Below, Black and Bang Bang

29/03/2012

Morning broke over the Blue Mountains and our wonderful base at Kookawood. The sunrise was spectacular. Being in the Southern Hemisphere everything is upside down and back to front in comparison to home.

The plan of the day was a hearty breakfast, followed by a little walk into the bush to explore and mess about and then a trip to the Jenolan Caves. The caves are reputed to be the oldest open cave system in the world, some  340 million years old. Carbon dating of the clay in the cave floors had confirmed this.

 The drive to the caves was terrific topped off by the natural tunnel, seen here, which came out near the visitors centre and brought gasps from us all when we ventured through it.

                                                               
     We decided to completed the Orient Cave tour which lasted about a hour and half and went underground for about a just over a  mile. It was well worth the price and to a person, such as myself from a mining background, this was a piece of cake. The others seemed a little pensive and worried  if they would suffer from claustrophobia . The cave system opened  up and the limestone formations were spectacular!





                                                                                     

        

      

After we had left the cave another little snack in the visitors centre set us up for the drive back. A terrific day out and the mountain weather had held, but we could feel the build up of a storm. We headed off back to Kookawood to once again sample the delights of our rural paradise and watch the expected natural light show.

Wet weather rigged, anything the Blue Mountains could throw at us we took. These togs were on hand, just in case we needed to round up the cattle, or just fancy dressing up while Pauline put the kettle on.

The valley bottom was lit up with a thunder storm that evening. The thunder and lightening were spectacular and brought a fitting end to another great day in the mountains.

Next day this was the view which greeted us from the porch. It was with a sad heart that we prepared to leave Kookawood. I could fill this page with so many photo's of the interior, but hook up to their website and indulge yourself. My lasting impression was of a rural retreat that had all the modern trappings, but with an old time feel. The owners had achieved a perfect balance between comfort in the bush and a sense of being close to nature. 

On the next instalment you will hear about how not to act around horses. Ben, Anna and Pauline  tangle with the Boys and beat a hasty retreat to our car....bless um !!