Rhododendron Garden

Despite the rain and the mist we took our visitors to the rhododendron garden in Blackheath.  

We happened to meet the president of the volunteer group who run the place and he told us the history.  In the late 1960s a group of Blue Mountains horticulturalists wanted to set up a major garden somewhere in the upper mountains for research and propagation.  They settled on a piece of crown land at Blackheath which had been an unofficial rubbish tip.  Volunteer labour did all the earthworks and plantings, laid paths and dammed a small stream to create a pond.  Since then it's been maintained through voluntary contributions and labour, and the place is a gem.

It may not have been ideal weather for our visitors but they loved it and the camera loved it, too.