Blue Mountains Journal

While I waited for my order I browsed around the Wisk and Pin store which has an eclectic mix of local produce, handmade items, gourmet jams, tea and lots of other utensils and gifts. The teapot cosy -- are they really back in vogue? The pumpkins -- they are a popular vegetable in Australia while I understand that in other parts of the world they are only fed to animals. The creamer on the the middle shelf -- the shape of an old cream bottle, I like it.

And now for a change from my usual nature walks/drives to my other favourite pastime. One of the joys of living in the mountains are the plethora of cafes catering for tourists and people like me who like the cosy atmosphere on a rainy Saturday afternoon. So let me introduce you to the Wisk and Pin a great little place in the Old Post Office at Medlow Bath. The Bread and Butter pudding was yum.

Today CDP Bloggers are blogging in support of the people of Iran. We hope and pray that those who have been apprehended can return home soon, and that the people of Iran get the freedom of their choosing. After the storm watch we decided it was time to go home. We cherish the ability to do so unimpeded.

It's always blowy out at Mount Hay but with a winter storm brewing the rain drops pierced like ice needles. We snuggled in the car to watch the changing light display.

Mount Hay has the most amazing diversity of flowers. It seems that the harsher the conditions the harder nature works. In spring time there are dozens and dozens of tiny flowers. At this time of year things are leaner but there were still some to be found. The autumn banksias above and the Mountain Devil (Lambertia Formosa) below. After a while the weather got quite devilish too ... I'll show you that tomorrow.

Drumstick plants (Ipsopogon anemonifolius) are common on the Mount Hay heath. At this time of year it's easy to see why they have this name. Here is what they look like in spring .

Banksias are designed to open their pods during fire for new seed to generate. Click here to see. These ended up as mere skeletons today.

The fires were in late 2006. In January 2007 new growth was already beginning to stir from the earth. In October 2007 is was beginning to establish and today is now quite lush but still has a way to go.

In January 2007 we visited out here soon after bush fires had swept through the area. I find it interesting to compare then to now to see how the bush is recovering.

At the of Mount Hay road there is this wilderness every way you turn. Dramatic views are commonplace in this part of the world but here it's very special because it seems so wild, wind-swept and far from civilisation. Not a building to be seen anywhere, other than the tall towers of the great city of Sydney (100 kms away) tiny on the far horizon.

While I was taking the photo of the wattle I looked around to see what else might be in flower and found this Styphelia tuboflora on the other side of the road. Tomorrow I'll show you what's at the end of this track.

Winter is not traditionally a time when there are lots of flowers but there are always a hardy few. A notable exception are the low growing wattles which are dotted throughout the forest floor. A cheerful addition to cold winter days. I love wattles (see here , here , here and here ) and for some reason like seeing into their fluffy balls in macro.

We are off on another drive along 20kms or so of dirt track. We are heading off in the opposite direction to our last trip -- this time to Mount Hay. As usual, there's lot's of forest to pass through on the way.

Anyone who is familiar with the Blue Mountains will know the Three Sister's rock formation is our icon image. Pondering on today's theme of feet I wondered what the Three Sister's feet looked like and dug back through my images to find out. The image below is the one you will see on postcards, we don't usually bother with what is at the foot of the rocks. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants Words to walk with: I was scratching my head to recall any poems about feet then remembered this one. Lines and Squares by A.A. Milne "Whenever I walk in a London street, I'm ever so careful to watch my feet; And I keep in the squares, And the masses of bears, Who wait at the corners all ready to eat The sillies who tread on the lines of the street Go back to their lairs, And I say to them, "Bears, Just look how I'm walking in all the squares!" And the little bears growl to each other, "He's mine, As soon as he's silly and steps on ...