Last weekend I went with Rik and Wendy to a nice part of the Northern Blue Mountains to explore some chasms and rock islands. It was a short walk from the car to the first chasm. We soon found a way to climb into it at a high point between two catchments and then we started exploring.
In one direction the chasm took us into a wider valley and we were able to climb, via an easy slot, out onto a small rock plateau – what some call a “rock island”.
The plateau was covered in heath, interspersed with interesting rocky outcrops and small pagodas. The plateau was cut off from the surrounding areas by a large gorge on one side and chasms on all the other sides. At the far end Rik was able to climb down into a small canyon.
We returned to the first chasm and explored it in the other direction. Here, we found a suitable cave to camp in. It was lunch time, so we had lunch in the cave and then spent the afternoon exploring another rock island or plateau that was just above our camp cave. This too had heath and rocky areas. It was just nice to be there and enjoy the view. We stayed till close to sunset.
The next day, I headed back onto the tops for dawn. The sun soon came out and my camera was kept busy. When I returned to the cave, we all had breakfast and then walked back to the car.
We spent the afternoon in a nearby dry canyon. You can see more photos from the walk on my website here.
