gets killed during the battle and no one else can reverse the spell. Here they linger forever enchanted and never able to return to the human form.

the three sisters, Katoomba

Another mysterious tale about the three sisters is from the Gundungurra people. In this story the three sisters Meenhi, Wimlah and Gunnedoo were greatly beloved by their father, Tyawan, who in the heroic attempt to protect them from an evil Bunyip living in the valley, conjured them into stone using his magic bone. He thought they would be safe from the Bunyip who would soon leave again. But the infuriated Bunyip chased Tyawan through the forest and up a mountain where he, at last, found himself trapped. With nowhere to run he used his magic bone and conjured himself into a Lyre Bird and threw himself off the mountain and into the sky. To his horror, he discovered that he had lost his magic bone. Today you can still see him, in the shape of the Lyre bird scratching and searching the forest floors of the Blue Mountains, looking for his magic bone. His daughters, the three sisters lingers on, silently waiting for him and the day he will be able to turn them back into girls.

Where to stay

We stayed a few days at Leura, the station next to Katoomba, which is much less touristic. From here you have access to lots of different tracks of various lengths and difficulties. Nature is extraordinary and you have it all to yourself. The city itself is quaint. It has beautifully Victorian-style houses of many different colors. Well-kept gardens and the main street that gives you the opting of fine-dining, low-key foods, antique shopping, and browsing among all the crafts shops that have appeared here.
Insider tip: Check groupon.com.au for deals on a weekend trip to the blue mountains. The hotels often have great deals if you are traveling outside of high season.
Want even fewer people? Jump deeper into the interior. The Blue Mountains consist of 7 national parks and most people only do the one day tour so enjoy and explore!

A different take on the Blue Mountains.

Most Australians choose to visit the Blue Mountains during wintertime. July is the high season where many of the inns, hotels, and guesthouses do ‘Christmas in July’- offers. They do a traditional English set weekend with food and Christmas traditions from old Britain. It is lovely and with old decorations and trees everywhere. The experience is very authentic and you get into the Christmas spirit.

Do not miss out on visiting when you are traveling through NSW and spent at least a few days here if you have the time. Whether you are in the mood for camping, inns or luxury you can find it and enjoy it all in the Blue Mountains.