We were up the Mid Blue Mountains today doing a couple of caches and walking some little-used tracks to add them to the growing OSM map project. I had heard of this location but had never visited it, so I had two reasons to do so today, the cache hidden away down there and adding the track to OSM.
Some History
Constructed in the 1880s probably by John Meeks during the wave of enthusiasm for private track making, this track led from his Everton House to Peggy’s pool and the nearby falls. It is considered to have rare historical significance, John Meeks acquired the land in 1880 and presumably built “Everton” soon after. He retained the property until his death in 1899 but it is likely the track was constructed to Peggy’s Pool in the early 1880s. The track has never appeared in any guidebook.
Basic Walk Information
One Way Distance: 470mtrs
Time One Way: 15 minutes
Starting Altitude: 425mtrs
Highest Altitude: 425mtrs
Lowest Altitude: 365mtrs
How To Get There
You need to get yourself onto Meeks Crescent which is just a few minutes off the Great Western Highway, either turn into Grose Road if coming from the East, or onto Everton Road if coming from the West. Fin the vacant bush gully near house 66 and find somewhere to park. The track starts just down the slope about halfway between two powerpoles. In the gallery below is an image taken from the street that highlights the starting point.
The Walk
21st April 2013
This is an easy walk with some rough track in places, some nice sections with steps cut from the stone, and the odd slippery section if it has been raining recently. The track is easy to follow and is suitable for children if help is given in a couple of places.
The initial first few steps down from the footpath can be slippery and there is no real defined track here, but, you can easily see the first set of stone steps from the footpath just down the slope. From here, the track is very easy to follow as it gently winds it's way down the slope into the gully behind the nearby houses.
A couple of rough sections and slippery bits are met about halfway down the descent, but nothing too hard at all. The view opens up and you can look up and down the valley here as you continue to descend towards the creek below. Soon the valley floor is reached and the track turns to the left and starts to follow the creek and you can start to hear the waterfall.
The track gets narrow in places where water has made this a watercourse, it is still easy to follow, shortly after a bushy section, you reach a small dropoff, a tree stump has been propped up against the small cliff to act as a step down. It is quite easy and reasonably safe. You are now only a minute away from your destination which is down to your right.
I do wonder if this final part to get down to the pool etc, was the original way, considering they went to the trouble to build and cut in steps, this last section was a prime candidate for a set of steps to be cut in. I wonder if such a set of steps remain hidden somewhere a short distance away under the leaf litter and bush?
Update 25-4-2018
We re-visited the pools today to grab some more photos and to see what condition the track is in. The start is still hard to find up at the street level, but you can see the track heading away from the small slope, I have added a photo to the gallery that shows the start. Above, I mentioned why there were no steps in the last section to get down to the pool level, today we found them! But, only because we met some other people coming back up and they appeared from behind a very big gum tree, another track marked with flagging tape leads off behind this massive gum tree.
After crossing a small stream you come to a ring of stones that have been used for a fireplace and then head to the left, you arrive at the top of the stone steps that then take you to the bottom of the two pools, a very pretty spot, then another track takes you back to the upper pool and the falls. Even today, after no rain, we were sure there would be no water flowing, but, there was enough to make it quite green and pretty.
Based on the pushed over trees here, the creek can certainly rise and turn into a swollen monster.
Return via the same route.
