Into the Blue

Richard and I have transported ourselves into the unknown.  We did it by choice, for a better life during our retirement.  Many thousands make the same choice daily, and many millions have made that same journey before us.  Adam and Eve were lucky in that they didn’t have to go through the bureaucratic morass required to pass through these days in order to set up home in another locality (county, State, or country).

Whilst Richard and I were counting the minutes waiting in line for drivers licence and social security number applications, I was transported back to our holiday in Australia and reminded myself that these wasted hours were nothing compared to the days, months and years that the early settlers there (and in other countries) spent setting up their new lives.

Not for them a half hour trip in their new truck along tarmac roads to the mall/retail district to shop for the myriad color coordinated accouterments required to fit out their new trailers.

My son Drew celebrated Australia Day on Monday - commemorating the day Captain Arthur Philip and the first colonists came ashore at Port Jackson on 26th January 1788 eighteen years after Captain Cook discovered Botany Bay, They took seeds, farm implements, livestock such as cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, horses and chickens and 2 years supply of food. Despite the difficulties they and the convicts encountered, early free settlers chose to try their luck from 1793 onward whilst land grants were in existence.  From 1831, land was sold, and bureaucracy, no doubt, came into its own.

In 1813 Europeans discovered a pass through the Blue Mountains, so called because of the blue haze that shrouds them.  They lie about 50 miles west of Sydney and the area is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.  http://www.bluemts.com.au/things-to-do

Once the first road was completed by convicts, settlers were able to spread inland. By 1825 the White population of Australia was about 25,000 while Tasmania had a population of about 4,500. Bathurst was founded in 1833. In 1840 transportation of convicts to New South Wales ended, and to Australia as a whole in 1868.  

By 1882 the area was so civilized that a railway extended to Katoomba and tourists flocked to see the Wentworth Falls and stay at the newly opened Great Western Hotel – later renamed the Carrington, and it is still an iconic place to stay.  Coal and gold mining brought affluence to the land beyond the mountains, and the towns of Bathurst and Orange became boom towns.

During our three day trip to the area with Mike and Rowena - Drew's in laws - I was amazed at how varied the style of the buildings was.  Whilst the suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne were very American looking, with two-storey flat roofed shop fronts, some with balconies that reminded me of New Orleans, the towns of Leura and Wentworth were more English looking than anything else.  The predominant natural vegetation of the higher ridges is eucalyptus (providing that blue haze the mountains are named after) and the sheltered gorges often contain temperate rain-forests.  Yet the land has been worked over to resemble, with its bungalows and stone walled rose gardens, any village located in the South Downs of England. 

When we drove through, our view of Wentworth Falls was obscured by a primeval mist that hugged the gum trees. 

Despite this we decided to walk through the “bush” towards the upper section of the falls, and were glad we did because the flora was truly weird and wonderful.

In Katoomba, the iconic view over the Jamison Valley was limited by the mist, and the  “Three Sisters” – limestone rocks reminiscent of the outcrops in the Grand Canyon – refused to show themselves.  Mike had to drive us back two days later for us to get a proper view of the shy “Three Bitches” as Richard renamed them, but it was worth it.

On the fertile plains beyond, toward Bathurst and Orange, conditions are perfect for vineyards, and we sampled some local produce as we enjoyed our tours of the historic buildings of both towns.  These towns grew out of the proceeds of the Australian gold rush,

so western-style shops with boardwalks (I could almost see the hitch-posts) rub shoulders with the afore mentioned New Orleans style houses built by founding families, Art Deco style theatres, impressive formally laid out public gardens, and imposing government buildings in Greco-roman style. http://bathurstregion.com.au/visit-bathurst/

The English influence extends north-easterly to the Mount Wilson area.  The locals there have taken their gardens to another level.

The climate changes quite dramatically from one side of the mountain to the other.  The southern slopes are damp and tropical, and covered in massive ferns; 

the northern slopes are drier and perfect for growing fruit and flowers as abundantly as the orchard areas of Kent. 

We were given a tour by friends of Rowena’s and were overwhelmed by the beauty of the cultivated gardens that several generations of families have lavishly tended in the last hundred years.  According to our host, who is a member of the Sydney Botanical Gardens, the grounds of which we visited and celebrated New Years’ Eve, a new species of tree was even discovered in the area recently.

It was truly amazing what newcomers determined to make their fortunes can achieve, and how their legacy has been cherished and nurtured by their progeny.

Richard and I are looking forward to being able to view the bequest of those settlers of the USA’s wilderness who wandered into their blue yonder...