Most grey nomads will be all too familiar with the devastation that Australia’s wild weather can wreak. Whether it be bushfires, floods, or extreme winds, nature’s fury regularly sees roads, campsites, and national parks closed … and infrastructure like boardwalks and lookouts badly damaged.
Sometimes repairs can cost millions of dollars and take many years to carry out, often in the hope that the investment will ‘future proof’ access. And potential solutions are becoming ever-more innovative.
A case in point is one of NSW’s most stunning natural attractions, the limestone formations of the Jenolan Caves. For most visitors to the southern Blue Mountains National Park, a viewing of the labyrinth of stalactite-lined chasms carved by underground rivers is an absolute must … or at least it used to be.
Stabilisation work is currently being carried out PIC: Transport for NSW
Jenolan Caves has been closed to the public since extreme rainfall flooded buildings and caused landslips back in April, 2024. And, for several years before that, the precinct had been subject to a series of disaster-related closures.
While Transport for NSW is carrying out slope repairs and strengthening work on access roads, the construction of a cableway system is now also being considered to guarantee future access.
Will something like this help people access the caves? PIC: Pixabay
A spokesperson for the Jenolan Caves Reserve Trust told the Grey Nomads there was a commitment to reopening the caves in 2026 … and keeping them open.
“A whole-of-government approach is being applied to consider future options for access, including potential non-road options which have been explored in the Jenolan Caves Access Options Analysis Report,” the spokesperson said. “The report was completed by consultants for the Jenolan Caves Reserve Trust, and concluded a cableway (gondola) was the most viable and feasible option to consider as a non-road option.”
The gondola option was preferred to a funicular railway due to cost, environmental impact and constructability.
“The proposed travel time on a gondola would be approximately 5.5 minutes, with a 500-metre drop in elevation over a one-kilometre travel path,” said the spokesperson. “However, no decision has been made to build this infrastructure.”
Given that, prior to the closures, the Jenolan precinct attracted around 225,000 visitors per year, it is understandable there is strong determination to find a permanent solution.
And the report apparently suggests a gondola could help facilitate up to 900,000 visitors per year.
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A tunnel in from the west would be a better option.