Katoomba is an Australian city with around 8,000 inhabitants, which is the tourist and cultural center of the Blue Mountains . It is located in the state of New South Wales , 110 km west of the metropolis of Sydney and 38 km southeast of Lithgow on the Great Western Highway . Katoomba is at an altitude of 1017 m.
Blue Mountains from Echo Point
The name Katoomba is Aboriginal for "falling water". This name comes from a waterfall in the Jamison Valley below Harry's amphitheater . The place was first known as The Crusher and was called Katoomba from 1877 onwards. Katoomba has had its own city administration since 1889 and is now the administrative seat of the Blue Mountains City .
Coal mining began in 1878 at the site of today's Scenic Railway . The Scenic Railway was built in 1885 to transport the coal from the Jamison Valley up to the plateau to the railway. Remnants of the mines can still be seen today. Mining ended in 1930; since then the railway has been used exclusively by tourists.
Tourism kicked off in the 1880s after a railroad line opened that connected the Blue Mountains to Sydney. In 1884 the Six Foot Track was built, which was an abbreviation for travelers to the Jenolan Caves : From the Exploreres Tree this path leads down into the Megalong Valley , partly along the Coxs River for a total of 45 km to the popular caves. This distance could be covered in 8 hours by horse and cart. Today the Six Foot Track is a hiking trail.
