Hassans Walls
Highest lookout in the Blue Mountains
Just a short detour from Lithgow is one of the most spectacular lookouts in the Blue Mountains. Following the signs from the centre of town, the 4km road starts well but does deteriorate as you get closer to the lookout. We were travelling in a 2WD car (unusual for us) and had to weave around some good-sized potholes and washouts. It was worth the drive when we got to the end of the road though.
Hassans Walls Lookout sits 1136 metres above sea level, the highest public vantage point in the Blue Mountains. The newly installed Sir Joseph Cook boardwalk takes you out along the top of the cliffs and provides easy access to the spectacular 180 degree view of the escarpment and rolling valleys below. To the east are Mount Wilson, Mount York and the Hartley Valley. In the distance to the south are the Kanimbla and Megalong Valleys and Mount Bindo.
As you walk back up to the carpark, just before you reach the top, there is an unofficial dirt track on the left that takes you down to the original lookout. Access to the main lookout is very family and wheelchair friendly, this section is not so much. The old lookout is very cute though. Clambering through a hole in the rock the space expands into a small cave with a fence across the outside edge. Looking out over the little fence offers a different perspective of the sheer cliffs on either side and the Great Western Highway winding its way far below.
We have driven through Lithgow many times, whizzing straight past the signs with a ‘must do that some time’ running through my mind. I was glad we finally had the time, the reward for effort ratio was firmly on the positive side.
