Bruce Cameron has just published his second edition of his book on the Blue Labyrinth. The first edition was published way back in 1992 and this new edition is a major revision with a lot more photographs (many in colour) and a lot more information.
It is called “A History of The Blue Labyrinth, Blue Mountains National Park”. The Blue Labyrinth is that part of the Blue Mountains south of the railway line, north of Lake Burragorang and between the Nepean River and as far up the mountains as Wentworth Falls. It is nearly all part of Blue Mountains National Park. It includes Kings Tableland, Glenbrook Creek and Gorge, Euroka volcanic neck, other volcanic necks such as St Helena and Tobys Glen, well know walking tracks such as Sassafras Gully at Springwood, Terrace Falls at Hazelbrook, Adelina, Junction, Federal and Cataract Falls at Lawson. Many aboriginal sites including the well known Red Hands Cave. Picnic and camping areas such as Ingar. A few small sandstone canyons. Through the heart of the Labyrinth flows Erskine Creek – wild and remote!
The Labyrinth is also perhaps the cradle of bushwalking in NSW. Much of the book is the bushwalking history of the labyrinth, the story of its appeal and exploration.
This is a beautiful and fascinating book. Bruce Cameron has been meticulous in his research. To accompany the fully documented text, he has unearthed a multitude of amazing historic photographs and maps. The book is well laid out and a pleasure to read.
It is greatly expanded from the first edition, which has long been out of print. This new edition is a great addition to the history of the Blue Mountains and to the history of bushwalking. The author has a strong affiliation with the area. he grew up at Glenbrook and has much experience bushwalking and rock climbing in the Labyrinth. His book is very clearly a labour of love.
It is a large format hardcover book of 352 pages (127 in colour) that will be of interest to anyone who has walked in or plans to walk in this area. Copies can be obtained from the author ([email protected]) for $60 and add $15 for postage ($12 in the Sydney area). Copies may be also obtained from the following outlets:
- NPWS Blackheath
- Glenbrook Visitor Information Centre
- The Turning Page Book Shop, Springwood
- Megalong Books Leura
- Summit Gear outdoor stores Glenbrook and Katoomba
- Gleebooks, Blackheath
Hi David, Thankyou for this post. I had been searching for this book for several years and finally came across a copy of the 1992 edition only a couple of days ago (not knowing about the 2nd edition). It is a fascinating book. I’ve done quite a bit of walking in this area and am poring over every line that Bruce has written- really interesting stuff! I now look forward to getting a copy of this new edition…and getting out into some of the more remote areas of the Blue Labyrinth!
I would like to buy this book online, for my brother, who spent much time in this area as a teenager. Where & how, please?
It is available online from Megalong Books at Leura. Go to http://www.megalongbooks.com.au and then follow their link to Blue Mountains Books. You may have to scroll through a few pages.