Katoomba, Blue Mountains, is worth a longer stay than just a guided coach trip from Sydney. We have spent 2 days in this wonderful place. We did not go for serious bushwalking, considering Baby’s 12kg in a light carrier (Manduca) could do some damage to our backs. Not to mention all the wildlife that we haven’t got used to yet – Mummy panics at any sound coming from the forest, or a spider web nearby, or a parrot shriek in a distance.
We did the Prince Henry Cliff Walk, pretty easy 2 hour hike. It starts in downtown Katoomba, goes through Three Sisters rock formation and famous Echo Point lookout, ending in Scenic World – a lift, a gondola, and a railway above a rainforest. Not cheap (39 AUD pp), but price includes great views and a well maintained boardwalk in the rainforest. As we are walking, we cross paths with an excited group that has just seen a Bower Bird. Daddy volunteers to check it out, finding an empty nest full of stolen blue random stuff (plastic spoons, hairbands, condoms..). Weird. And no, this is not why it’s called Blue Mountains 😉
There is more to Katoomba than Three Sisters. When driving around, there are plenty of signs leading to lookouts, and they are worth to check out. For some of the biggest sights there are wheelchair accessible pathways, or short hikes. Wentworth Falls are beautiful at sunset, Govetts Leap is a huge canyon, Evans lookout has the best views.
At one of these lookouts, Daddy suddenly cries out “that’s the blue-stuff-stealing bird!”. Looking around, we see that Baby’s dummy is bright blue. Ehm. Perfect time to say goodbye to his old friend. With all seriousness, we ceremonially place him on a rock, and wait. Baby gives us a puzzled look. We wait. Nothing happens. We give up this weird dummy sacrificing ritual after 15min, grateful there was no one else around.
Tip:
YHA (Youth Hostel Association) is a great place to stay, even with kids! Our expectations were based on our backpacking days, but we were very positively surprised how baby/kid friendly the hostel was. We got a private room with a bathroom (no kids allowed in dormitories), free baby cot, and fresh towels. Facilities were great, and Baby loved the attention of the other guests – money well spent (or saved). If you would plan and book in advance, it is easily manageable to stay only at YHAs, a more budget friendly alternative to Airbnb and hotels.
