Port Stephens - Hunter Valley - Katoomba
Trip Start
Jan 2003
1
113
200
Trip End
Dec 2003
Katoomba,
Australia
Tuesday, July 22, 2003
More was accomplished in Port Stephens on our last full day and it is indeed a gorgeous place. With plenty of wildlife, numerous beaches of outstanding quality, abundant spectacular viewpoints and streets of sumptious cafes and restaurants it's probably been my favourite part of mainland Australia. I should point out that there is not a vibrant nightlife and most of the visitors are either retired or on a quick jolly from Sydney but this doesn't attract from the overall positive impression I've formed.
Headed for Roland's penultimate (a word Australians don't seem to comprehend given the number of times we've heard the phrase "second last" used) stop at the Blue Mountains, we allowed ourselves to be diverted through one of Australia's premier wine-growing regions - the Hunter Valley. I doubt whether even the local tourist board has an idea of the quantity of vineyards here and the scenery is completely wine-orientated with acres of vines only interrupted by the odd barn-resembling building. We visited two places (Tyrrell's and Rosemount Estate), took a tour and jumped at the opportunity to sample wines I'd previously only thought available to the rich and famous. The people are surprising in how liberal they are with both the wine they offer and the amount of it even to such obvious peasants as ourselves and it would be both easy and enjoyable to get well and truly plastered.
After using all my willpower keeping within the drink-driving limits the last leg of the day was a tiring drive. We deviated off the main highway just 15 miles from Sydney and took the what I'm sure in daylight would have been a very pretty ascent to Katoomba, the main town in the Blue Mountains. Given the absolute darkness we have no idea what kind of vistas we missed out on and I still cannot confirm whether or not the Blue Mountains are blue.
