Wednesday 26 Nov – Wednesday 3 Dec 25
This is not really a cycling-related blog, but continues our travel diary. Our Home Exchange hosts’ son let us borrow his car during our stay in Australia and up until now we’d only used for grocery shopping.
We bundled our bikes and bags into the back of the car and headed off to the famous Blue Mountains to the west of Sydney. It only took a couple of hours to get to Katoomba where we stocked up with food for the week and then a further 20 minutes to Mount Victoria, a very small town, where we were staying. Great little apartment under Rebecca’s house and in the middle of a forest with loads of wildlife all around us, especially different types of colourful parrots and kookaburras that laughed each day. Ours for the week and it suited us perfectly. No telly either, so we were forced to talk to each other and read!
We were a little early arriving so had time to make the short walk to Sunset Rock Lookout and then a Pulpit Rock Lookout. Both had amazing view over the Kanimbla Valley and were literally 5 minutes walk away from our accommodation.
This gave us a taster of what we could expect over the next week. We didn’t really have any plans, so we were making it up as we went along. Other than getting to destination, having a snooze and eating, we didn’t really have anything to do on the first day except get comfortable!
Thursday 27 Nov 25 – The Grand Canyon Hike
Looking through guide books showed that our decision to move base from Lithgow (where we originally planned to stay) to Mount Victoria was a good one, as a lot of the major hiking areas were closer. The whole area is close to downtown Sydney (60-90 minutes away) so it is popular and can get busy. Knowing this we decided to get up at our usual time (early!) to try to beat the crowds, which mostly worked and w efound before the further you walk from the main attraction the fewer people there are!
First day out, we decided to hike the Grand Canyon trail – no, not the one in Nevada, though as we were to find out, the one in the Blue Mountains is just as spectacular! Not many cars in the car park, which was a good sign, and we had packed food and water for the hike and were ready for the off. Basically, the trail heads down and then down more, and then down some more to the valley floor. As we descended, the flora around us slowly changed from mainly different gum trees
…to more lush tropical trees, ferns and other plants.
The air got more humid too so we sweated a lot! There was small river of the bottom that cut through a very narrow gorge. Stepping stones lead us across the river more than once and we passed numerous sprinkling waterfalls.
Really beautiful and as we were there early we almost had the place to ourselves. We even managed to stop along the way for a snack without being disturbed. Amazing – considering this is one of the most popular hikes in the area, and we could see why as it was spectacular. Of course, where there is a down, there is an up! And we got to the valley floor just as a busload of Asian tourists got to the valley floor, all happily snapping away on their cameras. Looked like we timed it just perfectly! There is no doubt that the climb back up felt like a gazillion steps – it was hard and we sweated even more than on the way down, but we really enjoyed it. The car park was practically full when we arrived at the top, but we still managed to find a quiet spot to eat our well-earned sarnies.
We went back to (historic) Mount Victoria, parked the car and went for a wander around the town. To say it’s a town is pushing it a bit! More of a large village than town, with a few of shops (strangely a couple of large antique shops) and not a lot else to be honest. Nice enough and we don’t need to stay in a place with lots of activity – especially when there is so much of the outdoors to enjoy!
Friday 28 Nov 25 – Hike Evans Lookout to Blackheath and back
The weather, since we have been in Australia, hasn’t been exactly what we’d expected. As it is late spring/early summer we’d expected just long sunny days that would slowly get hotter as the year progressed. In reality, it has been very mixed, going from sunny and mid-30C to cloudy, 20C and thunderstorms – and everything in between! The start of our stay in the Blue Mountains was forecast for 30C+, which is great, but makes any exercise a bit uncomfortable, so we decided to stick to hiking, rather than cycling, for the next few days.
At exactly the same starting point to the Grand Canyon walk there is a cliff-top walk, which takes in beautiful views of the main part of the Blue Mountains – the Grose Valley. Again, it’s a popular walk, so we got there early, took in the first views and then set off. Instead of descending into the valley as we did yesterday, this walk took us along the high ridge-line which gave us spectacular views down into the valley.
