I had a bit of a thing about driving over Sydney Harbour Bridge, but neither of us particularly wanted to pay a toll coming back; so that pretty much decided our route out of the city. We’d go north.
Today was to be a settling in day; not too much driving, take on provisions and head into the Blue Mountains. The quickest route there is up the Great Western Highway, but we took the more scenic way via Windsor and Lithgow, ending the day in Katoomba. Stocking the Ambassmobile with food was a typical bloke affair, spending the equivalent of a small country’s GDP on essentials. It is vitally important to carry plenty of water off the trail in Australia, up to five litres per person per day. You may not know this, but water keeps much better when mixed with yeast and hops, and for safety’s sake we took on enough to keep Australia's Mr Boony fully topped up.
Further along, we shopped in a "BIG W" for equipment, including a new flux-capacitor for the camper. You have to drive for a little while to really clear the towns, but from there the road climbs steadily above one thousand metres and offers great views over the Great Dividing Range. The choicest place to end up, as we did, is Katoomba. The little town of eighteen thousand people is a popular destination with tourists and Australians alike. There is an award winning Hostel International that I had a quick snoop around, a few great bars and cafés, which of course we visited, and a helpful information centre.
The town acts as base for visitors to the Blue Mountains, part of the Great Dividing Range that runs south from northern Queensland, and ends over 3000km later in Victoria. The fine oily mist given off by the Eucalypt trees create the blue haze, after which the area is named.
Our camp for the night was an unexciting town car park, and it was cold enough to make me regret not packing more clothing. I cranked up the Nomads lap-top, while Matt took his turn to cook; he managed a fine job too, boiled potatoes, onions and a rare steak big enough to de-rail a train.
In the morning, along with several coach loads of Japanese, we visited the famous "Three Sisters". South of town, right next to the friendly information centre, a precariously placed look-out offers stunning views over the three rocks formations and Jamison Valley. The brilliant sunlight brought out the famous blue haze, but more impressive is the fact that Australia’s version of Grand Canyon is only one hundred kilometres away from Sydney.
For anyone passing through the area, this is an obligatory stop. Recent bush fires have destroyed many of the marked walking tracks, and so after only a couple of short walks, we hit the road with the intention of covering some serious distance.
