What to c in Blue Mountains, NSW

[a3e]

Hello

Am planning to go sydney for a weekend @ the end of august. Due to short period, have arrange to visit Blue Mountain. Any suggestion what to do? Mind you due to time constraint, I'm not planning to spend all day in Blue Mountain.

Cheers,
Albert

[Viz]

I am unsure what you are after, but here are some starting suggestions:

1 Hydro Majestic outside of Katoomba - crazy old place to visit, very interesting. Good views.
2. Any where that has a good look over the Megalong Valley - I went rock climbing once at Mt York (just passed Bell) and turned around once I was over the tree canopy and it was amazing.
3. Three Sisters - I am sure you have heard... I grew up close by and have only ever been there once. I don't know if the cable car has been resurrected, that would be cool.
4. Zig Zag Railway - touristy but still an experience.

These are all pretty standard stuff. If you had more time, I would definitely be suggesting other things though, as this is not really how I would spend my time in the area.

[ATJ]

There are also some great lookouts on the eastern side of Blackheath, such as Evan's Lookout. They look over an area which I believe is called the Grand Canyon.

Wentworth Falls are pretty good, too. You can get some great photographs from under the falls, especially if it is a clear day. (Note there isn't a lot of water and you don't have to worry about the camera getting wet.)

[Mr Darcy]

Tricky as you only have half a day or so.
Much as I like Wentworth Falls (hey I live there!) I would give it a miss at the moment as the main car park near the falls is closed for renovation ATM. That means you have at least a half hour walk each way to get there. Normally I'd recommend the Darwin walk but it would eat up a good part of your time budget.

Three Sisters is top notch but VERY touristy. The only pay parking near any of the lookouts.
THere is also tourist alley where the Scenic Railway, cable car etc give you easy access to the valley floor WOrth a visit ONCE. THe scenic railway is a do once.

I agree with ATJ about the L/Os near Blackheath, though they don't overlook the Grand Canyon, they look over the Grose Valley. The GC is a much smaller offshoot of the Grose, & best experienced by splashing along the bottom, but this is a day trip on its own, and best experienced in summer.
If you do go to Blackheath, a little known spot is Mermaid's Cave. This is on the road down to Megalong Valley. on the West side of the Railway.
It is about a 10minute walk from the road (calling the parking a car park would be generous in the extreme) and maybe 15 Min back up.

Another spot with great views is Sublime point at the back of Leura.

Perhaps the best option would be to drive as far as Lithgow on the Great Western Highway, then drive through Lithgow to the Bells Line of Road, and follow it back to Windsor via Bilpin and Kurrajong. You will want to take small detours to see the views. This will take you past Lawson, WF (wave!), Leura, Katoomba, Medlow Bath, Blackheath, Mt Victoria, Hartley Vale, Zig Zag railway (different to the Scenic Railway), Mt Tomah (botanic gardens also detour to Mt Wilson), Bilpin, Mt Kurrajong (wind down the windows & listen to the bell birds), Clarendon (The RAAF airbase can be a photographer's delight at times. other times it is drab & boring), Windsor. This will take a long day though, or several if you stop a LOT.

The best Fish & Chips are at WF opposite the station, the hamburgers are good too; though the most spectacular eatery by far would have to be the Hydro Majestic at Medlow Bath. You pay handsomely for the ambience though.

Be aware that the traffic can be horrendous at times especially Sunday afternoons travelling east on the Great Western. My kids have given up visiting for lunch on weekends as it takes hours to get home. I have made the mistake of going up to Katoomba then. 10 minutes to get there; an hour and a half to get home. And I know the back ways.

[Mr Darcy]

FYI: This Thread would be better in a a different section. Maybe Sydney. I only saw it by accident as I don't usually visit "Adelaide & Perth"

[Reschsmooth]

As Greg & Andrew mentioned, the lookouts near Blackheath are awesome. Govett's Leap is a good starting point for a lot of walks, and the view from there is awesome.

A decent walk or short drive (including unsealed roads) from Govett's Leap carpark is Pulpit Rock. This pano was taken from there.



There are a ton of places to go to around Black Heath even if it is just for a view and some pics. Evans Lookout, Neates Glenn (excuse spelling), Govett's Leap, Pulpit Rock, etc.

Greg mentioned Sublime Point - this is a lookout near the Fairmont Resort - of the two times I have been to this L/O, there have been very, very few people there. It is only a small lookout, but has a beautiful westerly view towards the 3 sisters, and something like a 180' view of the valley.

From Conservation Hut, near/at Wentworth Falls (where ruffians live), there are a lot of great walks, including a short one to Valley of the Waters.

If you are stupid, you can walk down Wentworth Falls, along National Park (I think it is) all the way to the 3 sisters and to the Scenic Railway bottom end. From there, there is a liesurly walk up what is called "A Thousand Steps". I reckon the name underestimates the walk .

Notwithstanding the natural side of it, Leura Mall is a great place to get a bite to eat and decent coffee (go to the Red Door cafe serves some great, reasonably priced food and coffee). If you like your wine, have a look at Leura Cellars and make sure you go downstairs.

