Blue Mountains and Jenolan Caves

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Our first weekend in Sydney, a group of us took the train out to Katoomba to visit the 'Grand Canyon' of Australia, the Blue Mountains. I wasn't sure what to expect, but when we got out to the first lookout on our hike, I could not believe how gorgeous my surroundings were. The hike was long, but well worth the surprises of an incredible waterfall and breathtaking valleys. There were some touristy things we heard about and stumbled upon them during our hike. We went on the Scenic Railway which is the steepest incline railway in the world which was built as an amusement ride in the late 19th century. We thought it was quite funny, but it turned out to be a little scary with how dark and rickety it was in the rainforest. We took the railway up, at the top is where I found the kangaroo I hugged and then we went across one of the valleys via the Scenic Skyway. That offered a new perspective on the rainforest and was a bit thrilling too with the glass floor. This was all in the first day of the weekend. On day two, four of us went to the Jenolan Caves. I have been to many caves before in the Wisconsin and the Midwest and was expecting this cave to be similar. I was mistaken. The pictures are amazing, but being in the one cave we were in there were magnificent chambers and formations. I couldn't believe this was one of many cave tours in addition to adventure caving and self-guided cave tours. Honestly, you could spend multiple days at the Jenolan Caves, in fact, the entrance lies within the walls of caves and mountains and in this small area there is a hotel to stay there in this remote area. The ride to the caves from Katoomba was 1.5 hours and half of the time was spent carving around mountains on cliffside roads (we were in a full sized coach bus) and the drive is so tedious and many times slims down to one lane. There was also an intense blue lake, which is called Blue Lake where there is said to be a platypus. We did not see him, but we enjoyed a nice hike before the caves. This weekend was incredible and made me remember how beautiful and precious our world is.

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Photos

Amazing backgrounds
I feel like I was photoshopped on a postcard.

The Three Sisters
The main attraction of the Blue Mountains

The Scenic Railway - Steepest Railway in teh world!
it was a bit rickety and actually quite scary!

Nick playing the didgeridoo
Goomblar let Nick try playing this Aboriginal instrument, he did get it to make some sounds, not very pleasing sounds, so he needs to practice. It takes a lot of abdominal strength and it involves your whole body when playing.

Us with Goomblar
He was very unique, joked around with the guys and there were no boundaries...but he was very happy to answer our questions and invited us to spend a few days in the outback visiting Aboriginal tribes.

Another of the Three Sisters
According to Koomblar, the story goes as Seven Sisters - and to tell the entire story it would take 2 months because it is told as you take a journey and experience the outback.

Amazing!
Just outside the Caves