An easier, but longer walk which again we really enjoyed. Spotted some very large black cockatoos along the way. We had initially seen saw some on one of our rides out of Nowra, but we got a much better look at them here from were up high on the ridge, as we at the same as they flew and where they were perched.
We had intended to walk all the way to Pulpit Rock (a different one from the first day!), but when we got to Popes Glen there was a sign that said that the trail and the lookout were closed. We hadn’t gone as far as w had wanted by that point, so we changed plans and headedto Blackheath, 4km away, where we could get a coffee and some cake – every cloud and all that! On the way we were reminded, as if we needed it, that we were in Australia as a riot (apparently the collective noun) of kookaburras sparked up a cacophony of laughing! It’s great to hear and it went on for ages. It sounded like a load of old men telling dirty jokes to each other and laughing hysterically!
There might not be a huge amount to Blackheath, but there is coffee, tea and cake! We even had some Australian Lamington cake – not my favourite to be honest as it is covered in desiccated coconut, which I’m not a fan of, but Martina was suitably impressed. We then made the return journey back the way we’d come, taking in the views and the valley from the other direction – and beautiful it was too!
Having hiked about 10 miles again we were back at base by early afternoon, before it got too hot – and just in time for a snooze!
Saturday 29 Nov 25 – The Lost City
Cooler weather was forecast for today, but there was also a high chance of rain, so the bikes remained in the back of the car (we’ve obviously become fair weather cyclists in our old age!) and we decided to take Rebecca’s advice and head to the Lost City. Not actually a lost city, but a short hiking trail around what she described as interesting rock formations.
Ironically we had to drive through Lithgow to get to the start of the hike. Though it is a nice enough town, it has a heavy industrial past and is more of a service town now, rather like Nowra. Once again our decision to stay in Mount Victoria was validated. The last part of the drive to the start of the trail was fairly bumpy along a gravel road and we now understand why so many Aussies love their big 4x4s!
The sky was definitely threatening when we started out, but the rain stayed away until the very last 10 minutes. The scenery was very different to what we had experienced so far in the Blue Mountains, but technically we were actually outside of the National Park area. Around us was more like a moonscape than mountains – with few trees and less vegetation and huge rock formations which looked a bit like Aztec pyramids.
Similar to the Grand Canyon, the trail took us down to the valley floor where there were signs of mining from the late 1800s and early 1900s. As Mother Nature had started to reclaim her land, the industrial past didn’t detract from the spectacular views and weird rock formations.
The hike back up to the top of the valley was pretty tough again, but well worth the effort.
As we were heading back to the car park the heavens opened and we did get a bit wet, but it really didn’t spoil what was a great hike. We already knew that this would be a lazy(ish) day as the forecast was for rain for the rest of the day, but we felt we had definitely made the most of it.
Sunday 30 Nov 25 – Mount Hay Road – Bike ‘n’ Hike
Today’s weather looked okay for a longer day out and about, with no rain and not so hot, so we opted for a cycle to get to the start of a walking trail and then hike the trail to the summit of Mount Hay. Firstly we drove to the start point at Leura, where we would then cycle a gravel road for about 12km.
In the official guidebook blurb it said that the gravel trail was an easy ride. Technically speaking it was, but the road itself was far from level, making it fairly tough physically. There were some steep climbs and descents all the way, though it did level out towards the end.
Not too challenging, but as we hadn’t been on bikes much we could still feel it in our muscles by the time we got to the start of the hike.
This time we were back in the Blue Mountains National Park with views down into the Grose Valley all around us. Spectacular! Once again the trail headed down, almost to the bottom of the valley and then up the other side in the direction of Mount Hay. About halfway up the mountain we met a couple of other hikers who told us that there was little point in going to the summit as it was covered in tall trees with no views from the top. But also suggested another trail to a point called the Butterbox, which did have views and some interesting rocks. So, we decided to stop at the next lookout, have a snack, and then head towards the new trail and give the summit a miss. Turns out that this was such a good decision as the views on this route were spectacular and the air was much clearer than on the other days we’d been out so we could see for miles.
All the way to downtown Sydney, as it turned out, which is about 50km away!
