Grieving for losses: Newnes, NSW

The Gosper's Mt fire also swept through the remains of this old oil shale mining town, deep in the Wolgan Valley. We visited it in 2008 and I'm wondering what is now left, although it has probably been visited by a number of bush fires in the past. Ironically the local hotel was relocated to higher ground many years ago after the Wolgan River flooded ( a benign stream on the day of our visit, although it did require 4WD to cross).

Just after the Lidsdale Power Station we briefly turned onto the Castlereagh Highway before taking the Wolgan Road towards Newnes. Elements of lost city formations appeared on the edges of the forested hills to our east and then to our west as well as we travelled up through a settled valley and past the Angus Place Colliery. After this the road deteriorated significantly to heavily pot-holed tar, causing us and our vehicle to shake.

Then we reached a narrow winding section and a lookout point over a magnificent naturally vegetated valley ringed by sheer sandstone cliffs. This was the Wolgan Valley and we were about to descend Wolgan Gap. Of course we stopped for photos and then noticed a wrecked car far below us. The bank we were standing on convinced us that this was not recent and we continued on, winding down and around the edge of a mountain to reach the valley floor and a good gravel road which was much smoother than the tar.

High cliffs still heralded us along our way as we gently climbed and wound over hills, past hidden and more visible properties and through forests of medium-sized Eucalypts. Not long after we had passed the beginning of the Glow-worm Tunnel Walking Track the valley eventually closed in, but it was still a-ways before we reached Newnes. We followed the Wolgan River, which was edged with moss-covered boulders, as we wound through thick forest which was carpeted with ferns.

Then suddenly we were in Newnes with its camping area and shale mine ruins. We crossed the flowing Wolgan River via a sandy ford and followed a track (which would have been the old railway line) to the walking track to the old industrial ruins.

This took us for a 2 hour (5km) stroll meandering through the extensive ruins of coke ovens (there was a bank of 90 of these – 45 on each side), foundations (mostly brick) and huge brick walls all set amongst the bush, which was slowly reclaiming its dominance, and in an amphitheatre of huge sheer sandstone cliffs. 

Near one end of the ruins we took a side track and bush-bashed our way down to the beautiful river with its sandy beaches and clear brown rushing water. Here we also found some cascades which increased its soothing volume. Here and there fungus caught my eye and camera as it contributed to the rotting away of fallen logs. The circuit track brought us back along the old railway line and by the river.

Back at Newnes we wandered around the old hotel museum – the only remaining building of a once thriving town – and chatted to the owner as we bought some books on Newnes history and the history of Shay Railways. More people were arriving to set up camp as we talked – most going for the free camping in the Wollomi National Park rather than the paid spots near the hotel. The owner said the mix of historical interest, wilderness and recreation was uneasy and not working very well and we wondered on the impact of a resort going in further back along the way in. Thence we travelled back to Lithgow, negotiating past a number of on-coming vehicles on this narrow road.

Remember: Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect, it's just you've decided to see life beyond the imperfections. Gratitude App

Grieving for losses: Mt Wilson and surrounds, NSW

We visited Mt Wilson in 2008, whilst staying at Lithgow, and found a sheltered world of giant tree ferns and pockets of rainforest. The Gosper Mt fire also spread its tentacles here, but it is my hope that most of the lovely old houses and gardens survived. There have been so many fires that information about losses of buildings is difficult to come by.

By 9 am the fog had cleared to a sunny morning with blue skies and we left to take the Bells Line of Road towards Mt Wilson. Here we followed the zigzag railway, traversed through forests and climbed up and down hills. The shadows cast by the trees flicked across our vision and patches of trees glistened in the sunlight whilst the majority of their fellows remained bathed in shadow. All, however, danced and waved in the breeze as though welcoming the brightness after days of grey skies.

Glimpses of mountains and sheer cliffs could be seen in the blue distance and we began to follow the main railway line through Bell until it turned away from us to cross the Darling Causeway. It is much more difficult to gain the sense of being in a huge wilderness area as we are cocooned by the world of the highway, whereas dirt tracks leave us feeling more at one with nature. Eventually we turned onto the narrower, winding road to Mt Wilson and this took us 8 kms along a ridge through dense bush and then into ferny rainforest where bright green moss covered the wood on the roadside gutters.

 We emerged into a land of yellow and orange autumn trees amongst houses and rainforest but were enticed to visit the small local markets. Then we walked down the road to Du Faur’s Lookout – a conglomeration of rocks with views over the Blue Mountains National Park wilderness, back to the Bells Line of Road and down to the course of the Wollangambe River. A short way along the return track we discovered the path to Chinaman’s Cap and the Circuit Trail. In a mood to explore, we took it and were not disappointed.

We wandered through the forest on a wet and slippery track until we reached the rock formation of Chinaman’s Cap which was a short distance from the start. Then we descended to a bank of overhangs dripping with water. The first was decorated with some aboriginal-type art which we suspect was not original (this is not the land of Bradshaw men and I don’t think ochre comes in blue)! I later read that Patrick White (the novelist) used to have a cardboard box of things which he kept here and that he was not impressed with Chinaman’s Cap. We continued around the base of these overhangs for quite a distance and rounded the base of the lookout rocks before finding the one-way track to Phoenix Cave.

This was steep in places with steps cut into steep rocks. But it took us down to a grotto of tall tree ferns with many varieties of other ferns covering an extensive area of hillside and sheltering a veil of water which fell in perfect symmetry across the cave mouth and into a pool that formed the beginning of a clear tinkling stream that gurgled away under the thick canopy of fresh green ferns. Further up the cliff Flannel Flowers, surprisingly still in flower, lined the track but these were more noticeable on the return journey.

After returning to the car we drove through autumn trees and ferny forest to the Cathedral of Ferns (this mountain is capped with rich basalt soils, unlike the poor soils of the sandstone country) and took a short track through a glade of ferns and past a tall Brown Barrel Tree. In the park at the beginning of the track there was ample evidence that Mt Wilson had been discovered, as people picnicked and a few had set up camp. In fact, everywhere up here the traffic was heavy and car parks full. Yet we had encountered no-one else on our earlier walk once we left the lookout area.

After driving around Mt Wilson we stopped in another picnic area and took the Circular Waterfall Track down through fern forests and past a larger and a smaller cascading waterfall, following the creek between them until the track led us upwards again through another ferny gully and back to the car-park where we finally ate lunch.

John then negotiated the roads and lanes of Mt Wilson past huge estates with open gardens (the main reason for abundance of visitors) until we reached Wynne’s Lookout where a very short track took us to extensive views over the wilderness towards Katoomba, Blackheath, Mt Victoria, Bell and back towards Sydney.

Then we continued back-tracking until we reached the Darling Causeway, which this time we took right across to Mt Victoria.

Remember: The only person who can pull me down is myself, and I'm not going to let myself pull me down anymore. C. Joybells