Jenolan Caves

[Bea]

Yesterday dad and me started out early for a day trip to Jenolan Caves. It's about three hours drive from our home. Dad wanted to go in a couple of the most popular caves so we wanted to arrive pretty early to get tickets. It was a really fun day! We went into three caves, two guided ones: The River Cave and Temple of Baal, and a self guided one, The Nettle. Here are some of the photos i took.

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves009Custom.jpg
The Grand Arch, this was taken in the Nettle cave.

The next ones i took in the Temple of Baal
http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves020Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves042Custom.jpg
This is a bottle that was put down years and years ago and has since been filled and coated with limestone by the dripping stalactite (sp?) above it, i found it funny.

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves065Custom.jpg
I think this was called the Angel's Wing or something, it's a massive and fragile shawl, something like 9m i think.

The rest of these photos i took in the River cave, which was so beautiful!

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves211Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves214Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves193Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves221Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves155Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves154Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves160Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves111Custom.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves232Custom.jpg

And this was one of my favourite photos, i spotted these through some stalactites and thought they were so cool
http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves237Custom.jpg

In total i think we walked up and down about 2000 stairs, and lots of walking around. I didn't feel any pain from it until i had been in the car on the way home for a while, then my feet and ankles were KILLING me.

In the River Cave i was made to call upon a bit of courage, there were two vertical ladders. :eek: Going up wasn't too awful, but the bigger of the two we had to go down and i was shaking like a leaf. I'm scared of heights. I felt like i had been climbing down for ages when the guide calls up "you're doing great, you just passed halfway!"

I had a bit of amusement over lunch (which was a deeeelicious veggie burger and chips) when a small boy at the table next to us began a sentence "When i die and am a fairy..." It was one of the funniest things i've heard in ages.

[Aly]

Wow! That sounds like alot of fun! I wish we had things like that here...:blush: When I was in 1st grade (Romania) we took a field trip to a salt mine/cave. It was soo beautiful! It sounds like you had a great day! I'd be a little scared to go in though...hehe..


This pic is gorgeous! Can you go swimming? lol

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves160Custom.jpg

[Bea]

I have been going on cave tours for a long time, it's something dad loves so i've done it a lot too! :D Sometimes i feel worried it'll all fall in, but then i remember that caves have existed for hundreds and thousands of years, nothing happens quickly in a cave.

The photo you like is one of my favourite photos i took, that pool was called the Pool of Reflection i think, and it was beautiful. :D My camera really impressed me yesterday, i was taking photos in low light, without flash and without a tripod. I thought i would have to do a lot of noise reduction to make them less speckly, but most were fine with no editting!

[Aly]

It's beautiful! You're lucky to be an Aussie..:) The veggie burger sounds good too!

[Bea]

This pic is gorgeous! Can you go swimming? lol
:lol: Before the caves were made easily accessible with stairs and paths, the way across the pool was by a homemade raft, and a lot of them were not of the highest quality and fell in. :p You wouldn't want to go swimming, the air temperature was about 14C, and the water would've been FREEZING!!! :o :p

[Aly]

Makes sense. No, I wouldn't want to go swimming in freezing waters..lol It just reminds me of those ocean caves....that would be fun..until the tide.

[Tia]

They are amazing Bea. You are so lucky to be an Aussie.
Where are they? We're going on a long trip down-under next year and my Mum is looking for places we can go. We'll of course be visiting Canberra. :)

[olly&izzy]

Hey those pictures are beautiful! Your camera did a great job. I think you told us what kind it is in another thread but could you remind me what kind and model no. it is? I'm looking for a new camera. thanks for sharing those photos what a great day you and your dad had.

[Rosie]

Wow, what brilliant pictures


http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r78/birdybea/Other/January42008-jenolancaves160Custom.jpg

I love this one as well, the reflection of it on the water is beautiful. :love:

[nic bike]

wow thats such a beautiful!:) place ive bin to a place like that on a geography trip but forgot to take my camera:p. i wonder how hard it was to build the stairs in a place like that.

[xxxSpikexxx]

Wow what a beautiful place :D I would love to go in a cave one day a guided one of course ;)

[Bea]

They are amazing Bea. You are so lucky to be an Aussie.
Where are they? We're going on a long trip down-under next year and my Mum is looking for places we can go. We'll of course be visiting Canberra. :)

You should definitely check out Jenolan Caves, they're a pretty popular tourist destination. Here's the website with lots more information!
http://www.jenolancaves.org.au/


My camera is a Canon Powershot A650 IS. It took me a little bit of practice to get used to, but i love it now! :D

[Laura]

I must of missed this post I am so glad I found it, those pictures are absolutely amazing we have nothing like that around here, I would love to tour that cave :D

[DeBree420]

wow what gorgeous photos!
i will have to come down that way sometime for a visit...

[**TielHeart**]

The pictures look great!
That looks like such a gorgeous place!

[birdboykaufman]

WOW! Those are beautiful pics. Pretty much all we have around here are vineyards.

[Bea]

Wow, i would've just made the assumption that there were caves like this everywhere! :p I've been to so many in different places in Australia, and i think some in New Zealand but i'm not 100% sure on that.

[Tiki]

Those are gorgeous caves Bea!!!! Thanks for sharing! :)

[birdboykaufman]

The closest ones to us, The Shasta Caverns, are about a 5-6 hour drive away. And I've only been to them once. I love the look of the dripping limestone.

[Boomberry]

Wow Bea those pictures are awesome. We dont have caves here not that I know off - they are beautiful.