BLUE MOUNTAINS Katoomba The most visited village in the Blue Mountains, Katoomba is where the young Royals were ushered to take in one of the most spectacular sights in the country – the Three Sisters, which tower above the Jamison Valley and stand at 922, 918 and 906 metres respectively. According to Aboriginal dreamtime legend, three sisters named Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo were turned to stone for their own protection after being forbidden to marry three brothers from a different tribe. Echo Point, perched on the edge of the escarpment and offering a direct view of the Three Sisters, is where several of Katoomba’s finest walking trails begin. The Giant Stairway, comprising eight hundred steps, leads down to the valley floor and joins The Federal Pass trail – a 1.5-kilometre track that takes you to the base of Katoomba Falls and the Scenic Railway, which you can catch back up to the top. On a clear day, take the Skyway tour at Scenic World to get a genuine sense of the vastness and magnificence of the Blue Mountains. Gliding between cliff tops, the Skyway is Australia’s highest cable car – suspended two hundred and seventy metres above ancient ravines, it has a glass floor so you can see as much of the valley as possible during the seven hundred and twenty-metre journey. Once you come back down to earth you can discover the tranquillity of the ancient rainforest by taking the 2.4-kilometre Scenic Walkway. It’s an opportunity to learn about local flora, spot a lyrebird, taste pure water straight from Marrangaroo Spring and learn about the site’s history as a coal and shale mine that was operational until 1945. Also of historical interest is the site known as The Gully, in South Katoomba, which holds great cultural significance to its traditional owners, the Gundungurra and Darug peoples. Prior to white settlement of the region, this natural amphitheatre was long used as a summer camp. After being controversially repurposed as a racetrack in 1957, The Gully was officially declared an Aboriginal Place in 2002, a move warmly welcomed by its traditional custodians. Visitors are invited to experience The Gully Aboriginal Interpretive Walk, which starts on Gates Avenue. Railway buffs will be interested to know that, back in 1874, the locality was named The Crushers after the railway station that served the nearby quarry, which crushed stone to form railway ballast and directly led to the original development of the area. In 1877 the town was renamed Katoomba – a derivative of the Aboriginal word Kedumba, meaning ‘shiny, falling waters’ – and it was given municipality status in 1889. (top left) Mountain Stream by Denys Joannes (next down) Carrington Hotel by night (next down) Blue Mountains Cultural Centre (bottom left) Town centre clock, Katoomba (below) Fern Glade, Katoomba by David Burke
Discover the Blue Mountains
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