Date: 22/6-6/7/2024
Trip leader: Adam
Party: Liam K, James Z, Jin, Tera, Patrick, James S, Eric (Shibo), Romi, Jackie, Tim, Tracy, Alex, Liam T
In what was essentially 3 separate trips over 3 weeks, we walked through (most of) the Blue Mountains!
Leg 1
Setting off from Mt Victoria station at 10:47 22/06/24, the first leg of the traversal was afoot! With our party of 6 (myself, Liam K, James Z, Jin, Tera, Patrick) we headed for “The Great Blue Mountains Trail” which would take us through to Katoomba. The trail followed the highway for 1.6km before branching off to instead follow the train line, providing a pretty unique opportunity to walk right up next to trains passing at full speed.
Unfortunately, on one of the ascents, Tera had developed some pain in his leg and walking became difficult. However, the fortunate thing about following the train line is it’s pretty easy to find a station! We said goodbye to Tera at Blackheath and continued on to Medlow Bath. It was there where we stopped for some warmth and lunch in the Hydro Majestic Pavilion before once again setting off towards Katoomba. At this point, the trail was through the bush but we were still within metres of the highway, making for a pretty disturbed “bushwalk”.
Nevertheless, we found interest in the former site of the Explorers Tree. The tree was supposedly marked by Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth during their crossing of the Blue Mountains in 1813 (although they never actually mentioned doing so). Following the tree’s death in the 1950s, the stump that remained was burnt, crashed into, and eventually moved by council in 2021 due to safety concerns. After a short stop to learn about the tree we then continued on to Katoomba along the highway.
Rightfully unenthused by the 7km of boring suburban walking that faced us from Katoomba; James, Jin, and Patrick headed off early back to Sydney. In the name of a geographically continuous traversal, Liam and I continued on to Wentworth Falls where the next week’s leg would begin.
Leg 2
A week had passed and it was time for leg 2. This time, we set off with a party of 5 (myself, Liam K, James S, Eric, Romi) from Wentworth Falls station.
The first 5km of the walk was just along the highway and the residential Tableland Rd. We eventually reached our path onto Ingar Rd. The normal way to access Ingar Rd would be through private property, however it was unclear whether pedestrian access was allowed, so we found the far more interesting (albeit muddy) trail that joined Tableland Rd and Ingar Rd just one kilometre south.
We then intersected with Ingar Rd and followed it down towards Ingar campground. The 10km walk down was as interesting as a fire trail walk can be, but the campground itself had an awesome secluded billabong and made for a perfect lunch stop.
In spite of a thorough testing regime conducted by Eric, James was the only one brave enough to give the rope swing a go.
After a swing and some food, we once again set off for the rest towards Woodford. The descent down to Bedford Creek began just after the campground and was adorned by construction equipment as the road was undergoing reconstruction (although thankfully still accessible on weekends). This of course meant the ~200m descent was made harder by the ground of the half finished trail.
Naturally, what goes down must come up, so after a sketchy creek crossing on a fallen log, we began the climb back up to Woodford. The trail up was much better than the trail down and even provided for a pretty awesome view of the now setting sun.
After a total of 23km walked, we hit the end of the trail and were just 2km from Woodford station where we said our goodbyes and parted.
Leg 3
For the third and final leg, our biggest party yet (myself, Liam K, Liam T, Tracy, Jackie, Alex, Tim) set off from Woodford. Nothing too noteworthy happened on leg 3, just 7 people, 25 km of fire trail, good chats and vibes. Thanks to Tim setting the pace and in spite of Tracy’s injured knee, we managed to complete the 27km distance in just under 5 hours, even recording sub-9 minute kilometres along firetrail. A fantastic way to finish the 75km traversal.
