Sunday turned out to be another perfect day in the Blue Mountains. We all had good intentions to get up at 6:30am to see the sunrise over the Three Sisters but that didn't quite happen. Instead we started our day off after 9am by walking into one of the Three Sisters via the Giant Stairway.
At the top of the stairway it says it is approximately 800 stairs to the bottom of the valley. The entrance sign said this walk was only for the strong walkers, so we took up the challenge and began the descent. We were told the way down would take us about 40 minutes, but even with brief photo shoots and rests to take in the views, we made it down in a little less than 30 minutes. We made it to the bottom!
After enjoying the peaceful scenery at the bottom, we geared up for the hike up which we knew would be much more difficult. The anticipated time for the hike up was estimated at 50 minutes. You didn't realized how narrow and steep and sometimes slippery the stairs were on the way down but you could definitely feel them on the way up (and in your thighs a day later!). And we all made it to the top in about 30 minutes!! Being the accountants that we are, we decided to count the steps to see how true the sign was because at the bottom of the stairway the sign said approximately 900 stairs so there was a discrepancy between the top and bottom. And what do you know, the actual stair count was 901 each way.
After we caught our breath from the race up and got some water, we proceeded to the entrance of Scenic World. Scenic World is a trio of a scenic Cabelcar, Cabelway, and Railcar rides. All three methods of transport give you spectacular views within the valleys and above the mountains.
After a quick lunch in Leura we went to the Leura Cascades to walk through the peaceful trails. The Luera cascades reminded me so much of New Hampshire. It was very Waterville Valleyish.
Once again, we found ourselves racing against sunset so we rushed to Wentworth Falls. The Wentworth Falls were gorgeous and we took the Undercliff trail to get to the middle base of the falls. This trail was so adventurous. It involved steep climbs down stairs of rocks, walks through caves, tip toeing across muddy paths, scampering under the slight drops of a spill off of a small waterfall, and a final walk across a wooden bridge to reach our final destination. Once we got to the falls, the sun was just about to set so we raced back up to the top to catch the final glimpse of the blue illuminations over the mountains before heading back to Sydney.
To end a great weekend, we had some fun at Hibachi in the Paddington section of Sydney for dinner. Hibachi in Sydney is different than at home. Instead of just catching a zucchini piece in your mouth, we caught an egg in a bowl, and then we caught our rice as well!! Now that was interesting!
All in all a fun experience and fantastic weekend! Already looking forward to our next adventure!
No comments:
Post a Comment