Blue Mountains, Australia (January 25, 2026)
During our trip around the world, Violet and I have had some epic days together. This was one of them. It may not have had the thrill of jumping out of an airplane (see related post), but it combined exposure to exotic animals in a zoom, a Jurassic Park-like adventure, and hikes with sweeping views in every direction. What’s not to love? Even on the van ride I was taking in a powerful audio book and enjoying the pre-hike scenery.
Violet & Bill in front of the Three Sisters (Iconic Blue Mountain Pix)
Above is what we signed up for when I Google Searched something to the effect of “Day Trips to the Blue Mountains” and found a tour that would pick us up, drive us around and bring us back in 11 hours (or so). But we got WAAAAAY more than we bargained for.
Honoring My Late Aunt Chris
Before I share my epic day with Violet, I should note that my Aunt Chris who had been battling Alzheimer's for about 7 years, passed away on January 6, 2026 and today was her funeral in Orange County, Southern California. I wasn’t able to be there in person, so I joined via Zoom and witnessed my Uncle Ron give a warm eulogy and others participate in the mass held for her today.
Couple of things to note that I really appreciate. Aunt Chris’ favorite color was pink so all my uncles wore pink in her honor. Uncle Paul wore a pink handkerchief, Uncle Dan wore pink socks and the tie Uncle Paul is wearing has all of my grandfather’s grandchildren’s names on it — it was originally my mother’s father’s tie (Reg McLean). And Aunt Chris was buried in Scottish boxers (which Uncle Ron shared in the eulogy).
This is one gift of COVID-19. My ability to watch this funeral mass live-streamed on Youtube is a blessing. I couldn’t be there while I’m here with Violet in Sydney, Australia, but I could watch the funeral remotely.
Exotic Australian Zoo Animals at Featherdale
Our first stop was just 45 minutes outside of Sydney and we had a little over an hour to enjoy exotic animals at the Featherdale Wildlife Park. We were here for the Kolas and Kangaroos, but ended up seeing so much more. Violet and I could have spent 2-3 more hours here.
Blue Mountains National Park
After the Zoo, we went on our first hike of the day. Here, we entered the Blue Mountains National Park and went down the Wentworth Falls Track. The idea was to “see the different water falls”, but in addition, we took in the most epic sweeping views that would anchor us in what the Blue Mountains were all about.
For me, the Blue Mountains are like a plush, green version of the Grand Canyon. If you’ve ever been there, imagine the most incredible view everywhere you look, but instead of only seeing rock, you saw lush green wildlife growing up from the cliff faces and water falls going over them. The Blue Mountains are no less impressive than the Grand Canyon. Like the Grand Canyon, the Blue Mountains give you the same feeling of being tiny and insignificant in comparison to this vast landscape. The key difference (for me at least) is the lush greenery everywhere the eye can see while taking in the height of the mountains in comparison to the valley below.
Here again, Violet and I could have spent several more hours – all day, in fact. The hike was spectacular. There are well carved steps into the stone with steel hand rails. Yes, it was crowded because of the three day weekend (did I mention it’s Australia Day tomorrow?) But other than the crowds, the hike was like standing at the summit the entire hike.
Scenic World
Seems that Scenic World opted not to get the rights to Jurassic Park, and despite not having the official rights have stopped just short of creating the very park featured in the movies. I had no idea what to expect here. It turned out to be a raised platform to walk around the jungle portion of the Blue Mountains while seeing animatronic dinosaurs. It’s a lot cooler than that may sound. Imagine forest bathing, but on a raised platform with occasional facts about dinosaurs and some animatronics sprinkled in.
But the BEST part were the trams. Some of them date back to World War II having been updated every few decades. Just seeing how they USED to look was terrifying enough. For the largest one, they had the option to stand on a glass bottom and look at the DROP below that’s more than twice the size of the Sydney Harbor Bridge in height (from sea level to the very top of the bridge which we recently walked (see related post).
But WAIT, there’s more!!! By now, Violet and I are totally satisfied and beyond impressed with this tour. But there was one final stop.
Three Sisters
For our final stop of the day, we visited a lookout to get the best view of the “Three Sisters.” These are three outcroppings as part of the Blue Mountains that are clear and iconic.
Putting a proverbial cherry on top of a perfect Sunday
Besides all the epic adventures, it’s important to note that Violet and I spent a lovely day together with Valery from Lithuania. She’s here as a au pair for her cousin living in Sydney and has been giving them a hand with their one-year old for the past three months.
While Violet and I love spending time together just the two of us, today was made extra special spending it with a new friend as we explored the Blue Mountains together. While Lithuania wasn’t on our World Tour target list, I’m more inclined to visit Valery’s country hearing her talk about it and now knowing someone who lives there.
People are people all around the world. I love that Violet and I can strike up a conversation with someone we’ve never met living in a country we’ve never been to and still share similar life experiences. It truly is a beautiful life and today was an epic day showing just how beautiful the world can truly be.
Violet, Valery and Bill as we adventure together in Scenic World
