Wentworth Falls, Hippocrene Falls & Valley of the Waters

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Route: Wentworth Falls Station, Wilson Park, Charles Darwin Walk, Weeping Rock, Queens Cascade, National Pass, Giant Stairway, National Pass, Slacks Stairs, Wentworth Falls, Hippocrene Falls, Den Fenella Creek, Vera Falls, Valley of the Waters, Flat Rock Falls, Lodore Falls, Empress Falls, Empress Lookout, Short Cut Track, Wentworth Falls Lookout, Charles Darwin Walk, Wentworth Falls Station

Date: 01/02/2020
From: Wentworth Falls

Parking: N/A
Start Point: Wentworth Falls
Finish Point: Wentworth Falls
Region: Blue Mountains National Park

Route length: 7.0 miles (11.2km)
Time taken: 06:15
Average speed: 1.2 mph
Ascent: 643m
Descent: 616m

Points of Interest: Wentworth Falls, National Pass, Hippocrene Falls, Vera Falls, Valley of the Waters

Today was going to be a hot one. Even my Aussie colleagues raised an enquiring eyebrow when I proclaimed I'd be heading to the Blue Mountains in 38-degree heat. I think experiencing any weather condition firsthand helps you to build an idea of what you can tolerate, whether that's a 100mphwinter storm (as I experienced a few years ago) or the total opposite in the Australian bush today. Plenty of water would hopefully keep me going.

38 degrees would be described as hot, even by Australian standards. The sun was certainly shining strongly as my train heaved into the station at Wentworth Falls after its long, meandering climb from the shining city of Sydney, through the western suburbs to the more rural havens in the Blue Mountains.

Wentworth Falls station basking on a hot summer morning

My plan was to return to Wentworth Falls and explore some more of the National Pass, one of the more spectacular of the hand-cut passes in the Blue Mountains. Sadly, much of the pass is closed indefinitely due to rockfall so it's doubtable that I'll get to experience the entire thing while we're here. Instead, you're offered the alternatives of Wentworth Pass or the Hippocrene Falls Track. Both cut a westerly route underneath the sandstone cliffs and, after some internet-based investigation, I chose the latter.

I left the station in Wentworth Falls village, crossing the great Western Highway and making for Wilson Park and the Charles Darwin Walk. The track (which leads from the village into the national park) is named after the famous naturalist, who walked the track in 1836. The first section of the walking track is an easy and pleasant stroll through unpretentious but beautiful surroundings along the calming waters of Jamison Creek.

Entering Wilson Park

The beginning of the Charles Darwin Walk

The Charles Darwin Walk along Jamison Creek

The track is mainly a boardwalk with bridges crossing the creek several times. The area is beautiful and is undergoing extensive bush regeneration to remove weed species and promote native plant growth. Shortly after entering the Blue Mountains national park proper, the path reaches Weeping Rock.

Hard to believe this is surrounded by houses

Jamison Creek

Jamison Creek

The creek undercuts some of the Blue Mountains famed sandstone

Jamison Creek

Weeping Rock is a small waterfall on Jamison Creek, named so because the creek falls over a wide rocky overhang before it cascades down into a pool. The track descends alongside the waterfall via a staircase, giving an up-close (and slightly damp) view of falls. The Weeping Rock Circuit track links up with the Wentworth Falls Track as it descends towards the larger waterfalls.

Weeping Rock

Weeping Rock

The Wentworth Falls Track passes Queen's Cascade, another small waterfall, this time directly above the main Wentworth Falls. Sympathetic stone blocks allow you to cross the stream, even after heavy rain while a fence stops you from straying too close to the 180m drop of Wentworth Falls. Once past the cascades, the track becomes the famed National Pass, one of the many tracks which join routes beneath the cliffs of the Blue Mountains.

Crossing the upper part of Wentworth Falls

Queens Cascades

The top of Wentworth Falls

Descending onto National Pass

National Pass

National Pass is probably the most spectacular of the Blue Mountains passes thanks to its precipitous location on a ledge high up on the cliffs. It was built by a team nicknamed ‘the Irish Brigade’ for the cost of £430, using picks, shovels and dynamite. The entire track was the brainchild of a Scottish sea captain, James Murray.

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National Pass

The Grand Staircase

Rumour has it that Captain Murray was lowered over the cliff in a bosun’s chair’, in order to survey the cliff and access the ledge to construct the track. Sadly, much of the pass is currently closed due to a rockfall but, the most interesting parts remain accessible, starting with the Grand Stairway.

The Grand Stairway

Dubbed 'Australia's Tallest Staircase', the Grand Stairway descends below the cliffs, snaking steeply down a set of hand-railed steps that require you to wait for people moving up and down them as they are so narrow.

Cliffs of the Blue Mountains

They lead to the base of the Upper Wentworth Falls where the fine, misty water descends into a large pool. Beyond this, the National Pass extends out onto a ledge beneath a low overhand requiring you to crouch down to avoid banging your head. After the ledge, I reached the place along the pass where it had been closed - a locked door, not unlike the entrance to a building site, barred the way. Fortunately, Slacks Stairs can be used to bypass the closed section of National Pass.

Wentworth Falls

Below Wentworth Falls

Wentworth Falls

National Pass

Jamison Valley

Cliffs of the Kings Tableland

Wentworth Falls

The full height of Wentworth Falls

Looking across to the Ruined Castle

Slacks Stairs is one of the most interesting and surprising routes I've ever come across. After squeezing down a narrow chasm between the rocks, a series of enclosed ladders snake their way almost vertically towards the rainforest below. So steep are the ladders that the safest way to negotiate them is facing towards the rocks, as you would do on any normal ladder. The final obstacle is a short rock step that is aided by a few bolted iron rungs.

