Blue Mountains

The Blue Mountains are definitely up there in my most beautiful places list. I spent a day exploring them, but could have stayed for much longer!

On the way I stopped at Feathervale Wildlife Park and made some new friends. Kangeroos and wallabys roam freely, and they're curious little things. Especially if you have an icecream cone filled with food!

The Blue Mountains is a huge region of cliffs, waterfalls and endless eucalyptus forests. The oils in the eucalyptus leaves diffuse into the air which creates an ethereal blue haze across the sky.

One of the most popular landmarks is the Three Sisters. Its a huge rock formation with an Aboriginal legend. The story says that many years ago a magical witch doctor named Tyowan lived in the mountains. He had 3 daughters, Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo, and he would leave them on the cliff when he went down into the valley to hunt. One day they were frightened by a giant centipede (because that happens) and one of the sisters threw a stone to scare it away. The stone fell down the cliff side and awoke the Bunyip, a monster who lived in the bottom of the valley. The Bunyip raced up to the sisters, but Tyowan turned them into rocks to protect them. The Bunyip then turned his anger on Tyowan and chased him throughout the mountains. At a dead end Tyowan turned himself into a lyre bird to hide in the cracks of the cliff face. But in the process he dropped his magic wand. To this day the lyre bird roams the mountains searching for the lost wand, unable to turn himself or his daughters back to their human form.