The Blue Mountains

              Today we went on a four hour educational hiking tour of the Blue Mountains. The Blue Mountains are a magical mountainous region in New South Wales, Australia that border Sydney’s metropolitan area. This was my favorite part of my trip thus far! We had a great tour guide, named Justin, who taught us about the history, importance, and beauty of the Blue Mountains. There is a lot of biodiversity in the Blue Mountains. Hiking through some areas felt as if you were in a rain forest while others felt as if you were in the desert. I observed many plants, trees, and animals that I had never seen before. One of the plants we saw could eat insects, which I found to be quite fascinating. Another plant we saw was a dwarf mountain pine. These plants are neat because they are very rare and can only be found where water is constantly flowing. Tee trees could be found all around the Blue Mountains. If you take the flowers off these trees and crush them up they smell like fresh basil and pesto. Some of the animals we ran into included cockatoos, skinks, lizards, chameleons, and snakes. We also saw many beautiful waterfalls. I heard the sounds of birds chirping, snakes rattling, water falling, and our own echoes. I learned from Justin that each meter of rock takes one million years to form…keep in mind the highest point of the Blue Mountains is 1,215 meters! I also learned that the Blue Mountains are inhibited by over 400 different forms of animals. While hiking the mountains, I felt a range of emotions including fear, excitement, and amazement. The steep and slippery climb is not for the young at heart. But if you are cautious you will not be disappointed by the breathtaking sights the mountains have to offer.

              I think that this hike was incorporated into our syllabus because it gave us an appreciation for the environment. It was a reminder to all of us that it is important to take every step possible to preserve the environment so that beautiful places, such as the Blue Mountains, can survive and thrive. It also was a reminder to stay active and enjoy what the world has to offer. Justin gave us a depressing statistic that an overwhelming amount of kids in Western countries spend 50% of their days behind screens. Their days are consumed by TV, computers, and video games rather than living an active lifestyle. I also think that we went to the Blue Mountains simply for the fact that the views we got to see were more beautiful than any place we have ever been before. I highly recommend for anyone who visits Australia to hike the Blue MountainsJ