We were lucky enough to have a visitor from home for a couple of weeks! We packed in so much in two and a half weeks that I don’t think it would all fit on one blog post, especially when you add pictures too. Therefore I have split it up into smaller chunks; this is post 2 of 5, so if you haven’t already read the first one, click here!
The drive from Sydney to Forbes usually takes 5 hours or so, but we had planned a few stops on route anyway. From Penrith we headed to Wentworth Falls and the picnic area there, where you have a stunning view of the mountain scenery and the falls. Given the clear weather, we decided to check for availability at Scenic World in Katoomba, and managed to secure three tickets for a slot 30 minutes later.
Whilst we weren’t too far away, parking was chaos, as were the queues (we had forgotten it was school holidays), so we probably didn’t get into the park for another 30 minutes! But it was worth it! We started off on the Skyway, which was a large cable car which takes you out over the valley where you get a fab view of the three sisters in Katoomba (the main picture of this post) as well as the lush vegetation of Jamison Valley. Then we took the cable car to the valley floor, walked the short route through the rainforest past the historic coal mine, and rode the world’s steepest railway back to the top! Of course we also had to queue for each ride, so the whole thing took longer than anticipated. The railway was my least favourite, simply because I thought I was going to slide out of my seat!!
After a not so quick coffee, we trekked back to the car and continued our drive through the mountains. We reached Bathurst just as the sun was starting to set, so had a quick drive up to Mount Panorama where they were busy setting up for the Bathurst 1000 races the following weekend, and then a quick stop in the town centre by the war memorial.
As we were already running behind schedule, we decided to pick up some groceries in Bernardi’s supermarket so that it didn’t matter what time we finally reached Forbes. It was dark by this point, so we took the slower but better roads, stopping to look at a few of the murals in Eugowra on the way. We had a late dinner and an early night, as we were all a bit tired from the travelling.
On Tuesday, we did the grand tour of Forbes! We started in Victoria Park and admired the new memorial to Queen Elizabeth II, looked at the first few sculptures on the sculpture trail, and then wandered through the town along Lachlan Street, up as far as the Lion’s Wall, and back down Rankin Street. We stopped for some lunch at Isabelle’s Place before crossing the lake and walking to McFeeters Motor Museum. We did a loop of the lake, and then headed home for a rest.
We ate dinner at home that evening with grand plans of exploring the pubs afterwards BUT they were all closed by 9pm! Our only option was the tab bar at the back of Forbes Inn.
We had a lot planned for Wednesday but it turned out to be a bit of a wash out. We started off by driving to Narromine, specifically to see the Glenn McGrath statue. It started to rain so we ducked into Soul Food Depot and Gallery for a coffee, in the hope that it would blow over. It didn’t, so we decided to head back to Peak Hill as per our original plan, again hoping the weather would ease up by the time we got there. It didn’t, so our planned walk around the Open Cut Gold Mine turned into a quick dash to the viewing platform to take some pictures before dashing back to the car!
Next on our route was the Dish, where we planned to grab some lunch. However the café was just closing as we got there, and as it was still raining heavily, we had a look around the visitors centre before splashing back to the car. We drove into Parkes, stopping at the Henry Parkes centre to see the replica cottage and the tourist information centre, then the Spirit of Parkes train, and finally up to Memorial Hill lookout, where, minus the rain, you usually get a great view of the town.
We were damp and hungry by this point, so decided to get back to Forbes for a warm drink and a bite to eat. That evening we enjoyed a delicious meal at Mark’s Boss’ house, before retiring early after a long day of adventuring.
The next day was thankfully a bit drier, and we headed to Cowra Japanese Gardens. We started off with a coffee in the cafe, before wandering round the gardens and admiring the beautiful spring colours. We visited the Prisoner Of War campsite next, where we learned about the largest POW breakout in modern military history, followed by a visit to the Japanese and Australian War cemetery.
We attempted to find a nice cafe for some lunch, but they were all closed, so we ended up with a subway. We rang the World Peace Bell, before taking a detour to Wyangala Dam. We walked halfway across the dam wall, but the skies looked threatening so we hurried back to the car to avoid yet another shower.
We set off for Young, and were lucky enough to see a wallaby right on the side of the road (without hitting it!) so had to stop to get some photos! Once at Young, we checked into the Young Federation Motor Inn. We had a great meal at the Young Services Club, before ‘hitting the town’, There was a choice of three pubs, as well as the Services Club. We opted to start with The Australian Hotel, and stayed there until about 10pm when we were the last ones in there and the staff looked like they wanted to go home!
We next attempted to go to the Commercial Hotel but it was also closing so no luck there. That just left the Criterion Hotel, which was open and still looked busy! What we didn’t realise until too late was that it was karaoke night…I think it was the fastest drink of the whole trip! Out of options, we headed back to the hotel.
On Friday morning, we tried out Wilkies as it was the busiest looking cafe, and were rewarded with a delicious breakfast! The coffee was pretty good too. We took a quick drive to see the big cherries, and then headed to our next stop – Canberra!
Click here to head to part 3!
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