The leeches are everywhere!

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So, they aren't as bad as the flies, but did sneak up and bite us.

We headed out to the Blue Mountains to experience Australia's version of the Grand Canyon. The first day was so foggy that we couldn't see 20 feet in front of us. We decided to go down the 1000 (872 actually; a great way to keep Deanne occupied) step staircase to the rainnforest below where everyone assured us that we would be able to see something. On our way down we passed countless people out of breath on their way back up the staircase.

Halfway down the views were amazing. Above us was a desolate land where next to nothing grows and below was the ceiling of the 200 foot high canopy with birds soaring everywhere. We then hiked through the rain forest for several hours, where it was raining. We stopped to take a break and Deanne noticed a leech on my foot. Then she looked at her white tennis shoes and noticed about 20 on her feet. She freaked out a little, not as bad as I thought though. We got all the leaches off then began to hike again, doing a leech check often. We passed by several waterfalls and started our assent back up the cliffs.

The next day was more clear and we decided to take a bus to Blackheath, their Grand Canyon. We got there and saw some awesome waterfalls, but due to recent bush fires, we had to alter our route to include some 4X4 trails. We can to another lookout for more stunning views and saw an awesome lauraceet chowing down on our way back.

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Photos

Look at the views
It's a little foggy out there on our first day.

Enter at your own risk
Just after seeing this sign, we see the first exhausted people come up the stairs

The skies begin to open
We walked through the fog to see the ceiling below.

Step 500
500 more steps to go. We were disappointed to hear that there were only 872 steps in total. Not the 1000 they boasted.

You can do it!
Deanne jumping logs on the trail.

Evil Leech
This little bugger was trying to suck out my blood through my wool sock. One did get me later and Deanne to. But we're okay

The views improved the second day.
You can see a waterfall in the background.

The end of the world
Or it seems to be as this river flows over the cliff.

Sleepy train ride home
Only two hours on the train to get back to Sydney. A great wya to see the countryside.

Comments

[bogansdownunder]

addendum
Josh forgot to mention the cute cabin we stayed in- it was an old mountain cabin that was converted into a small hostel. Lots of vibrant colors, high ceilings, and a cozy fireplace in the living room! We also got to express our artistic sides during dinner at a local cafe. Forget the fancy menus - the secret is in table cloths that double as a canvas. Ahh, how easily we forget the joy of crayons. Also, did you notice my cute hat? My first authentic camping/hiking gear- but I can't take all the credit- Josh picked it out. And finally, there was A LOT of blood from the leech that bit my foot. It crawled through the little "vents" on my sneakers and latched on. It was probably an hour after we encountered them before I could sit down and take off my shoe. We had to grab first aid from a nearby restaurant after the hike. I can't lie- there was a bit of screaming and freaking out, but come on---- it was sooo gross. I still get the hebejebes from thinking about it! Oh well, mother nature comes in all different forms!

[Heather]

Deanne with leaches?!
Oh, Deanne, how I would have loved to see your reaction to a leach on your skin! Then again, I imagine my reaction would have been quite similar.