Description of the attraction
Blue Mountains National Park is located 80 km west of Sydney in the Australian Great Dividing Range. The area of the park is almost 268 thousand hectares, but its borders are very conditional, since they are crossed by roads and residential settlements. Despite the word "mountains" in the name, the territory of the park is a hill, cut by large rivers. The highest peak of the park is Mount Verong (1215 m), and the lowest point is on the Nepin River (20 m). The main rivers of the park are Wollangambe in the north, Gros in the center, Cox and Wollondilly in the south. The latter two flow into Lake Burragorang, which lies outside the park and is the main source of drinking water for Sydney.
The traces of an ancient aboriginal settlement found on the territory of the Blue Mountains - rock paintings and whetstones - are about 14 thousand years old! The mountains served as a natural barrier to the explorers of the continent - the first road was built only in 1813.
The idea of creating a national park belonged to conservationist Miles Dunphy, who in 1932 proposed to take under protection the entire territory of the Great Blue Mountains. His proposals were heard, and in 1959 the Blue Mountains National Park was created, and then a number of protected areas in the same area. In 2000, the entire territory of the "Great Blue Mountains" was included in the UNESCO World Natural Heritage List.
Today, the Blue Mountains Park is one of the most popular in Australia. Most tourists must visit one of the observation decks between Wentworth Falls and Blackheath. Perhaps the main attraction of the park is the Three Sisters rock formations. In the park, you can walk along one of the many hiking trails that run over the cliffs, stay overnight in a tent, or take a long hike to remote locations in the park. Sports activities include canoeing, rope descent on sheer cliffs, rock climbing and mountain biking.
