Medlow Bath’s wee isolated 1867 heritage stone cottage stay
The two of us have just returned home from checking-out of our private stay before 10am.
Reporting in upon return, our latest private getaway had been much needed for us. It’s been us getting away geographically though yet not far from our home, not complicated, nor sophisticated. It was a wonderful break to just simply get away, a world away. My wife arranged everything, bless her.
Being based at our home in Katoomba, we’ve just spent 3-days/2-nights stay away both in time and space here; our chosen and new stay destination this time is situated just 8km away in a heritage 1867 tiny stone cottage isolated on the outskirts of the Blue Mountains village of Medlow Bath and emblematic of colonial 19th Century New South Wales. Magic! And for us it was so close as to be able to drive home momentarily to feed the cat and return within half an hour.
Topo map: ‘KATOOMBA 8930-1S‘, accurate details from 1999. Of course this topographical map is not exactly essential for us to drive from Katoomba to Medlow Bath up the highway, yet it proved useful during our stay as we then ventured further along the backroad to Blackheath (just as was the usefulness of that ironbark firewood prop).
And here’s our indicative transport return route map just up the Great Western Highway:
I guess it’s just since where we live in the Blue Mountains, that why travel to somewhere far away? This, when many from elsewhere seek to holiday where we live in the Blue Mountains.
Our destination stay t’was down this old narrow gravel lane…
And this 1867 wee stone cottage would be our home for the next two nights…
The old Railway Gatekeeper’s Cottage.
Our chosen stay at Medlow Bath for a few getaway nights, our England-made 4WD parked under a row of old mature English Oaks – one’s British ancestry showing through.
The Gatehouse Medlow Bath – exterior
Upon our arrival at our ‘Medlow’ (bath) sandstone stay, no-one was around; it would be just the two of us.
After us having bought supplies at nearby Blackheath, just 5km up the road, and with the local butchers’s meats duly in the fridge, we checked ourselves in and basically took temporary possession of our stay with our gear respectively set up in the living room, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom – as one does in a self-contained stay.
The Gatehouse Medlow Bath – interior
Next, to then explore our immediate environs. We decided to walk further along the gravel vehicular track from out the front of our stay for some distance (maybe 1km). It was up the gravel vehicular track northward from where we were staying.
Now admittedly and frankly, hiking is not fascinating when conducted along a gravel vehicular track. After us walking nearly a kilometre, my wife said this is boring so let’s go back. I agreed, suggesting we return to our stay and do the track in our Range Rover and see what the track presented – risking a locked gate perhaps?
This we did, but thankfully no locked gate. Yet the track proved tricky, getting rockier, less maintained, much narrower (down to car width) yet we managing to venture northward all the way from Medlow to Blackheath along this neglected and rain-flooded old railway service track. It was replete with multiple large puddles (at places the road width wide and two car lengths long) such that only a high clearance 4×4 could reasonably handle.
No wonder Council had placed a warning sign back along Station Street by Belgravia Street: “No Through Road, Authorised Access Only“. Fair call, especially for unsuspecting visitors exploring backroads.
Now, I reckon Station Street might be associated with the railway station at Medlow Bath.
That street then from urban Medlow Bath northward towards Blackheath becomes a service gravel vehicular track (I wouldn’t deem it of ‘road’ status) that rails along the rail corridor along the western side. The map extract below shows vertically from south to north the dominant Great Western Highway and the Main Western Railway as aligned transit corridors.
The gravel vehicular track we drove as a northern extension of Station Street (Medlow Bath) runs similarly aligned close to the railway corridor to Blackheath. This is the track we drove in our Range Rover.
The rough vehicular track (Station Street) railing aside the left of the railway corridor from MEDLOW BATH‘s Railway Gatehouse (Belgravia Street) northward up to BLACKHEATH‘s (Staveley Parade) where it intersects with Station Street again.
The big water-filled muddy puddles reminded us of the dodgy access vehicular track from the highway to little-known ‘Hyde Park Reserve Swimming Hole‘ over Hartley Vale way. It’s via Mid-Hartley Road requiring local knowledge along minor backroads. But there is one puddle that even a 4×4 with an air intake snorkle and in low range would not risk attempting the swim. We reckon a few immediate locals had got together and applied an excavator to dig out the track wide puddle to perhaps a 2 metres depth to ‘disuade’ visitor access. It’s worked but. – no tyre tracks to be seen on the other sid of this plunge pool puddle.
One would not recommend a 2-wheel drive vehicle attempt this vehicular track any time soon. But for us this rugged track was a challenging hoot!
The track exits in ‘civilization’ at Blackheath behind a row of houses south along Staveley Parade. Now to locals, that’s the road down to Megalong passed the RSL. The following photso from Google Maps shows the exist looking southwhich warns again as ‘No Through Road’.
Day 2: It just rained heavily. So for our planned two hiking trips for Day 2 we jointly and sensibly cancelled that idea.
Weather just happens, so best wise to adjust such plans accordingly to suit conditions. We were pretty much confined inside else by car to the Hydro Magestic for pre-booked lunch, which we did.
Anyway, our two nights were spent wonderfully warm around our open wood fire one lit and maintained throughout the night.
Day 1: The cottage living room fire was simple to get lit, and it blazed and warmed us all night.
Ye ol’ original dunny away from the house, subsequently being used as a wood shed store.
The modern added bathroom (replete with and copious hot water pressure, shower and separate claw-foor bath and heated tiled floor) is adjoined to the original stone cottage via a short classy glass enclosed corridor across the garden over a flagstone stone path.
More magic!
The author
References and Further Reading:
[1] ‘The Gatehouse, Medlow Bath | Cottage in Medlow Bath‘, ^https://www.rentbyowner.com/property/the-gatehouse-medlow-bath/HA-1309216315
[2] ‘The Railway Gatehouse, Medlow Bath‘, in printed book ‘A Portrait of the city of Blue Mountains’, 1988, by Paul Watkins, NLA ISBN 0 949267 40 6, published by Robert Brown & Associates (Aust) Pty Ltd.
Extract:
[3] ‘Gate Keeper’s House, Medlow Bath, NSW‘, ^https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7x7k3wRjSc, by Rick Hawthorn, YouTube video, see below:
[4] ‘Life Beside the Tracks: Blue Mountains Gatekeepers Cottages‘, ^https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruKkaDOIYPk, The Bygones, YouTube video,
[5] Our video, ^youtube.com/watch?v=CjEcmW3fqW0&feature=youtu.be
[6] Our video, ^youtube.com/watch?v=kHaHSqPQAFQ&feature=youtu.be
[7] ‘The Chalet Guesthouse and Studio‘, 46 Portland Road, Medlow Bath NSW 2780, ^https://www.thechalet.com.au/
”Built in 1892, The Chalet Guesthouse and Studio is a luxury accommodation venue in the quiet village of Medlow Bath, centrally located in the Upper Blue Mountains. The heritage guesthouse features a private collection of contemporary Australian art throughout, an original period dining room with open fireplace, quiet lounge areas and personalised service. With only six guest rooms you can be assured of personalised service that can’t be found in the large venues.”
[8] ‘KATOOMBA 8930-1S‘, topographic & orthophoto map (1:25,000 scale), third edition, (NSW) Department of Lands, sourcing Geometric Datum of Australia (GDA), 1999, (out of print, yet may be available from Mapworld Australia, ^https://www.mapworld.com.au/ )
[9] ‘Medlow Bath, New South Wales‘, Wikipedia, ^https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medlow_Bath,_New_South_Wales