Blue Mountains National Park Things to Do

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You have probably already seen a dozen pictures of the three sisters - they are the main point of the Blue Mountains and are often depicted in calendars, travelogues and books about Australia. They are three giant sandstone pillars that were formed by erosion.
The three sisters got their name by an Aboriginal story: They were three girls running away from their unruly lovers. As they were so unhappy, they pegged a magician for help who turned them into three sandstone pillars, so that the lovers went away and did not come back. But: Before the magician could turn the pillars to girls again, he died, and so the pillars are still there.

There are two lookout platforms at Echo Point from which you have a great view of the pillars and the whole Jamison Valley. The Explorer Bus goes here right from Katoomba. As this is the main tourist highlight, there are also toilets, restaurants/cafés and souvenir shops.

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This signposted tourist drive is very pretty. You can make it a round tour if you wish. We did not visit Jenolan caves this time, but went directly to Oberon.
The Jenolan caves are well worth a visit, and the way to them on this road is very scenic, and you could return via Edith to Oberon then back to Lithgow.

Leave the Great Western highway at Hartley on the road signposted to Oberon and Jenolan Caves. The road winds through lush pastures in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range, giving you great views of the Blue Mountains, very scenic.

Oberon is a small country town, with a population of 2,500. There is not a lot here, but it is in a convenient location for the Jenolan caves. It can be quite cold here, we visited in October, and they had snow the week before, that is quite late in the year!

(late March - early April) is a nice time to visit, as the leaves have turned to beautiful autumn colours, .....many of the roads around the area are lined with stately poplars.
Oberon Dam, on the outskirts of town has a picnic and barbecue area, toilets and a children's playground, and there's the Oberon Museum, but only open on Saturday afternoons.

Please take particular care if approaching at dusk or in the evening as the area abounds with wallabies and kangaroos.

For more information on the drive if you wish to do it , check out the website, and it will give you further ideas for scenic drives in the area.

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Wow! Stunning! Amazing! Fantastic! Beautiful!..........Words cannot describe the beauty of these gardens, and they are completely the work of Volunteers.

The purpose of this garden is to conserve the natural features of the area, so the garden with azaleas, spring bulbs, rhododendrons, towering trees both native and exotic and lake, all intermingle nicely.
There are more than 1500 rhododendrons in the gardens. Another feature of the garden is the beautiful natural fern glades and the abundance of native flora & fauna. We came across wild Crimson Rosella Parrots who were not very afraid of us!

We visited late October, and the garden was at it stunning best, this is a WORLD CLASS GARDEN, and the ADMISSION IS A DONATION......you can't beat that.
Elsewhere in the world, you would be paying a lot of money to see a garden of this calibre.

Picnic areas are available, and there is a cafe with a balcony which overlooks the garden. We had a nice, reasonably priced, Devonshire morning tea here.
I also bought Calendars of the gardens for the very cheap price of $10, a great gift for someone, it comes with an envelope and is not too heavy to post.

OPEN from 9.00-4.00 daily Daily access for cars, Walk in anytime

PLEASE GIVE A DONATION as this goes towards the upkeep of the garden.

There is no set admission fee.
HAVE PLENTY OF FREE SPACE ON YOUR MEMORY CARD!

More beautiful flowers in my Travelogue.

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Blackheath is renowned as one of the Blue Mountains best spots for views and bushwalks of the area.
We took the Govett’s Leap road, just a short drive off the main road.

Also at the end of Govett's Leap Road is the National Parks & Wildlife Heritage Centre, well worth a vist for it's displays, information leaflets, maps, books and advice. There is also an easy nature walk, The Heritage Track which starts from the centre plus a picnic area with BBQ facilities and toilets. Other all day nature walks are available with varying degrees of difficulty. check them out if you have more time.

The views are spectacular of Govetts & Grose gorge, with the vertical cliffs dropping 160 metres into the floor of the gorge.

The lookout has spectacular views of Govett's Leap Falls that plunge 170 metres into the Grose Valley’s Grand Canyon. There wasn’t much water going over them in October, would love to see them after good rain.
You can view them from the top lookout, or take a short walk to a little lower lookout.

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The track to these waterfalls leaves from the Govett’s Leap Lookout.

At the start, I passed through some Rainforest with Tree ferns and a running creek, then the walk opened into bush with Wildflowers, and great views of the Blue Mountains from a different angle.
The lookout gave views of Horseshoe falls, who didn’t look like a Horseshoe because of lack of water, this didn’t matter, as the walk was nice.

WALK TAKES 15mins

Leura lies at the edge of the National Park and is a perfect basis to explore the walking tracks surrounding it. The village itself is a beautiful spot to relax or have a stroll around, and resting your feet in one of the cafés.
In the center of Leura there are some lovely little shops and cafés. The atmosphere seems somehow a bit fairytale-like or as if clocks just stopped here, but that makes it so lovely and the shops so special.
Leura is connected to Katoomba and Sydney by train and can also be reached by the Explorer Bus that goes around the mountains.

Katoomba could be called the capital of the Blue Mountains - it features restaurants, cafés and shops, hotels and the tourist information. It is a pretty little towns and certainly worth a visit. It also has a big supermarket.
Katoomba was founded in 1879, when coal was found in the area and the railway was built. Very soon, tourism started and today the town is one of the most visited in Australia, but it still has a scenic and original atmosphere to it - like Leura, it is is still a bit fairytale-like.
The Blue Mountains Explorer Bus starts from here, so it is a perfect base to start your Blue Mountains adventure.

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The Blue Mountains are a paradise for walkers and hikers, although the weather is not always the best (see my Packing List Tip!). As described in the Transportation Tip, if you go here by train and use the Explorer Bus, you get a map of the area and it is very easy to plan you own walking route. The different tracks can easily be combined, as the busses go from many stops, so are free to determine how much walking you want to do. The tracks are also rated in regard to how demanding or difficult they are.
If you love forest and waterfalls, you will love walking here!