We left the Intercontinental Sydney and headed for the Blue Mountains. Eric was quite pleased with a Sunday tour and the rain as it made traffic light and the drive easy.
Blue Mountain National Park
Blue Mountain National Park is part of the Great Dividing Range. It is roughly 160,000 acres in size. The highest peak is Mount Victoria approximately 3,600 ft above sea level to 600 ft above sea level at Glenbrook. The Blue Mountains are part of the Greater Sydney Basin, which consists of layers of sedimentary rock laid down over 300 million years ago.
Why are the Blue Mountains blue you might ask yourself. Well,first there are a lot of eucalyptus trees. The eucalyptus trees release tiny droplets of oil, in combination with dust and water vapor they scatter the short wavelengths of light which are predominantly blue.
Honeycomb tree bud. Covered with a sweet nectar you can get on your fingers and taste when they are ripe.
This bush you can pull off the leaves and rub them together to get an oil off that smells a lot like lemon. The aboriginal people would make tea from these leaves.
This is a cistern. During the early exploration of the Blue Mountains if explorers identified areas of ferns they knew the area had a lot of moisture and would liter through the sandstone and collect so that the explorers and their horse could have fresh water along the trail.
Blue Mountains National Park
Wentworth Falls
The Anseth Family viewing Wentworth Falls
If you follow this blog you know, I like waterfalls.
Blue Mountains in the mist. The lighter areas of rock are Sandstone and the darker areas contain iron and are more resistant to erosion.
Misty Blue Mountains
The 3 sisters in the mist.
The Three Sisters Wimalah, Meeni and Gunedoo were part of the Katoomba tribe and fell in love with three men from the neighboring Nepean Tribe. A major tribal battle ensued. A witch doctor turned the girls to stone to protect them but died before he could reverse the spell.
Katie at the entrance to our 3 sisters walk
The Anseth Family and the 3 sisters (minus -1)
Down the steps toward the 3 Sisters
One of the sisters and the valley below
Kari and I by the Sisters
Looking past the 3 Sisters
One more view. Is it too much? I don’t think so.
These White Ash trees lose their bark every year and become this iridescent color in the sun they are quite bright.
The Anseth Family and the 3 Sisters (minus 1)
Successfully back up from our hike.
Josephine’s is this awesome little chocolate shop in Leura. We stopped in for a little treat.
This cockatoo just eyeing me up on the streets of Leura
We stopped at the Hotel Alexander in Leura for lunch great little spot with dining hall, local pub side and a few rooms you can stay in when you are in the region. Eric was very high on this place and I can see why after our lunch.
Crispy skin barramundi, mashed potatoes
Back out to the Blue Mountains
This waterfall is very tall and I believe Eric said the sedimentary rock has been dated back 400 million years at the base.
I can’t get over these views
Bridal Veil Falls.
What this blog needs is more waterfalls . I gotta fever and the only thing that can satisfy it is more waterfalls .
Anseth at the scenic overlook. OneAustralian warned us the rain was coming back in and that we should not go chasing waterfalls. We should stick to the river and the lakes that we know.
The valley is covered with eucalyptus trees.
I wonder what is roaming around in the canyon. According to Eric, the North Rim is much better to hike in the winter because the snakes hibernate. Many are very poisonous including the red bellied black snake and the eastern brown snake. Eric was telling us that eastern brown snakes are born mean, live a mean life and eventually die mean. They won’t back down and move off the trail as you approach. On a positive note the young eastern brown snake are one of the main food sources for the red bellied black snake so a lot of farms on the western edge of the Mountains actually encourage and protect the presence of that snake.
West edge of the Blue Mountains park. Straight west to Perth. This area has been cleared for ranching
A mob of Eastern Grey Kangaroos.
One more shot of the mob.
More views of the western plains
Anseth and the western plains. The view is too beautiful for Gracie to comprehend.
Drinks back at the Intercontinental after a long day. The Gold Petal: Gin, Mancino Bianco, lychee, citrus, hibiscus
Regal Highball: Coastal Stone Whiskey, Earl Grey, apple and honey.
We found a great little Italian place not far from the hotel but had to fight the rain to get there and back.
Tomorrow, Katie will have class so we will try a little Bondi Beach Walk.
Tomorrow, Katie will have class so we will try a little Bondi Beach Walk.
No comments:
Post a Comment