Al & Ang's Auzzy Adventure - Day 8

Day 8 we woke up early ready for an Eco-Tour of the Blue Mountains. We crammed into a mini-Bus and headed west out of Sydney for the 2 hour drive, winding up a plateau to the Blue Mountains.

The Blue Mountains are part of what Australians call their Great Dividing Range. A group of mountains which divide the east coast from the rest of Australia. The part that we went to was basically a large plateau with valleys - and reminded me a lot of the grand canyon. The Blue Mountains are considered blue because of the sun shining through the oils evaporating off the Eucalyptus trees in the valley below. In the summer it creates a blue haze - though in the winter (when we visited) it was barely visible.

Having arrived at our destination, our tour split into 2 groups. The more energetic group descended into the valley for a 3 hour walk, while our group where to visit a number of lookouts, and do a short walk along the rim of the valley at the top.

The views were absolutely amazing. Our guide was also very helpful, pointing out all the different flora and fauna as we walked along the paths.

There were only 5 of us that stayed at the top. After visiting some of the look outs, and our nature walk we headed towards a Eco-Hotel where we were given a lovely steak & jacket potato meal! The hotel was pretty special too, as it was built with natural materials, and was designed to have minimal impact on the environment.

In the afternoon we picked up the energetic group who had just finished their walk - and drove off to the most famous rock formation in the Blue Mountains... the Three Sisters (below).

We then took an old mining train down into the valley. It was advertised as being the steepest railway in the world, but that didn't really hit home until we started the descent! At the steepest stage it was a 54 degree incline!

At the bottom of the valley we went on a board walk through the jungle - and then headed back up the valley on a giant cable car. Leaving the Blue Mountains behind we then had a quick instruction on how to throw a boomerang, before re-entering the national park at the bottom of the plateau where we were able to get close to live and wild Kangaroos!!

The kangaroos were really exciting - but unfortunately it was somewhat spoilt by the fact that there were more than a few tourists around, sharing the same experience!