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A Howell photograph circa 1920 |
The walking tracks on the western side of Mt
Victoria have a fascination all of their own. They were mainly constructed in
the nineteenth century and retain lots of their original construction features.
The many sandstone steps are especially evocative of the era. Surviving period photographs
show people dressed in what seems to us to be unsuitable clothing and when you
stand where they stood you can’t help thinking about those distant times.
There has been a transfer of the name “Fairy Bower” from its original location
(now often called the Grotto) to the
valley which leads down from the Fairy Bower picnic area. Both the track which leads down this valley
and the track descending from Mt Piddington are actually sections of the real Fairy
Bower track. Only the correct location is used here and the associated video.
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19th C photo of Fairy Bower |
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Fairy Bower Howell photo 1920's |

In
fact, an interesting book called “Sandstone
Caves of Mt Victoria” by Erik Halbert & Ross Ellis has been written on
the subject. You can order a copy here.
The round walk via Cox’s Cave (complete with a scary looking ladder up to the
entrance) includes a section with great views of the cliffs and the Kanimbla Valley
below. Cox’s Cave will be the subject of a later blog.
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The White Lady Dec. 2013 |
Two unusual examples of graffiti (in the broadest
sense) are to be found on prominent rocks on the left as you go up the valley
towards the Fairy Bower picnic area (the Odd
Couple and the White Lady). Keith
Painter, in his excellent book “Great
Walks at Mount Victoria” tells of his efforts to identify the artists and
subjects of these two “works of art”. You can order a copy of this book here.
This part of the track appears in old photos and references as “Easy Way Home”.
It isn’t, if you left your car at Mt Piddington!
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The "Easy Way Home" Howell photo |
My video of the walk may be found here. My Blue Mountains You Tube playlist is here . I have three others - on gem hunting/mining, Glen Innes and New Zealand.
https://johnsbluemountainsblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/links-to-all-blog-entries-and-relevant.html
All Blue Mountains blogs and videos
All New England and other Geology blogs and videos
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The Corner, Cox's Cave track |
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