Anyway, plenty of places to see and things to do.

[Mr Darcy]

I have been talking to PJS about this.

There are lots of other options depending on the time you have available, but, despite its name, the Blue Mountains region is a disected sandstone plateau. The Kiwis have good reason for calling them the Blue Foothills. While there are differences in detail, the views are much the same wherever you take them in: distant cliffs disected by hanging valleys.

I would put forward a few specific options:
Option1: Bushwalk at Wentworth Falls.
Park at or near the Conservation Hut The carpark only holds about 2 dozen cars, so unless you are here on a weekday, odds are you will be parked on the street some distance away. Depending on the time you have, walk either (a) the Shortcut/ track to the Falls with a detour down the Den Fenella track and return via the Undercliff Walk. This is rated Easy 2 hours by NPWS. (b) Walk the National Pass and return via (a). This is rated medium 4-5 hour walk by NPWS. It has the possibly unique feature of being in part a walk along a ledge half way up the cliff face. (c) Walk the Wentworth Pass track and return via (b) or (a). This is rated a hard 5 -6 hour walk by NPWS (time estimate includes option (a)) It is a walk along the valley floor, with a steep climb (stairs – lots of them) at each end.
If you are travelling by train, walk the Darwin Track to the Falls (It starts behind the bowling club just over the hwy from the station), then if time permits take any of the above options. you will start at the other end of these walks. Simply follow the signs.

Option2: The Tourist thing
Visit Leura Mall for your shopping fix. Continue to Sublime point for an uncrowded view of the Kanimbla (Jamison) Valley. Return nearly to Leura shops and follow the Cliff Drive past the Three Sisters and the tourist trap of the Scenic Railway/cablecar. Stop where and when it suits you. The Scenic Railway is worth a trip, but it WILL trigger your fear of heights.

Option 3 The Views
Drive to Medlow Bath and take in morningtea/lunch at the Hydro Majestic. This gives you views over Megalong Valley. Continue up to Blackheath and visit One of the several lookouts over the Grose valley there. Some options include Perrys Look down, Evans Lookout, Govetts Leap, one of the Pulpit Rocks (There are several of these in the area). You could also take in the Mermaids Cave I mentioned earlier if time permits. This is a shortish walk down into one of the more accessible canyons in the area. If they are in flower, the Rhododendron Gardens at Blackheath are also worth a look.

Option 4. Dodging the tourists
Use the Bell Line of Road rather than the Great Western Highway. There are almost no facilities and very few signs on this side of the park though. You are less likely to know where you are. Stop at Mt Tomah Botanic Gardens (I think there are facilities here). A bit further on there are signposts to walks near Mt King George. These take you to the tops of the cliffs you see from Blackheath. You look back towards the Blackheath Escarpment. There is a lovely little walk I found once near here that takes you down a gully into the Grose valley. I think it was signposted to Perry's Lookdown. Not sure I could find it again, but there are others I am sure. On this side, Mt Wilson (grand old homes) and the ZigZag Railway are worth a visit.

[Viz]

I refrained from mentioning a bunch of stuff like Mt Wilson because I thought it wasn't the quintessential Blueys experience. I am actually a Bilpin expat, living in the city, so my real recommendations lie on that side. But all activities would take longer than a half day, or some precise calculations. I am also wary that people won't see the same beauty that I see in my old landscape, so i recommended touristy stuff (perhaps to ensure anticlimax).

+1 on the WF fish and chips - also the sourdough bakery.

How is this:
Turn down the Mount Wilson turnoff at Bells Line of Rd, follow it though to Mt Irvine, and follow Mt Irvine Rd though Tootie Creek (unsure of current rd conditions - think dirt) and follow this up though to Bells Line of Rd again. There are some great views and CLOSE sheer cliffs. This bypasses Mt Tomah, but is really beautiful.

On Mt Tomah:
http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/welcome_to_bgt/feature_stories/hard_rain_exhibition
This will be over by the time you get there, but I thought it would be a good thing to alert others to. I missed it this weekend, even though I was in the general area, was tending to my hop bines in a non-related hobby, I will try to catch it in a few weeks time.

Cheers
Dan

[Mr Darcy]

How is this:
Turn down the Mount Wilson turnoff at Bells Line of Rd, follow it though to Mt Irvine, and follow Mt Irvine Rd though Tootie Creek (unsure of current rd conditions - think dirt) and follow this up though to Bells Line of Rd again. There are some great views and CLOSE sheer cliffs. This bypasses Mt Tomah, but is really beautiful.

That's a nice little drive. I didn't mention it as it can get a little rough at times. It can also be weather dependent.

If by "Sourdough bakery" you mean Schwarz's (spelling???), I feel it has gone off in recent years. I did forget to mention though that there is a new pie shop on the highway between the TAFE and the school. It is really good. Almost as good as Arthur's in East Gordon.

[a3e]

wow, lots of suggestions....

I was contemplating to post this in the NSW forum, however I thought best to hear from SA ppl who may have been there. Didn't expect suggestions coming from you guys
As I've mentioned, will consider them if the time permitted.

thanks.