Where are the Blue Mountains ?

The Blue Mountains are located about 100 kilometres or 2 hours drive west of Sydney, the capital city of New South Wales, Australia.

Approximately 70,000 people live in the area, with development mainly limited to the ridge tops. 

Most of the Blue Mountains comprise National Park and have recently been listed as a World Heritage Area.

Why are the Blue Mountains - Blue ?

The Blue Mountains are so named because of the sapphire like blue tinge they develop at certain times of the day.  The simplified explanation of this, is that it is caused by the light being scattered off small droplets of oil in the atmosphere.  The oil comes from the predominant vegetation in the area, eucalypts. 

When were the Blue Mountains first settled ?

It is believed that the Australian Aborigines lived in the Blue Mountains up to 22,000 years ago.  Following the colonisation of New South Wales a number of attempts were made to cross this seemingly impassable mountain range.  In 1789 Lieutenant William Dawes attempted a crossing and is believed to have reached as far as the present day township of Linden before turning back.

It wasn't until 1813 that three intrepid explorers, Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Charles Wentworth managed the first official successful crossing of the Blue Mountains. The main push for this exploration was for increased grazing and farming land west of the Mountains.

The first road access over the Blue Mountains was built under the Governorship of Lachlan Macquarie in 1815. William Cox used convict road gangs to complete a road as far as the town of Bathurst.  Once the road and later the railway arrived, settlement along the main highway through the mountains followed.