Grand Canyon Walk

Out with the two oldest Hosking boys, Cameron & Brendan, today. We had agreed yesterday that we would meet up at Brendans to take another bush walk, this time somewhere down in to the actual valley of the Blue Mountains National Park.

I was up at about 8 o'clock in the morning. Cameron, my navigator to Brendans, woke up I think about 11 o'clock. So I spent the morning resting, moving my shoulder and watching some stuff. Iain and Leanne are currently out of house, as they are attending a friends party which stretched over the weekend.

Shortly after midday I met Cameron in the train heading towards Blackheath and talked with him about various subjects, ranging from forest fires to venomous animals (seems to be my favourite topic here). We met up with Brendan at Blackheath station and got some provision for the bush walk at a petrol station near by. After that back to see Maddy and Nicholas, which we left at home shortly later to proceed to the Grand Canyon walk (no, I didn't fly over the Pacific ocean with them, yes there is a trail here called like that). We reached the beginning of it in relatively short time, Brendan more ore less lives right next to the National Park. We proceeded down in to the eucalyptus treeline of the Blue Mountains. After the first corner we met some people asking us how much further it was until the end, so that question was easily answered. Further down the walk turned more in to a type of rain forest hike along a trail. There where dozens of other walkers on the track, but most of them where going the other way. I don't know if we where going right or the others, but we had the advantage of going down stream, which was nice.

It really is a canyon walk down there. You are surrounded by cliffs left and right (about ten to 20 metres from one side to the other), with a rapid stream somewhere next to you and there is water and sometimes waterfalls coming of the side of the canyon. The fern everywhere just gave everything a more jungle like felling. Had to cross the stream a few times, spotted some grasshopper like creatures in a cave and in the very same cave both the others said they saw some glow worms (or some kind of insect). Apparently a rare sort of insect, that is not seen that often.

We had a short brake under a protruding cliff, ate some jerky and had some water before we carried on. Me being the tourist was taking all the pictures when I could. We met some French people coming the other way with full camping gear who had camped in Grose Valley, a point we would reach if we had carried on along Greaves Creek. We followed the Creek for some time, seeing how far down the river was when we walked along the cliffs, doing some small cave explorations and sometimes some rock climbing. We turned away from the river eventually and talked about how dangerous ninja spiders are whilst we carried on to the top. Nearly to the top we walked out on to an outcropping of the cliff face and had a view directly down to the trees and canyon bellow us. From that point we watched the sun set across the canyon. Just how I like it, out on a place not everybody can get to easily (you are not allowed to be afraid of heights where we where) with the sun setting over spectacular view.

After that a short walk to the top in the diminishing light, a short stop at Evans Lookout with all the other tourists and then back to Brendans and Maddys to have some fun with Nicholas until our time came to catch the train back.

A super day, spent more in an area I would have thought would be in South America, with once again spectacular views.