TOTALLY MY SCENE

SCENIC WORLD : A UNIQUE VIEW OF THE BLUE

My son is mildly obsessed with snow.

After a friend at pre-school spoke about a visit to the Blue Mountains during their ‘news time’, he had been at me (and at me!) for the family to head up for a visit. He had been drawing pictures of mountain ranges (or that was my guess) and even made a Blue Mountain out of yellow play dough (points for creativity, right?). Just one minor problem; I am NOT a snow bunny. It’s cold, wet and icy. I thought Spring would be much more my scene, so despite having lived in Sydney for 6 months now, we had never made the trek.

When the opportunity for a family day out at Scenic World came my way, it was met with shrieks of joy, and declarations of endless love. I was already winning. However, I had to address the matter of no snow capped mountains. I went in like any sensible parent would; I quietly mentioned that there would be no snow, but definitely the chance of an ice-cream. Too easy. Back in front.

The night before, my husband and I sat down for a bit of housekeeping and I was really pleased that we did this. Scenic World has a fantastic web site, packed with ideas to make the most of your visit. I especially loved the section outlining various itineraries from ‘Couple’s Escape’ (sure; I remember those) to ‘Nan and Pop with kids’. It was also important for me to get a good look at the rides on offer. I am not scared of heights, but I am often just ‘scared’; add my kids to the mix and I am sometimes a worrier. So whilst the husband was bouncing off the walls about how awesome and amazing they all looked, I was busy taking them in and getting myself ready. It was also a stroke of genius for the web site to have a local weather report. I think I would save this trip for another day if I knew there was to be strong winds and storms. The final task for the evening was to GET THE KIDS TO BED EARLY. Oh yeah; because that is sooooo easy the night before an adventure. Too early in the year to pull the Santa card?

Do get up early and get on the road. Our ‘it will only take 1 1/2 hours’ became an easy 2; because, well, kids. We hit the road before 8am and made it by 10, despite the husband’s genius gift for short cuts through Katoomba, a town we had never visited before. We had lucked one of those ‘it’s good to be alive’ days. Blue sky, sunshine, fresh air and barely a queue yet. Again, if visiting on the weekend or school holidays, get your skates on early. Straight off, the staff, which became even more evident throughout our day, are fantastic. They didn’t rush you, and our attendant gave us a map, sized up our 3 & 4 year olds, and outlined a plan that she believed would work for us.

And so the fun began.

First stop; look out the windows. Take a deep breath and look at the magnificent scenery. This privately owned tourist attraction has been in the Hammon family for three generations. It overlooks the breathtaking Jamison valley and I will admit to a pang of homesickness when I spotted the Three Sisters (shout out to my 3 older sisters; did I mention they are older? You’re welcome, girls). The area was once a coal mine and this is represented in various displays around the site.

We went straight to the Scenic Skyway as advised, to skip any queues. I was facing my nemesis straight up. I pasted my mummy face on and smiled as we entered a sliding box that was a lazy 270 metres above the valley. But the excitement shoved my nerves away and it was simply incredible. It looks higher than it feels, and the appearance of a glass bottomed floor once we got rolling was super cool (though I admit I only managed about 5 seconds in order to check it out).

The trip went all too quick, and we headed off for a walk and many, MANY photo opportunities. I marveled at how beautifully the whole place, including the bush walks, is maintained. Rails ensured we could walk (relatively) happily without the fear of my little ones heading off the side of the cliff. My husband kept us amused with his “Cooees” into the valley and I was relieved with my choice of footwear. Just as a side : if it is a date, do NOT choose a pair of tight, white jeans with stiletto style boots for your day out. There are puddles and you do need to be able to walk.

Back to the main building we made a dart for the Scenic Cableway. Lines were starting to build, but all rides leave every 10 minutes, so it keeps rolling steadily. This was my personal favourite as we slid gently down 545 metres into the valley in an enclosed pod with space for 84 people.

From here we hit the longest boardwalk in Australia. It was incredible strolling through the forest deep in the valley on the Scenic Walkway. The kids ran ahead and posed as statues, I actually found out how my husband is going at work, we told corny jokes and ate bananas and BBQ shapes. It was time out together that was much needed. Do plan your walks. Some are long; some are short. Be sure you know what will work best for your crew.

Our last ride for the day was on the Scenic Railway. Barely a wait before we clambered on and held on for dear life. We ascended up at a 52 degree incline, backwards. Annnddd…there is an added bonus of being able to tilt your chair even more. Hold on to your bags, people; I hooked my foot in a very awkward manner around the backpack I placed on the floor, with one arm holding the seat in front of me, and the other arm slapped across the front of my nearest child. Again, the views were magnificent, but I will admit I was pleased the trip was quite short, though memorable.

There are two cafes and even a function space if you’re keen, so you won’t go hungry, though there are also plenty of picnic areas if you choose to bring your own. The kids happily gorged on the promised ice-cream, then it was in the car with sleepy smiles.

With gratitude to Scenic World for allowing our family free entry for the purpose of a review. Having said that, I would happily pay the $99 family pass which allows unlimited rides for the day.

Another magic memory for our Sydney file.

The little one was asleep before we made it out of Katoomba.