After the fires - Mt Wilson

I didn't like the look of things as I drove in towards Mt Wilson. It's a beautiful but peculiarly isolated and fire-exposed little Blue Mountains village. And the bush all around was very burnt and black.











But miracles happen, or more to the point, the Rural Fire Service volunteers made one happen. Most of the place, including most - but not all - of the houses and the parks, were saved. The Fire Captain herself was one who lost her home.

20 years of no lilo

I was reminded the other day that I've been in Sydney for 20 years now. This was by way of a bushwalking trip down to the start of the Wollangambe Canyon at Mt Wilson in the Blue Mountains.

It was the same trip I'd done shortly after arriving here in early 1998. The really cool thing to do here is to take a lilo down to the river, and float down through the canyon for a few kilometres, then exit via another track.

On another occasion I'd set off  to do the lilo trip, but been talked out of it because of cool and inclement weather. It tends to be a bit cold in the water, even on hot summer days.

Anyway, a a nice little visit was had once again. The scenery is excellent. It's not a huge walk, but you do go down and up a few hundred metres, and some of my fellow walkers were somewhat tested on the uphill journey.

The start of the canyon proper.