On track and off, the infinite nooks and crannies of the mighty Blue Mountains faithfully serve world-class everything. Including a reliable source of people to give a nod to.
I’ve never been a hiker that necessarily loves it when you go on a walk and encounter nobody else the entire time. I like to think of myself as partial to a bit of a nod, smile and occasional outburst of awkward small talk directed towards fellow walkers passing by.
However, when we do find a trail with nobody else on it – especially a relatively un-remote one in New South Wales’ famed Blue Mountains – we can’t help but grasp the opportunity to spend some time feeling like we’ve got a part of the world all to ourselves, even for a little while. We certainly felt this way on a recent walk to explore a number of caves dotted around Mount Piddington Reserve, near Mount Victoria – a heritage-listed town with historic buildings and a breathtaking stone train station dating back to 1868. Depending on who you ask, it’s also the highest village in the Blue Mountains (although other sources say this title is held by neighbouring Blackheath).
Dense vegetation on the way through to Witches Glen.
Tube lichen resembling snowy pine trees.
Unnamed lookout.
The trails around Mount Piddington, known as Wirindi by the Traditional Owners of the area, have multiple possible start and end points – a real choose-your-own-adventure situation, dotted with side quests and bonus levels. But on this particular morning we’ve resigned ourselves to the fact that we probably aren’t going to see everything, and decide to begin our walk from the car park at the end of Mount Piddington Road, with the goal of heading west to Bushrangers Cave, via pit stops at Pulpit Rock and Ross Cave. We pull up at around 8:30 into an empty parking area near a yellow concrete shelter with a trig point on top and retro green picnic tables surrounding it, the moody morning haze perhaps making the scene look more romantic and aesthetic than it actually is.
As we head towards the start of the walk, we spot what we assume is the first epic view across the valley, but given that it’s still shrouded in fog, we opt to push onward and wait for our return voyage to stop for a proper look.
Morning sun heading north from Witches Glen.
Junction for Ross Cave detour.
The track begins with a descent down a small flight of stone steps which quickly turn into a rocky and slightly muddy trail that continues weaving its way downwards into a dark, cool, fern-filled gully. Morning light peeks through the natural tunnels created by dense overhanging vegetation, illuminating the tiny bright white mushrooms growing from the gnarled, dampened bases of giant gum trees with the sound of gently running streams never far away.
Before long, the trail rises again and bends upwards along the side of the mountain, sandwiching us in between steep red cliff faces on our right and a sweeping drop into the valley below on our left. We ignore the turnoff for Ross Cave for the time being, opting to explore it on the way back, and push on to an unnamed lookout point where we perch for a water and snack break, hoping that more of the fog will clear. It turns out to be worth the wait, the view below us slowly unfolding as if we’re watching over the shoulder of a painter working to capture the colourful patchwork scene below on a canvas.
From here, Pulpit Rock lookout isn’t much further, and provides another opportunity for a water and photo break before beginning the zigzagging descent towards Bushrangers Cave. The soundtrack to this final part of the walk is the gentle clinking of carabiners and ropes as rock climbers dangle a few dozen metres above us, just out of view. As we near the base of where the scramble into the cave begins, I continue alone, deciding this section is probably not suitable for my hiking companion who’s saddled with our 9-month old son in the carrier.
Steep cliffs make the area popular with climbers.
Bushrangers Cave.
As I turn the corner and start the scramble, a few groups of climbers come into view and I quietly relish the exchange of a few nods and smiles as I continue up into the cave. I take a minute to admire the perfectly framed view of the eucalyptus trees outside, now fully drenched in bright warm morning light, before picking my way back down carefully and starting the return to the car, satisfied that we’ve experienced both solitude and solidarity with other explorers.
Conospermum taxifolium Variable Smoke-bush.
Little eyes taking it all in.
