The Blue Mountains are ninety minutes west of Sydney and worth every one of them — sandstone escarpments, rainforest waterfalls, and valleys that fill with cloud at first light. Here's where I shot, from the Katoomba lookouts to the Grand Canyon and Cliff Top tracks at Blackheath.
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The lookouts
Echo Point & the Three Sisters
The icon. Sunrise over the Jamison Valley, the Three Sisters catching first light and mist pooling below. Echo Point is the classic vantage; a mid-range zoom lets you work both the wide scene and the compressed ridgelines.
Open this spot in Okari →Sunrise cloud inversions over the Jamison Valley
On the right cold, still morning the whole valley fills with cloud and the ridges float above it. Watch the forecast for a temperature inversion, get there in the dark, and shoot the sea of cloud turning pink as the sun comes up. This is the shot that keeps you coming back.
Open this spot in Okari →Elysian Rock Lookout
A quieter alternative to Echo Point, over the same valley system with far fewer people. Great for layered ridgelines at sunset, and for cloud rolling through on the right evening.
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Get Okari →The hike — Grand Canyon & Cliff Top
The Grand Canyon walk, Blackheath
Drop into the Grand Canyon from Neates Glen — a cool, fern-lined slot with waterfalls and filtered light. Overcast days are ideal for silky water and saturated greens; bring a tripod, an ND filter, and expect spray on the front element. Give yourself a few hours for the loop.
Open this spot in Okari →Cliff Top Track & the Grose Valley
The escarpment walk from Govetts Leap toward Evans Lookout traces the rim of the Grose Valley — sheer sandstone cliffs, waterfalls spilling off the edge, and enormous depth. Sunrise lights the far walls; a wide lens holds the scale.
Open this spot in Okari →Seasonal
Autumn in Leura
The mountain villages turn properly autumnal — Leura's tree-lined streets and gardens go gold and red through April and May. A change of pace from the big vistas, and lovely in soft, overcast light.
Open this spot in Okari →Coordinates get you to the spot; the app gets you to the exact frame. Open any of these in Okari to see the shots taken there — and add your own.