Blue Mountains

Cowra has a mystical atmosphere and is on the Lachlan River three hours from sydney and is a wine growing area. You can feel the tranquility. The name cowra came from the rocks around the town. During World War Two the Japanese prisoners tried to escape from the prison camp and now the Cowra community has a japanese garden to honour the lost soldiers from the war. You can also go for a ride on a great steam train. There is a museum and a restored cottage of the convict era. Cowra has it all - it is the ballooning capital of Australia.

The Blue mountains are one of the highlights of a trip to new south wales. A great way to see the mountains is the skyway. The blue haze of the Blue Mountains comes from the evaporation of gum leaves. Abseiling is common in the blue mountains. Take a scenic steam train ride through the zigzag railway. This formidable country was first explored hundreds of years ago and the scenic railway is not for the faint hearted. The tourist look outs are fun for the whole family. You can dine in a fine restaurant and look out over the blue mountains in style.

Oberon has the jenolan caves which are world famous. You have the usual stalagmites and stalactites. Go for a walk in the blue mountains and have the nature holiday that you deserve. The Blue Mountains are a perfect weekend escape, with lots of quality hotels and places to stay that are close by. There are great attractions and restaurants to enjoy. Art galleries sprinkled through the mountains feature work from local landscape artists, potter, sculptors, wood workers, and furniture restorers. The Blue Mountains are home to some of the best preserved streetscapes and interiors of the Federation and Art Deco Architectural periods. A great thing to do is to stay in one of the heritage guest houses or grand hotels.

The Blue Mountains have always insprired the artistic mentality, right from the days of the ancient dreamtime culture of the local Aboriginal peoples to the myriad styles of artists who now call the mountains their home and muse. There are many protected areas in the Blue MOuntains area - The Blue MOuntains, Wollemi, Yengo, Nattai, Kanangra-Boyd, The Gardens of Stone, Thirlmere Lakes National Park, The Jenolan Caves, and Karst Conservation Reserve. The mountains give you a natural experience of breath-taking views, rugged tablelands, sheer cliffs, deep and inaccessible valleys, and wet-lands teeming with a diversity of fauna and flora.

The Blue MOuntains are less than two hours drive from Sydney, the capital of New South Wales. Follow the M4 and Great Western Highway for 110 kilometers from Sydney to Katoomba to find your way there. The Three Sisters is the most famous attraction in the mountains. They are best viewed from the lookout at Echo Point in Katoomba. The Visitor Information Center at Echo Point is open every day from nine o'clock in the morning until five in the afternoon. There are picnic facilities nearby, as well as restaurants and take-away food shops.

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