Earlier this month, we visited the World Heritage-listed Greater Blue Mountains area …
… as part of a trip organised by Nutrition 101, a nutrition club based in Sydney. Our first stop for the day was at Wentworth Falls, which is obviously famous for its waterfall.
During our one hour stop, we did some bush walking to three lookouts to obtain a different perspective of the valley.
The first was Jamison Lookout, …
… followed by the Princes Rock Lookout …
… and lastly, the Wentworth Falls Lookout.
Due to the constrained time, we were not able to proceed further. Otherwise, a hike over to the top or the base of the waterfall would have been fun!!
After burning all the carbs (even without breakfast), our next stop was at the beautiful little town of Leura.
Here, we visited the Treasured Teapot Museum …
… which has the world’s largest private collection of teapots.
Having a collection of over 3000 teapots on display, visitors get to see an array of old, new, rare and common teapots collected from all over the world in various styles, shapes and tastes.
Besides teapots, a whole range of antiques, collectables and jewellery were also on display around the museum …
… even in their washrooms. While here, we decided to head over to their Tea Room …
… to try out their in-house specialty, …
… Scones with Home-made Strawberry Jam and Whipped Cream …
… served with Devonshire Tea. And here are the four steps to enjoy the tea. First, place the strainer over the cup.
Next, pour the tea into the cup through the strainer.
Then, lift the strainer …
… and lastly, place it back to its holder.
For those who are not really keen about having meals in a museum, how about trying out the post-office!?!?!
Anyway, after the quick brunch (or rather morning tea), we took a stroll along the Leura Mall…
… before moving on to the famous Echo Point at Katoomba.
Echo Point is probably the most visited attraction in the Blue Mountains, …
… thanks to the Three Sisters.
Again, constrained by time, we did not have much time to explore further, but for those who are interested, maybe a cliff walk around the area would be interesting.
Our last and final stop for the day was at Scenic World.
Here, we have the option to do nothing, or choose among the 4 activities, the Scenic Skyway, Scenic Railway, Scenic Cableway and Scenic Walkway.
Since we had an hour and a half, we opted for the Valley Return, which includes the Railway, Walkway and Cableway. Although we were told that we will have enough time to experience the Skyway, we decided not to take the risk. And luckily we did not, as the Valley Return actually took all our time there (queuing up for tickets easily took us 20 minutes).
After getting our tickets, we headed over to the entrance of the Scenic Railway. Upon entering, …
… we were greeted by this amazing view …
.. that even the lorikeets are enjoying them!!
The Scenic Railway is currently the the world’s steepest railway, …
… as recorded in the Guinness Book of Records.
As we hopped onboard the carriage, …
… we were transported down through tunnels …
… cliffs …
… and rainforests …
… before arriving at the platform.
Although the incline is only 52 degrees, down at the platform, it felt as though it was 90 degrees.
And just in case you are curious, no, don’t worry, no one had tipped over at the site. But, this was actually how Katoomba Coal Mine tipped the coals onto waiting skips to transport them to the top of the escarpment, back in the 1880s.
Next, our Jurassic adventure with the Scenic Walkway began.
Covering a total length of 2.8 kms, the boardwalk circles through ancient rainforest, with signboards explaining fascinating facts about the local flora and history of the valley.
At the end of the Walkway, we hopped onto the Scenic Cableway to make our way back to the top of the escarpment.
Claiming the title, “steepest aerial cable car in the Southern Hemisphere”, …
… the 545 m ride provided spectacular views of the valley.
Upon reaching the top, we also passed the Orphan Rock (possibly the 4th sister??).
Legend has it that the Orphan Rock is the Witchdoctor looking after his 3 beautiful daughters (Three Sisters), who are on the opposite side of the valley.
As we got back to the top, we started our journey back to Sydney. We really had great fun during this trip. Special thanks to Nutrition 101 for organising such a great trip. I am really looking forward to the next one!!!
Photo credits: Chrys, Nutrition 101 (Oscar)
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