A brilliant hike, though it turned out that we did miss the Butterbox itself! Another hiker showed us some pictures of some weird rock formations which we’d unfortunately missed, but by that point we were at the car park eating our sarnies in preparation for the cycle back to the car. Never mind, we can’t see everything and we did get to see some fantastic views.
As some of the hills on the way had been quite steep I wasn’t particularly looking forward to the cycle back. However, it didn’t seem quite as bad as expected and we managed thr gravely hill pretty well – and weren’t too disheartened when a guy and his son whizzed past us on electric-assisted bikes!
A total of 24km cycle on a tough(ish) gravel road with a 10km+ hike sandwiched in between. A pretty good total for the day and we were suitably tired by the end of it!
Monday 1 Dec 25 – Echo Point and the 3 Sisters Hike
Another hot day forecast, so it was back to hiking. We’d covered quite a bit of northern part of the Blue Mountains so far, but there is another, southern, portion to the south of Leura and Katoomba, which we hadn’t explored. This is also a popular spot as the views from Echo Point of the Three Sisters, three prominent rock formations, are excellent.
As early as we were, there were a few people already at Echo Point Lookout and the sheer size of the lookout itself showed why it is so popular. It is spectacular though – no doubt about that. Our plan was to walk east along the top of the ridge, but with no real destination other than we’d go until we’d had enough!
The view were spectacular and rather similar to the ones we’d seen along the cliff walk at Evans Lookout. And once again, as soon as we’d walked a few hundred meters from the main lookout point, the crowds disappeared and we were mainly on our own. As with all of our outings we saw plenty of wildlife. The parrots and cockatoos were especially spectacular.
Yet again our plan was foiled by the closure of the track where we wanted to go. Apparently the rain during winter has caused landslides and washed some of the paths away so they were being repaired. It wasn’t really a problem as we’d covered a fair distance so we were happy to head back. By the time we got to Echo Point there were bus loads of tourists, with more arriving by the minute. A perfect opportunity for a bit of people watching whilst we ate our sarnies!
We’d been told that Leura was a nice place, so we went for a look around. To be honest, it’s alright, but in our view nothing to write home about! We found a cafe and indulged in coffee and cake, which were just okay. We had a view out the back of the cafe, which was also just okay! Not too sure what the fuss about Leura is to be honest.
Back at base we booked dinner at a bistro in Blackheath, which turned out to be at a golf club and not what we had intended. Felt like a soulless working man’s club, where there were just a few people eating in an enormous room, so we did a little googling and found a restaurant literally next door which turned out to be much better. We were seated up at the bar which was ideal for people watching with a few Christmas parties in full swing including cracker-pulling and silly hats, which definitely felt a bit weird! We opted for a seven dish fixed menu, which turned out to be excellent and we’re guessing a better meal than in the golf club!
Tuesday 2 Dec 25 – Hassans Wall Cycle
Turns out that Lithgow is actually a good place for the surprisingly few cycling trails that there are in this area! This time we started in Lithgow itself, right next to an outdoor museum of the old blast furnaces that used to operate in the town.
The initial climb out of the town up the hill towards Hassans Wall was not exactly steep, but it did just keep going on and on! Though it went through some nice forest, it wasn’t the most spectacular trail…
…until we got to the top.
At Hassans Wall itself there was an amazing lookout with views spreading south east towards Mount Victoria and almost in every direction either side.
We also had two really lovely encounters whilst at the lookout. Firstly with an old Australian couple who were on a short tour of the area and then with a young Norwegian couple. They were travelling around, following their graduation in geology in Melbourne, and were soon to head back to Norway after 2 years in Australia.
Other than that, the trail was okay and as it was all downhill on the way back we were back to the blast furnaces for our lunch before we knew it. We still had some time and as this was our last day we didn’t really want to go straight back to base. Rebecca had recommended the Blue Mountain’s Botanical Gardens as a place to visit. It was only 40 minutes away in the right direction, so we headed that way and definitely weren’t disappointed
For a start it’s free to get in! It’s also perched on the side of a hill overlooking spectacular views into the National Park. And there were loads of beautiful plants and trees to look, with very few other people there!
As if that wasn’t enough, the cafe there has, quite possibly, the best view that we have ever had a cup of coffee from!
A fine way to round off a week in the Blue Mountains!
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