Blue Mountain Revival

After weathering years of relentless fires and biblical floods, the rugged region outside of Sydney has been reborn, with a booming food scene and new ways to/access nature

-  ADAM GRAHAM

WHILE COVID-19 SHUTTERED many global destinations, Australia's borders remained closed longer than most, for nearly two years. During this time, the country's Blue Mountains, less than two hours northwest of Sydney, also experienced devastating bushfires that destroyed 2.5 million acres of the region's UNESCO-listed National Park. The fires were followed by two years of cataclysmal flooding that wiped out farms, roads, and riverbeds, and killed two successive wine harvests. Until recently, the region felt impenetrable.

But these hardy azure-tinted mountains-a phenomenon that owes to the eucalyptus oil in the trees that cloak the landscape are experiencing a rebirth. A new generation of transplants has arrived and injected the region with some much-needed freshness while the locals have continued to fine-tune their crafts.