Blue Mountains, New South Wales

Blue Mountains, New South Wales

After some incredible experiences in both Sydney and Melbourne, today we were off in search of Australia’s iconic Blue Mountains. Although a little way out of the city, it was well worth the trip to see such a fascinating and beautiful sight. A UNESCO World Heritage site, the Blue Mountains stretch across a horizon of eucalyptus trees. There’s over 140 kilometres of walking trails with some stunning rock formations, as well as plenty of other things to see and do in this area of Australia.

Getting to the Blue Mountains, Australia

Our journey started off a little unfortunately. We turned up at Sydney Train Station to catch a train to Katoomba, only to discover there were no trains on that route that day. Lo and behold, we hopped aboard a bus which took us over Sydney Harbour Bridge and on to our destination. When we arrived, we bought tickets for the Blue Mountains Explorer bus. This was definitely the most convenient way to reach our destination. It did, however, travel to a number of unwanted stops and was fairly expensive. It’s perfect if you want to get from A to B with some culture en route.

Blue Mountains, Sydney, Australia

Arriving at the Blue Mountains

When we arrived, we were taken aback by the view. The Blue Mountains seem to stretch for as far as the eye can see.

Blue Mountains, Australia
Eucalyptus trees of the Blue Mountains, Australia

The mountains apparently get their blue haze from the horde of eucalyptus trees that dominate the landscape. I’ve never seen anything like it and must say I was very impressed.

Looking out at the Blue Mountains, New South Wales
Mum and Laura at the Blue Mountains, Sydney
View across the Blue Mountains, Australia
Panoramic views across the Blue Mountains, Australia
View over the Blue Mountains

The Three Sisters, Blue Mountains

It’s easy to feel pretty small next to the Blue Mountains, particularly when they’ve been there for over 50 million years. You’ll also notice the interesting rock formation of the Three Sisters. They’re so called the Three Sisters due to Aboriginal legend. The story says that three sisters, Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo lived in the Jamison Valley as members of the Katoomba tribe. The young women had fallen in love with three brothers from the Nepean tribe, yet tribal law forbade them to marry.

Three Sisters, Blue Mountains

The Three Sisters create interesting shadows and colours as the sun passes over them. There are a number of hikes you can do around the Three Sisters, and you can even abseil if you’re feeling brave enough.

Mum admiring the view near Katoomba
Laura taking in the view of the Blue Mountains
Laura with the Three Sisters in Australia
Laura and the Three Sisters, New South Wales
Mum with the Blue Mountains, Sydney

Escaping the Storm in Katoomba

Those blue clouds aren’t a reflection of the haze. The heavens soon opened and luckily for us, we managed to escape the worst of the weather.

A storm brewing in Katoomba, New South Wales
Mum and Paul escaping the Australian storm

There are a couple of shops just up the street from the viewpoint, if you don’t fancy walking the hundreds of steps to the famous Three Sisters. We would have been keen if the weather hadn’t turned on us. Instead we did some local wine tasting in a nearby shop, and were impressed at the selection on offer. If it’s up your street, try the Golden Harvest variety of wine. It was like drinking liquid honey.

Storm over the Blue Mountains, Australia

We hopped back onto the bus and passed a number of walking routes. I’m sure that again, they would be great if it hadn’t been for the wall of rain perpetually hitting the bus. If you visit the Blue Mountains, make sure you check the trails out. There are some magnificent views and some falls nearby that you can check out too. Next, we did take a quick pitstop in the village of Leura. It had some great little boutique shops which reminded me so much of England. There’s also a great deli called Leura Gourmet. Make sure you try their smoked salmon salad, it’s divine.


Are you planning a trip to the Blue Mountains? If so, what are your plans? If you get the chance, make sure you visit!

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