Blue Mountains

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Collected Claire and JP from the airport and after getting quite lost in the cities suburbs we eventually found the road to take us to Katoomba and the Blue Mountains. As we ended up on some Toll roads (we think) I had to ring up and get us an e-pass but at least that means that if we go through another toll on our way back into the city its not a problem.

The Blue Mountain area gets its name from the blue mist that rises from the thousands of eucalyptus trees on the valley floor and hangs in the air creating quite a mystical atmosphere. In 2000 it became a UNESCO world heritage site. It is stunning and we enjoyed a number of walks in the Blue Mountain national park (including Katoomba falls and Wentworth falls). As we descended the Furber steps nearing the valley floor on one of our walks there were some stunning lookout points with great views of the three sisters and orphan rock. Having decided that we didnt really want to climb back up all those steps we caught a cable car to the top.

The nights are much colder up here and as soon as the sun goes down there is quite a distinct drop in the temperature. Claire and JP are sleeping in the tent that came with the van - we were lucky it was kitted out for 4 people (the only really good thing about our leaky van). It's really good to have them with us for a few days.

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