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Jenolan Temporarily Closed,
Up To and Including April 18, 2021
Given the damage to Jenolan Caves Road from the recent extreme rain, Transport for NSW has closed all access to Jenolan. Our entire precinct is closed temporarily.  

We hope to reopen after April 18, but we await further advice from Transport for NSW.

This week, Transport for NSW will assess: the full damage; repairs to Jenolan Caves Road (the ‘2-Mile’); and a long-term recovery and access plan for the ‘5-Mile’, which will take considerably longer to repair. After these assessments, we will update you in our e-news, on www.jenolancaves.org.au and on our Facebook page.

Extending our closure was a tough decision. If you hoped to visit us over Easter and the school holidays, we certainly understand your disappointment. We are making every effort to contact everyone who has booked, to offer either voucher or refund.

If you require assistance about: We are getting lots of calls, so if you can’t get through immediately, please leave a message or email, and we will respond as soon as we can.

As they say, we get knocked down but we get up again. In years to come, we know that these events will become one of the many reminiscences of Jenolan. Speaking of reminiscences, we hope you enjoy the following 2 stories.

The Best Laid Plans of Mice & Men
- the Royal Visit of 1927
It was unprecedented. At Jenolan Caves, 1926 had been incredibly busy, starting with a visit by Field Marshall Viscount Allenby, ‘Britain’s greatest living soldier’. Then, there was a visit by the NSW Governor, Sir Dudley de Chair and also by the Governor General, Lord Stonehaven, and his mother-in-law Lady Kintore. The fourth and final wing of Jenolan Caves House hotel was finally completed, including a huge extension to the grand dining room (now known as Chisolm’s Restaurant). And newfangled wireless was being broadcast from the caves, as competing radio stations 2BL and 2FC tried to outdo each other with underground broadcasting stunts.
 
After so much publicity, it was not surprising that the Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth), decided to visit Jenolan Caves on March 31, 1927, with a large retinue of distinguished guests.  The plan was for the royal couple to tour the spectacular caves, enjoy a lavish 15-course dinner, stay overnight and, importantly, for the Duke to make a radio broadcast from deep underground – a speech that was to be heard all over Australia and even in New Zealand.
 
The day was a resounding success – apart from 2 major glitches! 

FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENED

Wilson's Delight - Absurdly Vulgar!
"My thoughts and confusion for a time were indescribable, for I was fully a mile from the entrance and alone, out of hearing, and no one had the remotest idea where to commence a search. The thoughts uppermost in my mind now were of my wife and children.  I grew excited, and the perspiration streamed down my face and started from all parts of my body, completely soaking my clothes. "

Above are the words of the Jenolan Caves caretaker, Jeremiah Wilson, as he described his panic and fear for his life while discovering and exploring a new cave in 1893.  He suffered more than one brush with death, in this extensive cave.  Yet when he publically dubbed his discovery, 'Wilson's Delight', the idea was called "absurdly vulgar and inappropriate".

READ THE STORY AND DECIDE FOR YOURSELF?
Copyright © 2021 Jenolan Caves Reserve Trust, All rights reserved.


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