National Pass

The beginning of Slacks Stairs

Slacks Stairs

Slacks Stairs

Slacks Stairs

They were so named to recognise Isaac Platt Slack, Parramatta Real Estate Agent and Auctioneer, who was Chairman of the Wentworth Falls Group of the Blue Mountains Sights Reserve Trust. The stairs were first constructed in the 1930s to link National and Wentworth Passes.

The bottom of Slacks Stairs

I dropped down to the valley floor, now following a path back towards the base of Wentworth Falls. The lower falls are a repeat of the upper falls, falling over a sandstone lip into a shimmering plunge pool. Below the plunge pool is the option to continue along Wentworth Pass or descend into the rainforest along the Hippocrene Falls Track. I chose the latter having read online that it was the more interesting of the two, so off I went, passing the sign which makes note that the path is for experienced hikers only.

Lower Wentworth Falls

Hippocrene Falls Track

Jamison Creek

The path descends alongside Jamison Creek into the depths of the rainforest. After a while, the route becomes increasingly indistinct, disappearing into the tangle of trees, bushes, ferns and being constantly covered in leaves. It would take a conscious effort to make sure I did not veer off course.

Following the ribbons on the trees

Down into the rainforest I continued, eventually, reaching Hippocrene Falls, which were largely concealed by trees. Without wanting to wade too far from where I thought the path was, I've had to nab a photo off the internet to show what they look like. So far, so good.

My photo of Hippocrene Falls

http://www.david-noble.net/blog/?p=13170

The 'path' (now pretty much non-existent) descends further to the junction of Jamison Creek and Den Fenella Creek, my signal to bear right and follow the new watercourse back uphill towards the cliffs. It was starting to dawn on me that venturing into the bush alone was probably not the wisest idea - thoughts turning to losing the path, picking up an injury or encountering one of Australia's poisonous residents. It's also worth a reminder that the temperature was in the high 30s, despite the shade of the trees.

Bush

The climb alongside Valley of the Waters Creek was more demanding than I anticipated, despite a track being marked on the map. Nothing really exists on the ground though a handful of bright ribbons were dotted about guiding some of the ways. In addition to this, the coverage of the trees meant my GPS signal was patchy at best. I paused for a moment to gather my thoughts, having taken far longer than I had anticipated wading through the bush to the point.

Den Fenella Creek

After a bite to eat I set off once again, climbing further still to reach the bottom of Vera Falls where it quickly became apparent that I had taken a wrong turn. There is no direct route alongside Vera Falls thanks to the sheer sandstone cliffs, though a misleading path appears to head in that direction. I was fortunate to notice where someone had scratched a 'NO' onto a tree with an arrow pointing to the cliffs above - realising that I had fallen into the same trap as many others.

The track is there somewhere

I backtracked, ultimately discovering that I was 10 or 15m below where I should have been before wading up through the branches and ferns to the point where the path should have been. A slope climbs away from the falls then doubles back, becoming a little clearer. It was obvious that people venture down to the respective falls but rarely join a route between the two.

Something resembling a track above Vera Falls

The top of the falls in an impressive place to pause and take a breather. The flat, sandstone shelf above the falls is open to the sky and looks across to the cliffs beyond. Unlike Wentworth Falls, there is no railing near the edge, so I kept well away.

The top of Vera Falls

Finally, over the obstacle of Vera Falls, I plodded on, following a more notable path back towards the civilised walking tracks of Wentworth Pass and the western end of National Pass. The path crosses the stream via a jumble of large boulders before meeting the foot of Roberts Pass. Here the Vera Falls Track enters the confines of Valley of the Waters and begins a tiresome climb up yet more steps.

Valley of the Waters

Home of a Blue Mountains funnel-web spider

Something resembling a track

Civilisation!

Vera Falls Track

Entering Valley of the Waters

The waterfalls along here are impressive, particularly Sylvia Falls and Empress Falls and were enough to put a spring back in my step. After many, many steps I reached the valley rim once against the Conservation Hut. Though the hut was closed, the sparse toilets were open allowing me to replenish my dwindling water supplies.

The trees eventually begin to open

Crossing Valley of the Waters Creek

Flat Rock Falls

Valley of the Waters

Lodore Falls

Above Lodore Falls

Following the carved path up the valley

The cliffs below Empress Lookout

Sylvia Falls

Below Empress lookout

Empress Falls - looking a little dry

Steps

Steps

More steps

Finally back up to the clifftops

Conservation Hut

The Short Cut track cuts across the top of the escarpment to the Wentworth Falls car park and pair of valley lookouts. Looking across the valley, it was clear a large bushfire had flared up in the distance and was being tackled by a trio of bucket-wielding helicopters. It's been a tough bushfire season for the RFS volunteers, but one which is drawing to a close. By this point, I had essentially concluded the circuit I set out to achieve though I needed to get back to the train station at Wentworth Falls village.

Bushfire over the Kings Tableland - this was the Erskine Creek fire

Mount Solitary

The Erskine Creek bushfire

Kings Tableland

A helicopter charges into action

Kings Tableland and Jamison Valley

The Wentworth Falls Track leads to the Charles Darwin Walk and ultimately back to the village. The helicopters were still buzzing around by the time I reached the Great Western Highway which passes through the village, supplemented by a few fire engines dashing around. I eventually made it back to the station just in time to board the first train back to Sydney. I was feeling exhausted by the day out, despite not actually walking that far.

Charles Darwin Walk

Charles Darwin Walk

Charles Darwin Walk

Remember I said experiencing extremes gives you an idea of tolerance? I can confidently say that 38 degrees is too hot.