THE CARLOTTA ARCH.
On returning to the mouth of the Arch Cave, the tourist proceeds towards
the Carlotta Arch--so named in honour of a daughter of the
Surveyor-General of New South Wales, Mr. P. F. Adams, who visited the
caves 10 or 12 years ago, and has always taken an interest in their
exploration and preservation. Ascending some stone steps, guarded by
galvanised wire, an excellent view of the Ball Room to the eastward is
obtained. The steps make access easy. Previously the rocks were
slippery, in consequence of the polish given to them by the feet of
marsupials, and the return journey was accomplished by holding on to a
rope, and sliding down the glassy surface.
The entrance to the Carlotta Arch is protected by a wire railing, about
35 feet by 8 or 10 feet. Passing through the iron gate, the visitor
finds himself on a little platform. Hundreds of feet below is a gully,
rippling at the bottom of which is a rill of water, which sings as it
goes, and whose melody, softened by distance, is pleasant as the hum of
bees or the carolling of birds. Above is a hoary rock, rugged and bare,
with the exception of some clumps of lilies which flourish and bloom in
its inaccessible clefts. From this point the tourist ascends the Nettle
Rocks for about 60 or 70 feet. Some steps are to be cut here, and
certainly they are much needed, for at present the journey is very
toilsome and difficult. From the end of the protected portion to the
summit--70 or 80 feet--the acclivity may be comfortably surmounted by
ordinarily active people. The Carlotta Arch is about 100 feet high and
about 70 feet wide, with an interior fringe of stalactites. The picture
seen through it is exceedingly grand, including majestic trees and
romantic gullies, huge mountains and immense rocks, with bold
escarpments. The walls of the arch are pierced like a fortress. Its
entire superstructure represents the union of two mountains by a natural
bridge, clad with trees and shrubs and creeping plants which trail
gracefully down its sides. On the summit are eucalypti, and conspicuous
amongst them is an iron guard for the protection of passengers going
over the viaduct. About half-way up this track from the arch to the
bridge (which is the concluding portion of the new road from Mount
Victoria), a good view can be obtained of McEwan's Creek, where the
water has broken through the hills, leaving the limestone rocks and
caves sometimes on the one side and sometimes on the other for a
distance of three miles up the valley running northerly. To the westward
is the Zigzag, leading to the cave-house by the route from Tarana, and
from which can be obtained the grandest view _en route_ from Oberon to
Jenolan. Here, after having spent an hour or two in the caves, it is
pleasant to bask in the golden sunshine and watch the gaudy parrots flit
by. From this point to the northward the limestone is visible to its
full extent till it is overlapped by higher mountains. It is about three
miles in length, by a maximum of half a mile in width. Immediately to
the south the limestone dyke is covered, but it crops up again about
seven miles distant, and continues on the surface for 15 to 20 miles, in
the direction of Goulburn. Near to what is called the Gallery (the
approach to the bridge over the arch) is an old gum tree, growing right
over the centre of the Devil's Coach House, and 500 feet above the
gullies, which can be seen by looking over the precipice. If it were a
blue gum tree, "and nothing more," it would be as uninteresting as the
"yellow primrose by a river's brim" was to Peter Bell. As a specimen of
its kind this tree is a failure; but it happens to be in the centre of
the cave reserve, and the "blaze" on it bears the mark, "F 69." From
this point the reserve extends two and a half miles east and west by
five miles north and south, and is certainly one of the most wonderful
areas dedicated to the public.
In the rocks near to the Centre Tree is an orifice called "The Devil's
Hole." It pierces the mountain obliquely, but without much deviation
from a straight line, and a stone thrown down it takes, according to its
weight, from nine to twelve seconds to find a resting-place on the floor
of the Devil's Coach House! This is an experiment which should not be
tried without precaution, and then only under official sanction,
otherwise some serious accident may occur. It would be well to erect
notice-boards at this and several adjacent places, warning persons not
to cast stones into the caverns, for the whole mountain is full of holes
and caves and drives. A piece of rock cast heedlessly into a crevice or
perforation in one cave might mean death to a tourist in lower cavernous
regions, and there is neither medical man nor coroner within convenient
distance. From the bridge (which is guarded by wire ropes) on the
western side, the visitor looks down on the Elder Cave; the Zigzag is in
front, and below is the sylvan valley from which the "ermin'd frost" has
been thawed, and which now "laughs back the sun." To the eastward are in
view of the spectator the Nettle and Arch Caves gate, the south entrance
to the Devil's Coach House, and the waterfall to the Cave River. In the
distance can be discerned a place known as Oaky Camp, or McEwan's Camp,
which is of interest in connection with bushranging episodes of the
olden time. From the highest point of the hill over the Grand Archway
the cave-house can be seen nestling in the valley 500 feet below.
Perched upon this pinnacle, with terrible depths on each side and
awe-inspiring grandeur at every turn, the beholder is apt to realise how
very small is the space he fills in the economy of Nature, how
inadequate is language to express deep emotions of the mind, and how
marvellous are the works of the Creator!